Digital textile printing adds colourful designs to many kinds of fabric using digital inkjet printing technology. Low fixed costs are due to the lack of screen engraving and colour separation; low sample costs are because screens are not needed to produce and test for individual patterns. Therefore, it is cost-effective for smaller orders, with Fast sampling and short-term delivery, as designs can be made digitally and adjusted on the spot. Each adjustment in conventional screen printing requires a new rotary screen, which slows down lead time; Less or no stock (brands move stock risks to brand owner ‘produce what you sold’ instead of ‘sell what you produce’); High resolution and delicate patterns, flexibility and unlimited color combinations (digital printers are not limited to a maximum amount of rotary screens, i.g. colors); High savings on energy and water because there is no need to wash rotary screens to apply new colors Less waste as droplets of ink are being printed very precisely onto the fabric. No deposition of nickel on screens onto the fabric (stricter rules and regulations in the future); Unlimited repeat size, as the repeat size is not limited to the diameter of the rotary screen.
Rotary Due to the composition and thickness of the inks used in screen printing, designs placed with this method can withstand far more stress than others without compromising the print quality. Since this method requires the fabrication of screens for every colour used in an artwork, it is best reserved for large orders. The more garments placed in an order, the cheaper the cost per unit will be. Screen printing produces vibrant colours that are hard to replicate with other printing techniques. Techniques like direct-to-garment (DTG) recreate their images using cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (CMYK) dots. While it is an excellent method for replicating details, it usually pales (literally) in comparison to screen printing. Screen printing allows for a greater thickness of ink than other techniques, resulting in more possibilities for the piece’s finish. It is hard to find a printing method as versatile as screen printing. It can be done on almost any surface, as long as it is flat, including fabric, wood, plastic, and even metal, among many others. It is a basic process that remains unchanged whether it is automated or done by hand. The tools are not hard to replace and won’t become obsolete as fast as other technologies.
Disadvantages of Rotary Print
1 Not practical for small orders. As mentioned, screen printing needs more prep than other techniques before going into production. This doesn’t make it suitable for “on-demand” printing, which creates a garment as soon as it is ordered.
2 The more colours, the more expensive it is. It turns out that creating a screen for each colour can be a bit of a hassle. Colourful designs complicate the process and make it more expensive, so it is better to keep designs for screen printing with as few tones as possible.
3 It’s not environmentally friendly. While efforts have been made to create eco-friendly inks and screens, it remains a reality that screen printing still consumes a significant amount of water. Water is used to mix up inks and clean the screens, which may not seem like much at first, but manufacturers produce hundreds of garments daily (if not thousands). It can get scary when we start to add up.
4. Relative Complexity It might sound contradictory, but screen printing can be pretty complex, depending on the design and project, as it involves more steps than other methods.