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Printing can also be defined as localized dyeing.Defined as the application of dye or pigment in a different pattern on the fabric and by subsequent after treatment of fixing the dye or pigment to get a particular design.Sometimes a printed fabric can be identified by looking at the back side of fabric where there is no design or color as face side.In cotton, dyes like vat, reactive are usedIn manmade, dyes like disperse and cationic are used

DIFFERENT STYLES OF PRINTING

There are three basic approaches to printing a color on a fabric

DIRECT PRINTING

DISCHARGE PRINTING

RESIST PRINTING

DIRECT PRINTING

In this type of printing dye is applied onto the fabric by carved block, stencil, screen, engraved roller etc.The dye is imprinted on the fabric in paste form and any desired pattern may be producedExample:-Block Printing, Roller Printing, Screen Printing etc.

DISCHARGE PRINTING

In this method the fabric is dyed and then printed with a chemical that will destroy the color in designed areas.Sometimes the base color is removed and another color printed in its place.

RESIST PRINTING

In this method bleached fabric are printed with a resist paste ( a resinous substance that cannot be penetrated when the fabric is immersed in a dye ).The dye will only affect only the parts that are not covered by the resist paste .After the fabric has passed through a subsequent dyeing process the resist paste is removed, leaving a pattern on a dark background

DIFFERENT TYPES OF PRINTING

BLOCK PRINTINGROLLER PRINTINGSCREEN PRINTINGFLAT-SCREEN PRINTINGROTARY PRINTINGTRANSFER PRINTINGSTENCIL PRINTINGDIGITAL PRINTINGBATIK PRINTINGTIE & DYE

BLOCK PRINTING

It is the oldest and simplest way of printingIn this method a wooden block with a raised pattern on the surface was dipped into the printing colorant and then pressed face down on to fabric. The desired pattern was obtained by repeating the process using different colors. Generally the wooden block is carved out of hand Printing is done manually

BLOCK PRINTING

BLOCK PRINTING

BLOCK PRINTING

BLOCK PRINTING

ADVANTAGES

Simple method of printing

No expensive equipment required

No limitation in repeat of size of style

Prints produced have great decorative value and stamp of craftsmanship

DISADVANTAGES

Involves much manual work

Method is slow and therefore low output

Good skilled labors needed for multi color design

Fine and delicate designs hard to produce

ROLLER PRINTING

It is the machine method of printing designs on cloths by engraved rollers.The design is engraved on the surface of a metal roller, to which dye is applied, and the excess is scraped off the roller's surface, leaving dye in the engraved sections. When it rolls across the fabric, the dye on the roller transfers to the fabric.

Diagram of roller printing m/c

ROLLER PRINTING

ADVANTAGES

Large quantities of fabric at the rate of 914-3658m per hour can be printed.

Faulty joints or joint marks are absent.

Fine sharp outlines and good prints can be obtained which is difficult to get in block printing.

DISADVANTAGES

Not economical for short run of fabrics.

Difficult to produce blotch designs.

Repeat of design limited to the size of the rollers.

Setup cost of roller printing m/c is high

It is one of the oldest way of printing.In it color is applied to the fabric by brushing or spraying the interstices of a pattern cut out from a flat sheet of metal or waterproof paper or plastic sheet or laminated sheet.A stencil is prepared by cutting out a design from a flat sheet of paper, metal, or plastic.

STENCIL PRINTING

Example of stencil printing

STENCIL PRINTING

ADVANTAGES

Simple and cost effective.

Stencils can be made rapidly and can be used for small orders.

Color combination is good in it.

DISADVANTAGES

Good design is difficult to obtain.

Process is laborious.

Not suitable for large scale production.

The foil (0.5 mm) is somewhat thicker than flex, which causes the design to appear slightly elevated from the apparel and results in the plush feel. The colors have a soft glow to them.

Flock Printing

Printing technique consisting of the application of flock (very short fiber) to the surface of a fabric by means of an adhesive. The flock may be contained in the adhesive paste, may be dusted onto it, or applied electrostatically to hold it erect. Used to print various small designs onto the fabric, such as dots and figures, especially on light-weight or sheer fabric.

