ImagesMagUK_October_2021

www.images-magazine.com OCTOBER 2021 images 53 MARKET INTELLIGENCE a point echoed by Folker Stachetzki, marketing manager at Brother, who says: “It feels thick and hard, exactly the opposite of the soft feel you get with DTG printing. Many people (myself included) find this very uncomfortable, especially with large-area prints.” It’s not a view shared by Zahid, who says the sample DTF print that Colin sent him from the Resolute machine “felt like butter”. Jim Nicol, managing director at TMT, says DTF prints feel soft, while Jason at Lofty advises that “with some clever artworking, large solid areas can be printed and left feeling as if there’s barely anything on the shirt”. Driving forward Brother is another DTG printer manufacturer that, like Polyprint, has created a driver for its DTG machine, the GTXpro, to allow its users to produce both DTG and DTF prints. “We want maximum flexibility for the users of our printers,” explains Folker. He says DTF printing is a good solution when it comes to applying the same motif to different surfaces or materials. “It is therefore ideal for markets that have to react flexibly to small and medium runs or frequently use the same design.” For those looking into investing in DTF, he advises that first they should consider what they want to print and whether the return on investment is right. “Then you should also consider whether a printer is worthwhile with which you can do more than just DTF printing in order to be more flexible.” John Potter, a consultant for MHM Direct GB, believes DTF will end up complementing DTG rather than taking over from it, and that, while he thinks it’s a good solution and one that is ideal for neck label and chest pockets, it’s “still a transfer”, and that “a lot of companies aren’t very struck on transfers”. DTF is still an area that the company is seriously considering though, which is why it is currently running tests on a DTF printer to see if it can come up to the standard required by the MHM Direct GB team. “We won’t launch it until we know four things,” says John. “Number one, it’s from a decent supplier, and that supplier’s reliable. Number two, it needs to be built properly. Number three, there needs to be continuity of supply. Number four, we need to be able to back it up. We need to be able to get spare parts. We need to be able to provide a service to customers.” Sold out for 2021 “The fact is at the end of the day, 90% of everything we’ve sold so far on the DTF front is to people that have already had, or have, DTGs,” Jim declares. “They just want something more reliable and suitable for a wider range of garments that removes the need for any pretreatment.” And the reason he thinks people are opting for DTF over DTG? “It’s better. It’s quicker, it’s cheaper, it’s easier, it’s more reliable.” Another advantage of the R-Jet Pro DTF printer is it enables prints as wide as 56cm, “which will give you an almost all-over print on a T-shirt from back to front, which makes it look fantastic”, he adds. The R-Jet system has had a flying start in the UK, with Resolute alone having installed 27 systems by mid-September, and with TMT and Resolute investing in larger delivery vehicles and extra technicians to allow them to carry out up to 30 installations a month from September onwards. “Our installation calendar is booked up and closed for the remainder of 2021 and we are now taking orders for delivery and installation for 2022,” reports Colin. “By the end of this year over 150 systems will already be installed, with numbers ordered still on the increase as the word spreads.” Identity Printing has been allowing This polyester polo was left in a hot tub for two weeks for chlorine testing. The seams on the shirt bleached, but the DTF print, created on the R-Jet Pro DTF 600, was untouched by the chlorine, reports Colin Marsh We want maximum flexibility for the users of our printers Jim Nicol of TheMagicTouch with the Resolute R-Jet Pro DTF 600