The DTG Column
Add DTF printing to your set-up for an allover sustainable approach to garment decoration
Why is DTF a great add on to DTG printing?
In this extended article, Dmitry Sarbaev, managing director of FLUXMALL DTG, details the ins and outs of direct to film printing and why this method could be a great add on to your direct to garment set-up.
T
he DTF printing method has rapidly entered the garment decoration industry over the last two years, invading some sectors of the market, and bringing in discussions of tremendous benefits for the new know-how.
Some experts even claimed that DTF would disrupt the DTG world and kick it out from the game by delivering greater results at a lower cost. Let’s look closer at the method itself and reflect on the pros and cons of DTF for the industry.
DTF abbreviation confusion
If you have been in the industry for a while – you will certainly experience some confusing moments related to the DTF abbreviation. For many years experts used to think of DTF as a method of a roll-to-roll direct printing on various types of fabrics. The latter defines the letter ‘F’ in the abbreviation – direct to fabric. It implies the usage of industrial printers that would feed the fabric in, print the pattern directly using the inkjet print head along the fabric width, and complete post-treatment of the fabric by the usage of stentors, steamers and polymerisation units, depending on the type of ink being utilised in the printer.
This remains intact for the professional niche of garment manufacturers and decorators, whereas the widespread direct to film application has entered our vocabulary and made DTF an abbreviation with a dual meaning. As the name suggests, it is a different type of a decoration method that has nothing to do with direct fabrics printing. Some would refer to direct to film printing
| 44 | October 2021
as PET, referring to rolls of polyester film made from stretched polyethylene terephthalate (PET).
More or less, be careful to check with your counterparts what they actually mean when they use the DTF abbreviation.
What is DTF?
In a nutshell, direct to film printing is a reverse-order DTG using special heat transfer films to apply artwork on the substrate. The artwork is pre-printed on the film – CMYK layer first, then white layer second – in order to form the solid foundation of the print on the film. The method is known to be using no pretreament. Instead, a hotmelt adhesive powder is applied on the surface of the print once it is completed on the printer. You might think of the powder as a dry glue – once melted, it is evenly spread over the white ink layer and will serve as a bonding agent in the next step when the print is heat-pressed onto a garment. All you have to do last – peel off the special film, and you get a nice DTF- printed garment in your hands!
Is DTF a threat to DTG?
Not at all! By no means, DTF has its own advantages but it would be ignorant to assert that DTG will sink in the hype of the DTF market. DTG has paved its own way over the past decade or more to become an industrial garment decoration method of digital printing, and only in the most recent years the industry professionals have been observing state-of-the-art DTG machinery built from the ground up, being rolled out so amazing quality
www.printwearandpromotion.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80
