www.images-magazine.com APRIL 2022 images 49 DIGITAL PRINTING / DTF Adam Buckby, director Tell us a bit about your business. Sublique Ltd is a UK-based company and boasts a team with 30 years’ experience in the garment printing industry. Our speciality is producing a wide range of personalised products, recreating an original image which can then be printed onto a range of items. Using state-ofthe-art, high-quality, dye sublimation technology, we produce colourful textiles or garments without losing any original detail. We have also recently invested in a DTF machine which is capable of producing high-quality digital transfers. Why did you decide to invest in DTF printing? To expand our product range. What DTF machine did you choose and why? A Polytech D60, purchased in December 2021 at a cost of £19,000 including VAT. I was invited to see a demo and was extremely impressed with the results and the quality of the transfer. What do you think are its main advantages? Historically transfers were screen printed and the process was both timeconsuming and limited to a set number of colours. With the DTF process it is a four-colour printing process in line with the white backer then powdered, which is a faster process. The advantage of the DTF transfers against vinyl printed transfers is the flexibility. Is there anything you’d like to see in an upgrade or don’t particularly like about it? I did not like the take-up system at the back of the dryer as it was too powerful for the machine, causing issues by dragging the film through instead of being a constant wind even after putting it on the minimum torque. To mitigate against this I replaced it with a takeup system that I used on one of my sublimation machines. This has resolved the issue. What’s it like to use? It’s quite easy to use, but does take a Sublique: Polytech D60 from R A Smart bit of time to feed the film through the machine. Also the loss in time and money to feed the film in and then, when you’ve finished the job, again having to feed the film out – you do also lose a metre of film each time, which is an additional cost as it can’t be re-used. What type of work do you use the DTF printer for? Various transfers, the orders I have are to be used in the promotional industry. Does your DTF machine work in combination with any of your other machines? It runs in conjunction with my sublimation machines. What would be your advice to others thinking of buying a DTF machine? My advice would be to ensure your costings are accurate from the outset. Adam was “extremely impressed with the results and the quality of the transfer” at the demo of the Polytech D60 Is there anything else you’d like to add about the D60? Some additional sources of film, powder and ink would be advantageous to reduce my costs. www.sublique.co.uk
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