Choosing a good textile printing partner

Investing in printing materials and/or machinery often marks the beginning of a long and profitable partnership between the supplier and the investor — if the investor has chosen wisely! The substantial expenses materials and machinery comprise to a company make it worthwhile to ask certain questions before clicking the PURCHASE button. To help you choose a good textile printing partner, we'll take this opportunity to answer some pressing questions.

Question 1: Is the supplier experienced and solidly anchored in the industry?
‍The first questions you should ask is, is the supplier an industry veteran? Is it familiar with all relevant industry mechanisms? Does it have an established supply chain? Is it flexible enough to adapt to changing conditions and needs? Does it have many other satisfied business partners? An experienced company can typically answer these questions in the affirmative. The fact that it is seasoned proves its ability to deliver dependably and create value for customers. Newly established companies, on the other hand, have still to pass those metaphorical exams and are fundamentally unable even to guarantee their future existence. Hence, always consider the supplier’s historicity prior to engaging with it.

Question 2: Does the supplier possess considerable knowledge about textiles?
‍Digital printing originates from the graphics industry. As the graphics industry was the first to make use of digital printing, many digital textile printing machines have come about through modification and conversion of graphical printing machines. The print heads of these machines are almost all designed to print on flat surfaces such as paper and film. On such substrates, printheads can move close to the surface and avoid color positioning errors caused by printhead speed, color release time, angle deviations etc. When printing on textile, the heads should be as far away from the surface as practically possible, since textiles much more than paper or film are three-dimensional and topographically living materials that can stretch, upraise, and move.

Textile materials also have greater variation between them than paper and film. One day you’re working with delicate silk fabrics, the next with heavy cotton canvases, and you should be able to print equally well on both. Different materials require different treatment methods, which much more so than paper and film will make demands on your production setup. Quickly moving very different textiles through the printer takes skill and the right technology.

When on the lookout for a printing supplier, you should favor suppliers whose printing machines are aimed especially at textiles and who have extensive experience in machine-treating textiles. A supplier who designs its machines specifically for textiles and uses printheads that allow for higher print head placement above the substrate is a supplier with extensive knowledge of and experience with the textile industry. This supplier will provide you with the best possible equipment for your printing production.

Question 3: Does the supplier provide top-of-the-line services?
‍Expanding your production setup with a new printing machine takes more than just its purchase. After its acquisition, it must be added and adjusted to your manufacturing process, the right conditions for its operation must be established, and employees must be instructed in its use. Additionally, colors will only look as desired when they have been correctly color profiled and applied, a process requiring knowledge of how colors are created in digital machines. The supplier delivers this knowledge in the form of advice from an experienced and competent specialist.

The right support and guidance help add and adjust your new printing machine to your manufacturing process, a useful service among many a capable textile printer can offer. Optimal utilization of your new machinery is best achieved with a partner who’s there for you when you need it to be. Always learn beforehand to what degree your potential business partner can deliver the necessary services and expertise when called upon to do so.

Question 4: How bright does the supplier’s future look?
‍When investing in new digital, technological capital, you should to the greatest extent possible ensure that the business from which you buy it will be an industry player for many years to come. Be sure to get an impression of a textile printer’s economic and structural credibility before forming a partnership with it.

Question 5: Should Jet Sport be my business partner?
‍At Jet Sport we understand the most reciprocally profitable business relationships to be those flexible enough to adapt to both short and long-term market conditions, and those which enable the customer to get the most out of its printing equipment. We possess extensive knowledge of local, national, and international market conditions and requirements, and understand every aspect of your company and its needs. Our long history speaks to our capabilities and staying power. With several screen and digital printing decades in our rear-view mirror, we know everything worth knowing about fabrics and textile printing. Yes, Jet Sport should be your business partner.

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