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Several years ago, I was among the speakers at a trade event sponsored by a group of sublimation industry companies. Once I took the podium on the first morning of this multi-day event, I realized that the common theory of the gathered group, the hoped for belief, was in the rise of sublimation transfer decoration of garments, and the untimely end of direct screen printing as we knew it. The participants seemed genuinely surprised when I chose to disagree, explaining that new innovations in sublimation printing would be a welcomed addition to the screen printers' options, but by no means a replacement.
Today, we all know this to be true. Sublimation has given us a means to decorate a variety of products, in full color and in small quantities. And, to a limited extent, to decorate garments as well. But, direct screen printing of garments is still by far the preferred decorating method, in comparison to the use of sublimation transfers.
Direct inkjet printing of garments has spurred the same concerns and debates. Printers and non-printers alike, manufacturers of equipment, suppliers of inks and chemicals, distributors of garments, are all asking these same questions... again.
"Will this direct inkjet printing on garments be the end of traditional screen printing?"
Just like sublimation that actually existed for many years before its more widespread acceptance (some of us were sublimating 25 years ago and longer), inkjet printing on garments has been around for a while. This technology was actually introduced through research sponsored by the French government in 1993. It only seems to have splashed onto the scene recently because several companies have introduced their own versions of this process within the past year.
Comparison of Direct Inkjet to Sublimation and Screen Printing
Today, inkjet printing, just like sublimation, is only practical on light colored garments. As with sublimation (and direct screen four color process printing), current inkjet inks are transparent and will therefore take on the color of the garment being decorated. White garments are ideal, pastels work to an acceptable level, and ash garments are decorated surprisingly well via direct inkjet printing.
The advantage over sublimation printing is that inkjet decoration works very well on 100% cotton and 50/50 garments, and requires no transfer paper. Sublimation works only with high polyester content garments. (Sublimation ink will only adhere to polyester.) As a result, inkjet printing can be accomplished on garments in the $1.00-2.00 wholesale range, while sublimation works best on garments in the $5.00-8.00 range. Direct inkjet printing, in the end, can be quite competitive with direct printing on price, and far less expensive than sublimation, after the initial equipment cost.
Production rates, as of today, are slower for inkjet printing as compared to screen printing, but setup times will offset this in lower quantities. In other words, if you take into account the time involved in preparing separations, films and screens, the time to set up a job and then tear it down, there is a point below which direct inkjet is by far preferred, since it is only a matter of sending a graphic to print. In reality, whatever you can send to a color printer from your computer, can be sent to a direct to shirt inkjet printer. The only real time involved is in the loading of the shirt and the time it takes for the print head to travel back and forth, repeating for the length of the artwork. The tradeoff is in the number of colors possible, and the prep/setup time required of direct printing of multi-color jobs. With inkjet printing, you can produce a full color print, on a single garment, in a matter of only a few minutes, from start to finish. This full color production is impractical in direct screen printing for short run work. The break even point, for screen printers today, would be in the 48-72 piece range. For non-screen printers who want to produce these goods themselves rather than job out the work to a printer, the tradeoff point would be much higher. And as with embroidery, multiple machines are being employed to produce greater quantities. Expect faster and faster production rates in the not so distant future.
Dark Garments
White ink, or some other technique for printing on dark garments, is just around the corner. Some, if not all, current manufacturers are experimenting and having some successes in this arena, but each option to date has its shortcomings. Once this technique is perfected, the opportunity for non-screen printers to compete directly with screen printing operations will be greater. And, a more competitive option will exist for screen printers to have a short run alternative to costly preparation and setup expenses for multi-color work.
Watch for innovations in printing on dark garments in the coming year, although a developmental period should certainly be expected. But, waiting for dark shirt technology might just be like waiting for the next computer operating system to hit the street before you buy. That wait could be a long one, while the options and the final product quality shake out. Best to determine whether or not the current technology will take you in the direction you want to go.
Replacing Screen Printing
Just as with sublimation, inkjet printing will be an addition to the garment decorating arsenal. And just as with sublimation, direct to shirt inkjet printing will offer up both a new opportunity for non-screen printers to compete in the marketplace, and as a supplementary decoration alternative for direct printers.
Full four color process printing might well be replaced in time by inkjet direct printing. Limited color work, as well as specialty ink printing, will still be a function of direct printing. Heavy athletic prints, puffs, suedes, high density, metallics and other specialty printing options will still be limited to direct screen printing.
Here's an interesting truth about direct screen printing. The six, seven, eight color print jobs are the ones that attract attention, but the vast majority of direct screen printing orders are actually in the one to three color range. This type work will still be achieved more quickly via direct printing (at this stage in inkjet development) than by any other method. So, in reality, nothing much will change in comparison with most current, real world, decorating production jobs.
Some potential printers will not enter the market, learning the craft of screen printing, as a result of inkjet direct opportunities. And some current printers who may be struggling with the process may leave the field in favor or the simpler inkjet option. But, as with every innovation in garment decorating, direct inkjet will only become an additional option for most in the industry.
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