Heat Transfer Printing – Learning more from Speedtech…

Heat Transfer Printing is a method of printing imagery to a desired product by use of a preferred temperature of heat directly applied to both the material and sublimation paper. The sublimation paper contains sublimation dyes and inks which upon application of heat are then released into the material.

Heat Transfer printing is an excellent method of printing providing a superior range of printing quality and print longevity. Materials from cotton, to synthetic nylons, and even neoprene, are all conducive materials for this method of print application. Environmentally speaking, Heat Transfer method is an commendable choice as there is no ink to dispose of later. Instead the only waste is the paper sublimation sheet which is biodegradable.

Heat Transfer printing can be done in a few different ways depending upon the size of the production run. Small quantity sized production runs will find platen presses efficient enough although they are more labor intensive and slow. In cases where larger quantity production runs are necessary the production method of Roll Printing is more efficient and cost favorable.

Roll Printing production requires more initial setup investment money and development time which will be regained only on larger production runs. The amount of colors necessary for the printed image will have a direct effect in determining the amount of setup investment and development time. Each color ink used requires its own individual steel cylinder be finished with the desired design. Once all of the necessary steel cylinders have been produced they are then aligned to run in sequence to print the desired image to sublimation paper. To correctly arrange the steel cylinders to effectively print with no registration issues, the printer must compete several test runs. Once everything is in place only then is the production run able to be activated. Later these sublimation paper rolls will be used with rotary drum heat presses to create the desired image on the chosen product.

There are many other print application processes available all of which are determined by quantity, selected design and chosen material. Contact our Global Sourcing department to discuss if using our Speedtech’s sourcing services is the right fit for your business.