Large-Format Fabric Printing

(An Interview with a 'Man of the Cloth')

Two major goals for me in 2008 are these: visit more production facilities and explore more out-of-the-ordinary types of specialties. I jumped on the offer to visit Portland Color up in Maine last week. Talk about two birds with one stone! This was one of the coolest plants I've visited in years.

I'm used to the typical offset press facilities. Portland Color was something completely different. In most printing plants you see only paper. Portland Color prints on paper, too - but it was the fabric that turned my head. Micron Mesh, Knit Voile, Blackout Satin White and String Gauze were just a few of the samples I grabbed. How often do you see a printing press side-by-side with the occasional sewing machine, a wall filled with giant spools of thread, and, yes, an iron?

Large-format fabric printing is one of the company's specialties. The samples were eye-popping - magnificent in impact as well as in size. Paul Maddrell, Creative Director, gave me a tour, and it was a delightful education and a half. He answered 10 basic questions for me for today's Print Tip.

MD: Portland Color has been printing on fabric for 4 years. What are some of the ideal applications?

• Retail Banners

• Retail Display Windows

• Event Banners

• Trade show Booths

• Art Installations

• Hospitality / Institutional Installations

MD: Most of the fabrics are polyester. Why?

The best quality and largest format fabric printing is currently via the dye sublimation process. The dispersal inks we use for this give very rich colors, and require a polyester fabric to accommodate the chemical bonding that occurs in the process.

MD: What are the specific fabric printing processes used at Portland Color?

Dye sublimation. The printer first prints a reverse image to a transfer paper. This is then run through a heat calendar "sandwiched" with a layer of fabric. The large drum of the heat calendar is filled with oil heated to a 400 degree temperature. The heat and pressure of the drum converts the ink to a gas, which chemically bonds [sublimates] to the fabric, making it permanently set. This also yields very rich, vibrant colors.

MD: How is printing on fabric different from printing on paper?

We are able to get much larger image formats in fabric - typically ten foot heights by lengths of 20, 30, 50 feet and more. We also have a much wider range of textures and capabilities - sheers and meshes that allow you to look through them plus carry a branded image. Fabrics that stretch into shapes over engineered tubular structures. Fabrics that withstand the onslaught of the outdoor elements for extended periods of time.

The other comparison of note is fabric vs. vinyl, another material formerly used for large-format and outdoor applications. In this comparison, our fabric printing is much more eco-sensitive and delivers richer and more subtle colors with much finer detail and sharper resolution.

MD: What equipment do you use? I saw an HP z6100.

We have two lightjet digital enlargers for continuous-tone printing on photographic paper and duratrans. We have two inkjet printers, including the new state-of-the-art HP Z6100, which delivers photographic quality on a wide range of materials, including some new high-tech items like magnetic backed polypropylene and a multi-ply exterior Valeron polyethylene that is wind rated for 70 mph.

For Fabric, we were the beta test site for the 10.5' HP Scitex dye sub unit, which has recently been joined by an even more refined dye sub unit from Roland that prints to 8.5'.

MD: What are the primary challenges of printing on fabric?

Optimizing asset file suitability for large-format usages.

MD: It's remarkable how different each printed sample looks and feels. How do customers know which fabric to use? Are there any rules-of-thumb you can share?

That's really what we're here for. We have a tremendous assortment of materials, products, and capabilities, but we're not just a printer. We're also a collaborative strategic design partner who will recommend the most effective options for a client's aspirations.

MD: What are some of the "coolest" fabric applications you've produced?

• The outdoor public art installation [Art Walk 2006-2008] for the Washington DC Commission on the Arts.

• Large-format brand images for the windows of a new generation of retail stores for Eastern Mountain Sports.

• Organic window scrims for nationwide roll-out by Eileen Fisher.

• Classic b/w art photography panels at 9'h x 27'w for Fashion Week at Bryant Park, NYC.

• Thousands of printed square feet of fabric for the Hewlett Packard booth at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show.

MD: What about the environmental impact? Can fabric printing be green? You showed me several recycled fabrics. Do they represent a new class of printable fabric?

Several of our most popular fabrics now come with a very high recycled content. We are also developing a program to allow us to close the loop by recycling printed fabric at the end of its use life. Sustainable products and processes are a major initiative for us in the future.

MD: As an expert, what trends do you see for fabric printing?

Here's what I see: A broader client base will take advantage of fabric's ability to create high-impact, large-format images without seaming, mounting, or incurring high shipping costs. Printed fabric as architecture, either permanent or changeable. More patterns, textures. Evolving content formulations. Sustainable options as the norm, not the exception. A recognition of the subliminal "messages" of fabric vs. vinyl or paper - it's softer, subtler, more flexible, warmer.

You may contact Paul at 800-734-3230 or pmaddrell@portlandcolor.com. For a peek at some of Portland Color's work, check out their web site at www.portlandcolor.com. Or if you want to get out and see something completely different, go visit them in Portland, ME.

PS: A great resource is SGIA (Specialty Graphic Imaging Association) at www.sgia.org. There you can find an Industrial Fabric Resource chart, currently listing over 300 different fabric options. Go nuts!

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©2008 Margie Dana. All rights reserved. You're free to forward this email to friends and colleagues: please do! However, no part of this column may be reprinted without permission from the author.

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