Intangibles of Choosing a Singlehead Embroidery Machine

July 06, 2010
By Steven Batts, Contributing Writer

As the embroidery industry in the United States continues to evolve, it seems to be migrating toward a cottage industry, where many embroiderers work from their homes. This trend suits me well, as I am among those who work where I live.

The continued shift in the types of equipment that are manufactured and sold reflects this trend. The emphasis from multihead machines to singleheads happened years ago. The trend for smaller, more user friendly machines continues as manufacturers narrow the gap between commercial machines and those intended for home use.

This trend began about 10 years ago. I was working for a machine manufacturer and we produced a compact singlehead embroidery machine that was to help bridge the gap between a single-needle home embroidery machine and a large, 15-needle, 400-pound behemoth that was our singlehead machine. It was about half the size, had fewer needles and weighed less than 200 pounds.

While this model — as well as others from different manufacturers at that time — was met with some success, it was still big and bulky compared to tiny home machines. Many people were ready to make the transition to an industrial machine. Some wanted to, but either didn’t have enough money or sufficient space for equipment that large.

As time has passed and more people look to transition from embroidery as a hobby to a business, manufacturers and machine models have been added to the entry-level commercial embroidery machine market. If anything, the abundance of brands and machine models have made it more complicated to figure out which is best for starting a business.

To that end, I would like to offer some simple beginning pointers on selecting that all-important first machine that can be used to launch a business.

It’s Just Business
Have a business mindset when buying the machine. Remember that you are not looking for a machine that’s cute, sleek or even cheap. Rather, you’re looking for a piece of equipment that will be responsible for providing your livelihood.

Have you ever noticed the vehicles that are used as taxicabs? They are not the flashiest, most plush vehicles around. Cab companies look for cars that fit the necessities of the job (read: lots of room) and are durable. They tend to select models that have been on the market for a number of years so that their reliability has been proven, and parts and maintenance service are easily available.

When looking for a singlehead embroidery machine, look for one that is easy to use and enables you to get a variety of different types of jobs on and off the machine quickly. Most of all, you want something durable. If it does malfunction, you want support quickly.

Support
Even if you have the most durable embroidery machine in the world, it won’t do much good if you don’t know how to use it or can’t get support. Every startup embroidery shop will need some type of help. Even if the machine is working flawlessly, it may not seem so to the novice.

Embroidery includes many variables, from designs, to fabric types, to stabilizer tensions. This creates a bit of a learning curve, and you will need help to get through these and other issues without panic and the risk of ruining lots of garments.

This is what adds cost to equipment prices. Creating manuals and training materials costs money, as does having technical staff available to answer questions.

I was on a service call a few years ago for a machine that had hardly run since the owner had purchased it. He couldn’t get anyone from the distributor to work on it and had hired me as a third party to see if I could fix it. I worked on the machine for several hours and got it running better than it was. However, I wasn’t totally familiar with the brand so there were still problems I couldn’t fix.

Upon discussing the machine with the owner, I learned that he bought it because it was a few thousand dollars cheaper than another brand he had considered. After a brief pause, he gave me a look as if to say, “I have already lost more than $2,000 in time and production by getting a machine that has little or no support.”

These are some of the intangible things to consider when selecting a machine. Next time, we will sort through the specific differences in machine types and how to select one that best fits your needs.

Steven Batts, a consultant with 17 years experience in the embroidery industry, owns Righteous Threads, Greensboro, N.C., which offers digitizing, embroidery and machine maintenance services. Steven regularly leads seminars at ISS shows and is an industry speaker and consultant. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail Steven at righteousthreads@gmail.com.



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