Flex is a printing technique where the design is cut from a colored foil and then pressed onto the shirt under high heat.

Flex PRINTING

A polyurethane material that has a smooth finish. It is heat pressed at over 350 degrees until the material permanently adheres to the fibers of the garment. It is available in dozens of colors that include specialty surfaces as metallic, neon, glitter and glow-in-the-dark

High Density Ink

High Density is a popular special effect ink that when printed, rises straight up off the shirt and has a hard rubbery feel with sharp edges. A High density print has slight glossy finish.

Suede is a special effect ink similar to high density ink except with a soft leather like feel. Suede ink can be either printed high for a 3-D effect or printed normally for a more subtle felt like feel.

A finished sueade print has a matte finish and is very soft to the touch.

High Density and Suede are clear bases that can be added to any print color.

(example blue-"High Density" grey "Suede"

FOIL

Foil is actually a heat press application, but can be applied on press for certain affects. Foil adheres to plastisol inks or a clear foil adhesive. Available in silver, gold, bronze, red, and blue. There are some awesome iridescent foil affects available too - just check with your sales rep

Foil Printing

Foil printing is to print some pattern with the foil on the fabric for shiny effect. There are twos kind of foil printing method.

In the first method, the pattern is printed by a foil/transfer adhesive on the fabric, and then pressed with foil paper by hot steel roller.

The pressure is generally 5-6 bar on printed portion and at 190 degree Celcius on fusing machine for 8-12 seconds.

In foil printing, the quality of the adhesive is very important.

Generally it is made up of acrylic co-polymer with water as diluent.

Cheaper qualities show very poor stretch, loss of softness and smoothness

after five washes and look very unlike the original print.

The foil should not stick to cured inks under pressure.

Normally a matting agent is added to avoid sticking.

In the second method, printing is done on the foil paper first, and then foil is

pressed on the fabric with hot steel roller or iron.

Foil paper is called the stamping foil paper. Actually it is not the paper but

the detachable foil film on the plastic base.

Generally it is PET film of 15 micron thickness, available in widths of 640 or 1500mm.

Suede leather is made from the underside of the skin, primarily lamb, although goat, pig, calf and deer are commonly used

Suede is a special effect ink similar to high density ink except with a soft leather like feel. Suede ink can be either printed high for a 3-D effect or printed normally for a more subtle felt like feel.

A finished sueade print has a matte finish and is very soft to the touch.

High Density and Suede are clear bases that can be added to any print color.

(example blue-"High Density" grey "Suede"

Suede ink was derived from puff ink. The process for printing is similar, but suede ink results with with a raised fuzzy nap reminiscent of suede leather

One of the original specialty affects in the world of screen printing. Puff ink is a plastisol that has been modified with the addition of a heat reactive foaming agent. The ink expands when exposed to high temperature heat as the garment is cured

Burn Out Printing:

1. PC or CVC fabric.

2. Paste + Any acid liverating salt (like Nacl,Na2 so4)

3. Steaming

4. Washing (Roubasting wash)

5. Burnout print complete

Only print technicians will understand the above 5 points

.

Step by Step Printing Process of Burn out Print:

1st Step: Develop the print design and screen with the buyer provided artwork.

2nd St ep: Knit the fabric with the yarn of following composition

a) 60% polyester 40% cotton OR

b) 40% polyester 60% cotton Or similar like that.

3rd Step: After complete the kitting of fabric send the gray or scouring fabric to printing factory.

4th Step: Perform the print on this fabric. Here, the cotton part will be destroyed by the acid but polyester portion will

be remain same.

5th Step: Then we will dye and finished the fabric as per our require color.

.

Reflective Ink

Reflective ink is made up of a clear base combined with

thousands of tiny aluminum coated glass beads.

These beads are highly reflective when exposed to light.

The ink has a muted grey color when printed and

a bright silver/white color when reflecting.

