The recent articles have been dedicated to DTF, and in this one, we continue the trend.
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DTF, or Direct to Film, is almost like the evolution of flex printing, a flex 2.0, if we want to call it that way.
However, it's not just flex/vinyl printing and cutting that lose prominence with this new method.
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The screen printed transfer has also become largely redundant with the use of this new method.
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Before anything else, what is screen printing transfer?
Transfer is a variation of screen printing, widely used for applications in difficult areas such as printed labels and some sleeves. Some bags, lanyards, and smaller items with 1 or 2 color prints have always been the domain of transfers.
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Well, no more!
DTF, being a flexible customization method, also absorbs much of that market. Why, you might ask? Simplification, speed, and cost.
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Being transfer a variation of screen printing, it has exactly the same limitations. It has high minimum quantities (due to all the pre-production work involved), which increases the initial cost of the work, and a limitation on the number of printing colors (we only offer single-color printing).
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As we operate in a market that increasingly demands printing in small quantities (often even individual prints), offering customers an option that requires printing large quantities (with high costs) is not a good starting point.
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With DTF, we can overcome these limitations and print small quantities and logos with almost unlimited colors at low costs.
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One of the first changes we made was to switch custom labels to this new printing method. We can offer our customers a lower cost while also providing labels with multiple colors, thus addressing the issue of minimum production quantities.
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There is also no change in quality and durability. Having already tested clothing internally with dozens of washes, the overall quality remains unchanged.
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Also for other specialized uses such as printing small logos on polyester items, we made this change.
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The screen printing transfer has a big issue on polyester that is now solved.
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When we print a slightly brighter color, during the application, there is a chemical process that occurs that alters the original color. A kind of sublimation that can turn (for example) a red into orange or a burgundy.
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With DTF, this no longer happens because it is a layer of ink with different characteristics.
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However, DTF is not the solution to all problems.
Being a digital print, it has the same issue as any other digital method of printing on clothing; it does not allow for exact Pantone colors (although we can get close in many cases).
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If you are considering printing clothing with your logo and want some textile customization on specific items or locations, contact us, and one of our sales representatives will help determine if DTF is the best option for you.
