Digital textile printing is described as inkjet printing on fabrics. The digital fabric print company offers painting colorants on the fabric. Digital textile printing allows the printing of fabric with small and big designs using large format rolls of textiles. Digital print on fabric has become a part of the printing world since 1990.

Digital printing is different from offset printing. It does not make use of plates but it uses the technology of toner liquid ink. Digital printing is best suitable for items for printing large-size designs in a smaller quantity order.

What is Digital Printing on Fabrics?

Digital printing is the most promising developments in the printing industry. It opens up a door of opportunities for the textile industry in the form of textile printing.

Let us find out what digital printing on fabric is all about. Digital fabric printing is a new way of printing. Inkjet printers print designs on fabric. Instead of paper, An inkjet printer inserts a roll of fabric to print design on the fabric .

Traditional printing used a large amount of ink energy and water. Screen printing prints designs in different colors but requires having a unique screen for every color. Traditional printing requires making large volumes and it could end up in waste.

The digital print on the fabric is easier and available for limited numbers. It not only saves energy and water but also does not need a washing screen every time for a different color.

Digital printing remains environmentally friendly without using unsafe or insecure chemicals. Digital printing uses different technology; some digital printers make use of watercolor inks. Digital printing sprays color on the fabric giving complete clarity while printing. It prints clear and sharp edges with high-resolution images.

Fabric Digital printing can have fine lines with a strong color. The printed designs look fresh for a longer time without any fading effect.

Digital printed textile can emboss colorful designs on a variety of fabrics using the best digital inkjet printing technology. It prints designs without any change of different types of fabrics.

Digital printing can make use of a variety of colors in combination. It does not make use of any screens or it does not have any limit on using colors. Digital printing technology can be useful for 3D design. It is also used to print on the garments such as t-shirts, tops, jeans, etc.

History of Digital Printing on Fabrics

Only after the 1990s, the computer revolution took place and digital transformation became a part of human life. The history of digital printing on fabric is very interesting.

Designs have become a part of history. The designs were first found in the form of cave paintings a few hundred years ago. But, the digital printers started offering digital printed designs and photos after the 1990s when the use of computers became a part of human life.

Apple launched color laser printing and it has printed color photos on paper. But, there is a huge development in the past two decades in the field of the textile industry in the form of digital printing.

In 1999, the Bubble Jet Set printer started printing on the fabric using freezer paper and an iron.

Today, we have inkjet printers for various combinations of styles and designs. These styles and designs can help to print on fabrics of any type .

The digital print fabric is a process that applies colorful designs with the help of software applications on a piece of fabric. The printed designs using various color effects are appealing and sharp. Digital printing technology offers a free hand to creative designers and artists while reflecting the art on the fabric.

Things You Need to Know Before Stepping into Digital Printing

The fabric industry is a rapidly expanding and changing industry according to fashion trends. Right now, digital textile printing is the latest trend and it allows brands to print on cloth. Yet, before stepping into digital print fabric, here are a few things you need to be aware of.

• Color: Fabric digital printing is about achieving photo-quality print on your fabric, so there is no restriction on the use of colors. You are free to use or play around with the color mixtures on your design.

• Fabrics: When it comes to selecting fabrics for printing, it’s up to your taste. But, it is advisable to see the fabric in person and feel it by touching them in hand, so that you can get an accurate idea of whether it can be compatible with digital printing.

• File Standards: All photo or design files need to be in JPEG in the right scale. Also, the file standard should be between 150 to 300 DPI as per the rule of thumb.

• File Orientation: Fabric printing runs down from the height of the file leaving cut edges at the top and bottom. And the salvage of your fabric runs down to the sides during the digital printing process

How is digital printing done on fabric?

The designs or images print on a fabric just like it printed on paper. Dye sublimation printing techniques work best to print design on a fabric.

Let us find out how digital printing is done on fabric in the details below:

1. Sublimation digital printing

• Step 1: Make the design ready : Get the design ready in the required colors.

• Step 2: Print the design : Print the design mirrored reflection on a paper which is specially coated. The printer will print the design by moving over the paper and the design emerges.

• Step 3: Heat treatment : The polyester-based fabric should be used to pass the coated paper which designs under extreme heat along with pressure. It is known as using the method.

  The heat treatment should be given by transferring heat by using the best or electric machine.

2. Direct digital printing:

• Step 1: Pre-treatment : A chemical coat applies to the fabric before printing. This is a process called padding. Padding is useful because it penetrates reactive dyes into coating chemicals.

• Step 2: Make the design ready : Choose the design according to the fabric and put it in the printer for printing.

• Step 3: Printing process : The fabric places flat on the speaking printer supported by the printer belt. And the printing on the fabric will start. You will be watching it from one end to the other while the design gets printed on the fabric.

• Step 4: Process of drying : The printer is attached to the heater which helps in drawing the printed design on the fabric without wasting much time.

• Step 5: Post-treatment process : The process of printing fabric will complete after streaming the fabric and washing it. The fabric will be tried and ironed. The process is vulnerable because the fabric of different lengths requires a quantity of steam depending on fabric type and fabric size.

  These are the steps required for digital printing which has become highly common today.

What advantages of digital printing on fabric?

Digital Printing has become highly popular in all forms of business. The advantages of digital printing on fabric are defined below:

• 1. Superior quality printing : Digital printing is highly flexible and can offer unlimited cousin and design choices. It is a simple process having highly effective results.

• 2. Required less space and limited resources: Digital technology has become a part of the textile industry. It has a huge impact on other lifestyles and every day changing fashions of today. Digital printing requires a small space and it also requires a limited amount of water and energy. The cost of the color inks is lower and does not require spending exceedingly.

• 3. Limited printing without any waste: Unlike traditional printing press lot of material and printouts used to become useless but in digital printing, we can print designs according to our requirements by restricting the wastage of products and resources. If you are consistent in your work, you will always earn more by printing as per requirement.

• 4. Remain nickel-free: Digital printing can print on all types of fabrics depending on the design but it shows that it does not deposit nickel on the screen of the fabric.

• 5. No restriction on repeat size: Digital printing con prints the designs repeatedly without any limit on the sizes of printing designs.

• 6. Low investment: To start digital printing as a part of your profession what you need is a sense of design and creativity. Like screen printing production, digital printing does not need investment or a huge space. Digital printing requires low investment and limited resources.

These are some of the advantages that digital marketing can offer as a part of the business.

How long do digital prints last?

The digital fabric print company prints photographs depending on various parameters that can have a fading effect.

Digital print fabric made on fabrics can deteriorate with every wash of the cloth. Especially if you wash the clothes in hot water, it will have a serious effect on the digital print designs.

According to the information available, digital printing can last depending on the type of digital printing done on the fabric. How long do digital prints last? Let us find out.

Digital silver halide printing can last for about 17 - 40 years which depends on the brand of fiber and printing quality. Inkjet digital printing can last for 100 + years for some of the standard quality brands. But it is also dependent on various combinations of quality of the fabric, quality of color ink used, and quality of printing. Depending on these combinations it can last around 5 years or more.

Dye-Sublimation digital printing can last between 4 to 8 years. It can have the effect of light fastness. One of the brands can last over 26 years. Digital printed photographs should be put behind the glass for better protection and to avoid destruction from excessive light, humidity, or temperature.

Conclusion

Digital textile printing technology has become a part of the creative world also. Apart from printing designs of fabrics of different colors in sizes, it can also be used for photographic reproduction. Advanced Digital print fabric supposes innovation and can make use of electro-photography techniques along with the use of thermal inkjet printers. Digital printing has created new opportunities around the world in the textile sector.