Because the ink color is so muted we recommend that all the

reflective ink used in a design be either outlined

or surrounded by other print colors to improve.

Adding reflective ink to your design is a relatively inexpensive

way to make sure that your shirts will stand out from

the crowd.

Composition

TiO2-BaO-SiO2

Refractive Index

1.93+-0.01nd

Size range

20-105um(can be provided by request)

Color

siliver

Plasticharge Ink

Plasticharge is a hybrid of Discharge and plastisol ink. In Plasticharge printing a discharge solution is mixed 50/50 with traditional plastisol inks.

The principal behind plasticharge printing is that when printing, the discharge portion of the ink will remove the garment color while at the same time the plastisol ink will lay down a thin deposit of new color.

This type of printing like discharge should be washed before being worn.
The finished print very light and soft to the touch.

Plastisol is a thermoplastic, it will remelt if it comes in contact with anything hot enough. For that reason, plastisol prints cannot be ironed. If an iron touches a print, it will smear the ink

Plastisol ink is a PVC (Some inks are Phalide Free) based system that essentially contains no solvent at all. Along with UV ink used in graphic screen printing, it is referred to as a 100% solid ink system. Plastisol is a thermoplastic ink in that it is necessary to heat the printed ink film to a temperature high enough to cause the molecules of PVC resin and

plasticizer to cross-link and thereby solidify, or cure. The temperature at which most plastisol for textile printing cures at is in the range of 300 F to 330F

Water Base Pigment Printing
Water base pigment is a type of powder that has to be mixed with water to get pigments. The powder comes in various colors different shades of each color can get by amount the water mixed in the powder. During the mixing there is possibility for dust particle to get into it since the mix up makes a soft paste then the dust particles can be dried out easily. Water base pigments are the largest majority of pigments used today. It gives quality and long lasting print

Water-based ink utilizes either dyes or pigments in a suspension with water as the solvent. The evaporation of the water is necessary to set or cure the ink. This curing can take place either at room temperature or using a forced-air dryer depending upon the specific water-based ink used and the speed or volume of production.

when automatic machine printing came in vogue, there was a need to have trouble- free-non-choking inks which led to the development of PVC based plastisol inks. Since the beginning of the 21st century there has been an increased awareness about the ill effects of PVC / residual VCM in PVC and phthalate plasticizers used in these inks. Leading European garment brands have been intensively campaigning for PVC / phthalate / APEO / formaldehyde / heavy metal free water based inks. This led to the shift back to water based inks. The challenge to day is to offer water based systems meeting the eco-standards but at the same time ability to address the user friendliness especially on high speed automatic machines.

Khadi Print (White Ink Print)
Khadi Print is mainly done on dark or light colored fabric. The Printing method involves titanium dioxide with other auxiliaries mixing up these two materials into the colorants gives different color combination and the important factors always to keep in mind proper mixing gives need print and soft handle

SCREEN PRINTING

It involves the application of the printing paste through a fine screen placed in contact with the fabric to be printed. A design is created in reverse on the screen by blocking areas of the screen with a material such as an opaque paint. The screen is then placed over the fabric and the printing paste is forced through the open areas of the screen using a flexible synthetic rubber or steel blade known as a squeegee.

PROCESS OF SCREEN PRITING

SCREEN PAPER SIDE

SCREEN SQUEEZE SIDE

ORIGINAL PRINT

PRINT ON FABRIC

SCREEN PRINTING

ADVANTAGES

Simple and cost effective.

Quick pattern making

16 colors can be used in a design.

Sharp lines and features easily produced.

DISADVANTAGES

For high production large no. of tables required.

Delicate shading difficult to obtain.

Screen clogging may be there in fine areas.

It is the advanced version of screen printing by using automatic m/c to do workIt consists of printing table, conveyor belt, number of screens, mechanism to print on the fabric, etc.First the fabric is brought on the printing table through a feeding arrangement and it is gummed to the conveyor belt on the table

FLAT-SCREEN PRINTING

Conveyor brings fabric periodically under screen and stops while the screen are lowered on the required parts of the fabric.Printing paste is distributed throughout the full length of the screen.The squeeze is pressed to the screen .One or more strokes of the squeeze ensure simultaneous printing of the pattern by the common action of all screens which applies printing paste as required by the color in the design.

