Digital textile printing
Also known as: Digital textile printing, Roll-to-roll inkjet
Industrial inkjet printing on roll goods — prints patterns from the roll in any repeat length and colour count, ideal for fast fashion and small runs.
Description
Digital textile printing is the fastest-growing technology in the textile printing industry with about 28 percent annual growth (drupa Global Trends Report). Large inkjet lines from Kornit, MS Printing Solutions or Reggiani print roll goods in widths up to 3.20 metres at speeds up to 300 metres per hour. Depending on the application, reactive inks (cotton), disperse inks (polyester, direct or sublimation), acid inks (silk, wool) or pigment inks (universal) are used.
The process is fully digital: an RGB motif from the CAD system is converted by the RIP into ink colour channels, printed directly onto the prepared fabric and cured according to ink type (steam for reactive/acid, hot air for pigment and sublimation) and washed if needed. Repeat lengths are unlimited — no cylinder or screen limits as in rotary printing.
Advantages: no setup costs, motif change within minutes, unlimited colour count, no water consumption for cylinder engraving. Disadvantage: for runs above 3000 metres per motif classic rotary printing becomes more economical. Digital textile printing today mainly covers fashion prints, home textiles and signage.
Properties
| Process | Industrial roll-to-roll inkjet with cure |
|---|---|
| Application | Fashion fabrics, home textiles, roll goods |
| Cost | Economical up to about 3000 m per motif |
| Environmental profile | No water for cylinder engraving, less dye waste |
Related product categories
Sources & references
1- Wikipedia: Digitaldruck Wikipedia — Freie Enzyklopädie https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digitaldruck
