ImagesMagUK_October_2020

www.images-magazine.com 26 images OCTOBER 2020 TIPS & TECHNIQUES Brian Walker, of Image Armor and RTP Apparel, explains how DTG print shops can avoid downtime and keep their presses printing Plus, a machine that costs five figures or more should be doing something to make money for the business. Otherwise it is costing you money. One thing you can do with downtime and to help ward off potential issues related to non-printing idleness is to create your own advertising. Print shirts promoting your company with your DTG printer. Give these out to customers, friends and family. Throw in an extra shirt advertising your company with each order going out the door. This is an inexpensive form of advertising that allows you to both keep the ink and awareness of your business flowing. Understand what keeps your printer happy DTG printers have working parameters specified by the manufacturers that are recommended to help keep the printer working at optimal performance levels. Humidity and temperature play huge roles in keeping your printer trouble-free and printing with few issues. Is the heating in your shop turned down overnight or at weekends? Inks have operating temperatures they need to work within. When coming in after a long, cold weekend, remember that it may take your printer quite a while to warm up so that the inks flow sufficiently without ink starvation and serious banding issues. Be aware, however, that heating often causes humidity levels to drop significantly. Since DTG inks are water- based, low humidity levels can wreak havoc on the inks, causing premature drying on surfaces like your print heads. This can result in bad prints as well as the need for more print head maintenance. The summer months can also be tricky. High temperatures can cause the ink to thin out and flow too easily, which can cause print head jetting issues, dripping or other related issues. In addition, high temperatures can cause the printer to overheat and stop printing altogether. A simple thermostat that shows both the temperature and humidity levels in your print room will allow you to check regularly that your printing environment is a happy one for your printer. Pairing it with a humidifier will help you to keep the humidity levels and temperature stable. Find new B2B customers Finding new customers is one of the best ways to grow your business, keep your printer running and increase profits. These customers do not necessarily always have to be the final end user of the printed shirts – other garment decorators that do not have DTG printing services are a potentially profitable business partner or customer. These B2B customers for your DTG printer might be Brian Walker Industry experts provide insight and guidance in all areas of digital garment and textile printing Digital helpdesk D irect-to-garment printing is a very attractive form of garment decorating. It allows fast, short- run, full-colour, photorealistic designs to be printed on a wide variety of garments. However, during tumultuous economic times such as we’ve experienced with the Covid shutdowns, even the best DTG printer can turn into a large paperweight that costs money instead of making it. Nothing to print today? Print something anyway Your DTG printer should be run on a regular basis. White inks still separate when sitting idle. Unless your system has a built-in recirculating system, allowing the printer to sit idle is not the best idea. Use hangtags to advertise your print shop to end users