FLAT-SCREEN PRINTING M/C

FLAT SCREEN PRINTING

ADVANTAGES

Greater production than manual screen printing

Printing with different repeat can be made easily

Good print is obtained

DISADVANTAGES

A big setup required for more number of screens

Prints with more colors may not be possible

Printing paste not evenly controlled

Rotary screen printing involves a series of revolving metal cylinder , each with revolving screens, each with a stationary squeegee inside which forces the print paste onto the fabric. Twenty or more colours can be printed at the same time. The process is much quicker and more efficient than flat screen printing .

ROTARY SCREEN PRINTING

Working of rotary screen printing m/c

A rotary screen printing m/c

Feeding of color to rollers

TRANSFER PRINTING

It is a indirect method of printing in which dyes are transferred from paper to a thermoplastic fabric under controlled conditions of temperature, time and pressure.The image is first engraved on a copper plate.Then pigment is applied on these plates. The image is then transferred to a piece of paper, with a layer of glue applied . This is then placed on the fabric and heat and pressure applied which fixes the print onto fabric.

Process of transfer printing

High density printing inkjet transfer paper
1. Washable
2. Good touch feeling
OEKO-TEX standard 100

High Density 3D print heat transfer printing on T shirt shoes label print with OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100

2,Filmthickness:0.07-0.09mm

3,Peelingway:hotorcoolpeeling

4,Transfertemperature:140-160centigrade,

5,Transfertime:10-12s,

6,Transferpress:5-6kg

7,Gluefitness:fine

8,Suitforcotton,blendtextile,suchasunderwearcloth,swimsuit,physicalbeautysuit,

advertisingshirt,shoes'tongue

9.Deliverytime

1)5-8daysforsamples

2)5-10daysforproductionaccordingtothequantity.

TRANSFER PRINTING

ADVANTAGES

Operation is simple and no expensive m/c is required.

No after treatment of fabric required

Print on fabric is of excellent quality

DISADVANTAGES

Process applicable to synthetic fabric like polyester .

Color range is limited.

Cost of printed paper high.

Not economical for small orders.

RESIST PRINTING

There are two types of resist printingBATIK PRINTINGTIE & DIE PRINTING

Originated on island of Java and is a cottage based industry.Batik is derived from word AMBATIKThe resist-dyeing process, whereby designs are made with wax on a fabric which is subsequently immersed in a dye to absorb the color on the unwaxed portions, is known as batik printing.Special feature is the fine lines of color running irregularly across the fabric.

BATIK PRINTING

BATIK PRINTING

ADVANTAGESGives a good artistic effectCheap printingGreater artistic designFabric has a rich and graceful appearanceDISADVANTAGESLaboriousTime takingCracking effectDye should be applied at low temperature than wax.

TIE & DYE

It is same as that of batik printing but here the dye is resisted by knots that are tied in the cloth before it is immersed in dye bath.The outside of the knotted portion is dyed, but inside is not penetrated if the knot is firmly tied.This gives a characteristic blurred or mottled effect .

TIE & DYE

ADVANTAGEInteresting design created on fabricNo m/c cost is thereDISADVANTAGECostlyLaboriousTime takingSkilled labour required

DIGITAL PRINTING

It is the more advanced type of printing.This includes :-

Jet spray printing

Electrostatic printing

Photo printing

Differential printing

PHOTO PRINTING M/C

Also known as ethnic or traditional print. In this print classical motifs or traditional collections are used such as mango, elephant with the chariots, old musical instruments etc. the culture of any particular place can also be considered such as tie and dye , batik, block of Rajasthan etc

CLASSICAL

FLORAL PRINT

It has the print of varieties of flower either in bunch or single spotted , huge or small , combination of leaves and other addings.

Color combination is very important.