How is T-shirt direct-to-garment (DTG) printing completed? Have you ever wondered how patterns are printed on garments such as T-shirts, hoodies, and shirts? In fact, there are several printing techniques that can achieve this, including DTG printing and DTF (Direct-to-Film) white ink heat transfer printing. In reality, various factors that determine which style is suitable for a printing project include the complexity of the design, the materials used, the budget, and so on.
As one of the most widely used methods, DTG (direct printing onto garments) printing. Understanding its advantages and disadvantages will surely help beginners in the printing industry answer questions such as “What is the best T-shirt printing option?”
一、What is DTG (Direct Printing onto Garments) Printing?
With the latest printing technology, DTG printing is one of the most advanced printing methods today. Its function is similar to that of the inkjet printer you see in the office. It directly prints ink on paper. Of course, this time, the medium (substrate) is fabric instead of paper, and different types of inks are used. In other words, T-shirt direct-to-garment printing is DTG printing, which uses a DTG printer to directly print water-based inks onto fabrics.
二、The Advantages of DTG Printing
Compared with other printing technologies, DTG printing has many advantages, including:
- Low setup cost;Compared with traditional screen printing, DTG printing has lower setup costs. The low setup costs eliminate the need for a minimum order quantity. If you want, you can even ask a DTG printing service to print just one T-shirt with your favorite design. A DTG printer is a type of inkjet printer and a computer peripheral device. This means that you can easily print the artwork provided by the customer onto a T-shirt by opening it in the RIP software. For traditional screen printing, producing the screen itself is an additional step and is costly.
- Easy to use;DTG printing is easy to operate.
Other printing techniques require the use of templates, vinyl cutouts, or hand-drawing pictures on special paper, and these tasks usually require abilities that many people lack. But DTG printing is different. The only steps required to use a DTG T-shirt printer are to upload the design, insert the T-shirt, and then it’s ready to go. The following DTG printer video tutorial introduces that in the user – friendly interface provided by the DTG printer solution, you can complete T – shirt printing with just a few clicks of the mouse. Also, you can easily change all printing settings and parameters in the program with a visually friendly interface
You can easily set up T-shirt printing through the DTG printer software. - High printing quality;
- Environmentally friendly production;
- Application of innovative and cutting-edge technologies;
- DTG printing has a low setup cost.
DTG printing is easy to operate.
Other printing techniques require the use of templates, vinyl cutouts, or hand-drawing pictures on special paper, and these tasks usually require abilities that many people lack. But DTG printing is different. The only steps required to use a DTG T-shirt printer are to upload the design, insert the T-shirt, and then it’s ready to go. The following DTG printer video tutorial introduces that in the user – friendly interface provided by the DTG printer solution, you can complete T – shirt printing with just a few clicks of the mouse. Also, you can easily change all printing settings and parameters in the program with a visually friendly interface
You can easily set up T-shirt printing through the DTG printer software.
DTG printing products have excellent quality.
DTG printing technology can print complex colored artworks with extremely high accuracy. Due to its precision and level of detail, you can even use it to print colored images on T-shirts and other pure cotton fabrics.
Generally, it is not easy to print on dark-colored clothes, and the quality of the printed output may vary. However, DTG printers equipped with high-quality DTG consumables can solve this problem, providing durable and high-quality industrial-grade garment printing at an affordable cost.
DTG printing is environmentally friendly.
Compared with technologies such as heat transfer sublimation and screen printing, DTG printing is a more environmentally friendly method. In addition, the new technologies created for DTG are also becoming more environmentally friendly.
Innovative upgraded technologies are applied to direct garment printing.
DTG printing is new while some other printing techs are thousands of years old.分享 - Can DTG printing technology be used in large-scale production?
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of DTG printing technology compared to traditional printing methods?
- How does DTG printing technology work? Therefore, as technology advances, we may see better research results.
The innovative DTG printer, the DTX – II dual – station DTG printer (as shown in the picture below), demonstrates that it designs to improve printing efficiency.It can complete T-shirt printing jobs one after another continuously, which makes the printing volume almost twice that of an ordinary DTG printer.
三、The Disadvantages of DTG Printing
Every coin has two sides, and DTG printing also has some disadvantages because there is no perfect method. The three most well-known disadvantages are:
- Pre-treatment is required before printing;Dark-colored fabrics need to be pre-treated before printing. By preventing the ink from quickly sinking into the fabric to avoid color mixing, pre-treatment functions like applying primer on drywall. However, the pre-treatment process sometimes leaves washable stains on the fabric.
- Fabric limitations;
- Not suitable for mass production;Printing on dark-colored materials usually results in colors that are not as vibrant as those printed on light-colored fabrics. In some cases, this may prompt a redesign or the use of lighter-colored fabrics. It can be challenging to precisely match Pantone colors, which may lead to inconsistent results. Fabric limitations for spray printing.
You should require high cotton content: To achieve good results, you usually need to choose fabrics with a high cotton content. Generally, we recommend a cotton content of 80% or higher.. Fortunately, since most T-shirts already have a high cotton content, it is rarely difficult to print on them. - The consumption of ink, especially white ink, is not low.
- Preparation work needs to be done before DTF printing.
DTG printing is not suitable for mass production.
Although DTG printing is very suitable for small-batch printing, it is not the best choice for large-scale orders. Firstly, using a DTG shirt printer for mass production takes time and may require a lot of labor. DTG printing is very expensive and is not as economical as screen printing for long-term and large-batch printing.
Cost: Compared with some other technologies, DTG shirt printers are not cheap. Due to the relatively high barriers to entry, many businesses find it beyond their price range.
四、The Prospect of the New Printing Market
DTG printing is not perfect, but it does provide printing and e-commerce enterprises with an opportunity to enter a whole new market. Previously, small-batch printing was not feasible and inefficient for printing companies due to the expensive and time-consuming preparation process. Companies require high MOQ or charge a premium for small batches.
However, this technology enables DTG printing services to print single products or even small batches at a reasonable speed. Ordering single T-shirt prints creates a wealth of new e-commerce possibilities. People can design, send to a company, and let tech finish the rest.
DTG makes a seamless on-demand printing model possible. The process is simple. The printing company will print your design for you, and then directly deliver it to your customer. What’s even better for e-commerce enterprises is that they don’t need to make any initial investment. Instead, the printing firm processes, prints, ships products on order receipt and keeps some profit.
If you are interested in DTG direct – to – garment printers or want to customize your own clothing, follow us, and we will offer you a satisfactory service