The Impressions Product Guide

	Brought to you by Impressions and ISS
	December 16, 2008 • Vol. 5, No. 21


SPONSORS Click on any logo for more information.

Digital Revolution
The digital revolution in garment decorating keeps speeding ahead, making it hard to keep up with all of the new products companies introduce. Check out this comprehensive roundup of the latest direct-to-garment inkjet printers, heat presses, accessory items and more to stay abreast of the latest digital decorating products.

For the latest news and tips, visit us at impressionsmag.com.

Sawgrass Technologies features its NaturaLink white ink solution for the DirectAdvantage direct-to-garment inkjet printer. The white ink solution produces superior color vibrancy for CMYK reproduction on dark garments at a fast speed, says the company.

With a 14" x 16" print area and a 110-degree opening, the DK16 digital clamshell heat press from Vastex Screen Printing Equipment features a solid steel welded frame and supercoil-microwinding heater technology to ensure consistent heat and pressure.

With magnetic auto-open and magnetic-assist lockdown, the Hotronix Auto Clam heat press from Stahls' ID Direct provides semi-automatic functionality without the need for an air compressor. It also has digital time, temperature and pressure displays.

The 550 series digital mug heat press from Printa Systems prints mugs up to 5 inches tall. It features a patent-pending dual-action, spring-loaded wrap design that provides equalized pressure and yields consistent print results.

Now with a twin timer that allows users to program two independent time settings to count down for any two-step process, the 16" x 20" Phoenix Phire clamshell heat press from Imprintables Warehouse features a laser-quality steel frame and cast-in tubular heating elements to inhibit cold spots.

Mesa Distributor Inc.'s Kiosk HM-1 direct-to-garment digital inkjet printer features one eight-channel head with four channels of white ink and four channels of color. The printhead also moves over the substrate, resulting in more accurate registration and a smaller footprint, says the company.

The DK20 Auto Release heat press from Dalco Athletic is designed with an electro-magnetic device that automatically opens the press at the end of a timing cycle. It features a 16" x 20" printing area and opens up 110 degrees.

Transfer Express offers its Swinger heat press that features a floating top platen that swings out of the way to provide a heat-free workspace underneath. It can print oversize transfers with its platinum RTD heat sensor, and has a Teflon-coated upper platen to resist sticking.

The Roland CAMM-1 vinyl cutter from Coastal Business Supplies Inc. can produce graphics for garments, banners, vehicle graphics, store displays and heat transfers.

EmbSupplies.com's new Inkjet Artist Gesso Coated Canvas is made from 100% bleached cotton coated with a patented infusion preparation for inkjet printing. It's white with a matte finish, and is manufactured using an environmentally friendly process.

The d2 238 heat press from iDekusa is an inline modular press that features multiple stations and unique specialty components for efficient decorating on many types, sizes and parts of garments, according to the company.

Model 418 from Insta Graphics Systems is a digital cap press available for decorators' heat seal requirements. The company provides a lifetime warranty on all of its machines' upper heating elements.

The Kornit 932NDS direct-to-garment digital printer from Hirsch Intl. is designed to print on light and dark shirts with no set-up time, screens or cleanup needed, according to the company. It uses Spectra piezo electric printheads and boasts a printing area that measures 14" x 18".

Equipment Zone's new SpeedTreater automatic pretreatment machine consistently lays down the correct amount of pretreatment spray to garments. It measures 2 ½' x 5' and can fit right next to a digital printer. The system comes with a one-year limited warranty and a lifetime of free technical support.

The Digital Knight controller is a new feature for all Geo Knight heat presses that offers a digital pressure gauge displaying current pressure or changes made in pressure when clamping a press. It features a back-lit display, dual pre-press timer and improved programmable presets.

Graphics One's GO RIO 64-inch dye sublimation printer offers a printing width of 63.6 inches. It has patented I2 Intelligent interweaving print technology that allows for increased print speed and virtually eliminates print banding, according to the company.

The Hotronix Hover heat press offers dual digital time, pressure and temperature settings, allowing an operator to set the press for two functions: hovering or pressure. It first hovers over a garment to flash dry ink, then presses down to fully cure the garment and set the ink.

Iron Man offset heat transfer paper from Neenah Paper is available for light and dark fabrics. The transfer paper is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, made using renewable energy and manufactured carbon neutral as defined by the Chicago Climate Exchange.

The new DTG Kiosk II direct-to-garment printer from Pantograms Mfg. Co. Inc. has a self-cleaning tank system and seven bulk ink canisters to allow it to quickly print full-color, high-resolution designs on T-shirts and non-textiles up to 5 ½" inches thick.

