Six Best Practices for ‘Squeezing’ the Most Benefits from Digital Squeegee

The M&R Digital Squeegee Hybrid Printing System is revolutionizing the direct-to-garment print industry. What are your best practices to take the fullest advantage of this extraordinarily versatile, high-detail imaging, and economical technology?

Contract screen printer Same Day Tees of Frankfort, Illinois – the exclusive US company employing the Digital Squeegee – offers six tips on ways to plan your print project or product for the best results.

Tip 1: Know your fabric.

On what type of fabric does your customer want an image printed? 100% percent cotton? A 50/50 or poly? A performance or tri blend?

“The Digital Squeegee will print on any material,” says Same Day Tees President Pete Bolsoni. “But different materials require different inks to get maximum results.”

And because the Digital Squeegee is a cutting-edge and evolving technology, new inks are always being developed to better serve any material.

Tip 2: Plan your art design.

As with any type of direct-to-garment printing, your art should be taken into consideration since different designs work best with different types of shirts. That’s where experts at Same Day Tees can offer ideal advice.

“If the art is a heavy or large, solid ‘blob’ image, that could result in a shirt with a heavier feel,” explains Bolsoni. If a client’s art falls into this category, consider a redesign or substitute shirt material that would take fullest advantage of the Squeegee’s capabilities.

“As a hybrid, the Squeegee uses a screen print underbase print and prints a digital print on top,” says Bolsoni. “If we’re printing on 100% cotton we can use what’s called a discharge print. With that process, which is a very, very soft print, the finished shirt is also soft and comfortable.”

However, if a heavy, solid image is to be printed on a 50/50 material or specialty shirt, breaking up that image can produce successful results.

“If this heavy image art is to go on these blends, consider a redesign that incorporates the color of the shirt as a design element. That means eliminating some of the solid image so that the background shirt color replaces it and shows through,” says Bolsoni.

Tip 3: Expect photo quality images.

In terms of image quality and clarity, no other process can compare with the stunning results produced by the Digital Squeegee.

“People see the prints and they actually think that it’s done as a full color transfer, which is kind of a back-handed compliment,” admits Bolsoni. “Some of the graphics we’re doing on this machine is really spectacular. A few printers throughout the country do an OK job at these types of designs, but usually they’re hit or miss. With the Digital Squeegee, a print that once looked close to a photograph now looks just like a photograph.”

Tip 4: No need for pretreating results in higher quality.

Pretreat marks and stains are an expected and unwelcome byproduct of the standard DTG printing process. Because the Digital Squeegee requires no pretreating, those issues are eliminated.

“With the hybrid, we’re creating a screen print underbase, then laying a digital image on top of that,” says Bolsoni. “You get better quality without worrying about any staining or possible markings on the shirt other than what you’re putting on it.”

Tip 5: Digital Squeegee is economical.

In addition to producing a higher quality product, the Digital Squeegee is competitively priced or better compared to simulated process printing, which is a process of printing involving multiple screens, colors, and longer set up times.

“Digital Squeegee printing is competitive with a simulated process screen print run of up to about 1,000 pieces,” explains Bolsoni. “For quantities greater than 1,000, clients have been willing to accept a slightly higher cost for the vastly superior quality.”

Tip 6: Printing limitations are few. And shrinking.

Positioning itself at the forefront of this cutting-edge DTG technology, Same Day Tees is constantly developing, refining, and evolving the art and science of the Digital Squeegee. Even the use of such specialty inks as glitters and glow-in-the-dark mediums will soon be within reach.

As for the current range of colors available through the Digital Squeegee?

“You’re not limited by colors. You’re not limited by what you typically would be with a screen print. We can add PMS colors, print as many colors as your heart desires,” says Bolsoni. “When it comes to designs, the limits are only your imagination.”

Source: Same Day Tees.

The preceding press release was provided by a company unaffiliated with Wide-Format Impressions. The views expressed within do not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of Wide-Format Impressions.