Power Imaging Inc.'s grand-format, low-solvent PI 3204FX sign printer is an industrial-strength machine that has four 40 pl piezo printheads with 360 dpi natural resolution. It has automatic media feeding and can print on uncoated flex banner, self-adhesive vinyl, paper and other media.

The Bullet from SWF East Inc. is an oversized direct-to-garment digital printer that can print four large or eight standard-size shirts in one pass, with a different design on each shirt. It is built with eight-color piezo printheads and an auto-adjustable bed height.

U.S. Screen Print & Inkjet Technology's Fast T-Jet Blazer Express is a tabletop machine that prints images measuring up to 16" x 20" on one shirt at a time at a rate of approximately 40-60 shirts per hour for light shirts and 12-15 shirts per hour for dark garments.

The environmentally friendly VersaUV LEC-300 inkjet printer/cutter from Roland DGA Corp. comes equipped with UV inks and safe, low-heat LED lamps. It prints CMYK, white and clear ink on a wide range of substrates including foils, metallic and synthetic papers, and more.


Check out our coverage of this cool category! Link to fun and informative stories below.
Multitasking Graphics Offer Great Value Follow these tips to make 10 bold graphics for digital printing from one piece of art.	How to Create a Digital Underbase for a Direct-to-Garment Printer Follow these procedures to lay the foundation for great inkjet prints.

Catalogs are perhaps the single most important tool you have as a decorator. Click on the links below to see how Impressions has developed true-to-form virtual versions of these industry vendors' catalogs:

Fruit of the Loom

Blue Generation

Continental Clothing

Gildan

American Apparel

Article 1

Miss an issue of IPG? Click below to catch up.

11/18/08: Active Lifestyle Apparel

11/4/08: 2008 Fall ISS Highlights

10/22/08: Earth-Friendly Products

10/7/08: SGIA Product Preview

9/9/08: Outerwear

8/12/08: Teens and Tweens

If the Impressions Product Guide was forwarded to you, and you
would like to receive your own copy, click here to subscribe. It's free.

Editorial & ISS Show Office
1145 Sanctuary Parkway, Ste. 355 Alpharetta, GA 30009-4772
(770) 569-1540, (800) 241-9034, Fax: (770) 569-5105

Impressions Product Guide Editor: Susie McManus, smcmanus@impressionsmag.com
Editor in Chief: Marcia Derryberry, mderryberry@impressionsmag.com
Senior Editor: Terry Murphy, tmurphy@impressionsmag.com
Managing Editor: Jamar Laster, jlaster@impressionsmag.com
Associate Editor — Digital Media: Haley Hobson, hhobson@impressionsmag.com
Associate Publisher/National Sales Manager: Laurie Gonz, laurie.gonz@nielsen.com
Graphic Designer: Ben Carpenter, BC Squared, www.bc2design.com
Advertising Account Executive: Kent Deardorff, kent.deardorff@nielsen.com
Advertising Account Executive: Jeanine Morgan, jeanine.morgan@nielsen.com

About Our Sponsors

Made in Downtown L.A.

American Apparel is a vertically integrated manufacturer, distributor and retailer of branded fashion basic apparel based in downtown Los Angeles. American Apparel employs more than 6,700 people and operates a leading wholesale business that supplies T-shirts and other casual wear to distributors and screen printers.

Gildan is a vertically integrated marketer and manufacturer of premium quality branded basic apparel. The company manufactures basic T-shirts, sport shirts and sweatshirts for sale in the wholesale imprinted sportswear industry in the United States, Canada and other international markets. Gildan's overall mission is to deliver better value through better design.

Kavio! provides unmatched workmanship, innovative design and exceptional customer service to the apparel industry. Kavio! offers the promotional products, imprinted and embroidery markets with a range of basic to fashion apparel available in a multitude of vibrant colors. Our collection includes Kavio! Juniors, Jr. Plus, Women, Girls, Infants, Youth and Guys.

Digital Art Solutions leverages years of experience to make complex graphics and imprinting issues simple for the widest audience. The centerpiece of this is our integration of production-ready digital art and add-on graphics software: Smart Designs Art System. By combining artwork and software into a single integrated system, our clients design and produce custom graphics in a fraction of the time compared to traditional design and production methods.

Roland is a worldwide leader in developing profitable solutions for apparel decorators. The GX-24 servo desktop cutter personalizes jerseys, caps and bags by cutting everything from twill to heat transfer material. With superior precision, the EGX-350 cuts rhinestone patterns that add bling to everything from jeans and T-shirts to hats and handbags. For more information, visit the Roland ASD Web site at rolanddga.com/asd.

You are currently subscribed to the Impressions Product Guide as .

To unsubscribe, click here.