What to Look for when Purchasing an Inkjet Garment Printer Your Business

It is really easy to get caught up in the excitement of a new emerging technology and to think that it is going to change your life. I would have to say that the inkjet garment printing technology craze we are seeing right now is one of those ideas whose time has come and will dramatically alter the way we do business. And it is really easy to get excited about it. I mean, who doesn't like the idea of not having to reclaim screens, or mess with inks, or any of the other processes we do with traditional screen printing yet still be able to produce awesome looking full color printed garments? I can get excited about that and I am sure you have too if you are reading this article.

Well, before we get too excited and just go out and purchase the first inkjet garment printer we see there are several factors that you should really consider before taking the digital plunge. Not all machines, suppliers, distributors or manufacturers are the same. And I am going to step out on a limb and say that you shouldn't shop on price alone (i.e. purchasing the least expensive machine you can find).

So what are some of the things to consider before dropping our dollars into the digital printing bucket? Walk with me down the digital domain here.

Production Capacity of the Inkjet Garment Printer
Probably the most important factor to consider before purchasing a new inkjet garment printer is to find out what the machine is actually capable of producing in a production environment. Many manufacturers state what their machines are capable of producing. Some claims are even amazing! With the newly emerging digital marketplace it is no different. The production capacity of your new printer is going to be of paramount importance. Why? Because it all comes down to product being produced. The more shirts you can print per hour the more money you will be able to make.

I had a great conversation with one gentleman who had bought the first machine he saw - and he didn't realize there were other manufacturers out on the market. He was saying that it took 4-5 minutes to get a good, bright, vibrant print from his machine. In comparison I contrasted that with the Brother GT-541 that I have in my own printing shop which in real life production we get 45 shirts per hour for a full print in the ENTIRE production cycle (the production cycle being loading, printing, removing from the pallet and heat curing the image). The gentleman in my example would only be able to produce 15 shirts per hour (4 minutes per shirt for production) versus my 45 shirts per hour. That is a 30 shirt difference. If we both sell the shirts for $8.00 and we have a total cost of $3.00 per shirt that means we both are making $5.00 per printed shirt. Bring production capacity into the picture and he is netting $75 per hour on 15 shirts and I would be netting $225.00 per hour on 45 shirts production. That is a $150.00 per hour difference! Withstanding the initial price difference in the machines and even ink costs it doesn't take long to realize that even if my machine cost $8000 more than the equipment the other guy is using I only have to print for 54 hours before I have paid the price difference between the two machines off. And every hour after that we are making a LOT more money.

So, as you can see, production plays an extremely important role in your machine selection and you should not take the distributor's word for it. Get referrals and talk with other owners of the machine. Remember posted production rates are nice, but real world results are preferable and often times differ.

Print Quality
If you can't produce a good product quickly you won't be selling many garments. Look for a machine that is not only capable of producing as many shirts per hour as possible but also a machine that has bright, vibrant prints on a single pass. If the prints are "washed out" or just don't look vibrant with a single pass and it requires a second print to make it acceptable - look for another printer. Remember that time is money. If you have to print it twice it takes twice as long and your production capabilities just dropped in half which means your profits just dropped also.

The inkjet garment printer you are purchasing should have a good resolution and produce a bright finished print in a reasonable time frame. The rule of thumb that I have started to apply is that if it can't print a full chest imprint, in a bright, vibrant color in about 60 seconds it really isn't a production oriented machine. Time is money, but if it could print 300 shirts per hour but the prints look washed out and faded then production rates mean nothing.

Think BOLD. Think BRIGHT. Think PRINT QUALITY. Ties these in with the other items we mention here in this article.

Support, Service, and Durability of the Machine
With this type of technology you will definitely want to make sure you have good support and service on the machine. If you have to send the machine back to the factory to get it serviced that is going to cost you time and money. Each day you are not producing is costing you lost revenues and profits you would normally be making. Hopefully your salesman is close enough that you can get reasonable service to get you back up and running should something go down on the equipment.

Also ask current owners of the machine what type of problems they have experienced and how it was resolved and if the issue was resolved in an expedient and satisfactory manner. Don't look for the guy that is going to just sell you a machine and move on. Find someone who is going to walk with you through this process and keep you posted of new events in the industry. Relationships are key with the seller of the machine. Make sure you aren't just a "sale" but a customer.

Plus, what type of duty rating is the machine built for? If you are just a hobbyist and want to print shirts occasionally then the cheap machine might be for you. However, if you are a serious shop make sure that it is built to last and built for the specific job at hand - i.e. producing garments. Don't get fooled by the flash and glitz of a new machine or paint job - look under the hood and find out why it is built the way it is. Does the machine look cheap or is it well built? After talking with other current owners it will be easy to see which ones are built better and why.

Ink Consumption and Pricing
I have heard that the ink cost is of utmost importance when choosing your machine. On the surface if someone said Machine A uses about $.30 of ink compared to machine B which uses $1.00 worth of ink per print you would probably really consider Machine A. But beware! If Machine A has the production rate of 15 shirts per hour like our example earlier in the article versus Machine B with a production rate of 45 shirts per hour Machine B still wins out. This is because even if the ink cost is $.70 more per shirt it is more than offset by the production cycle which is faster on Machine B. In this case 45 shirt might cost you $31.50 more to print than 45 shirts of Machine A however you are making $150 more per hour than Machine A. So, unless the production rates of the two machines are about the same ink cost will and should not play a big role in which machine you are planning on purchasing.

Manufacturer Reputation
This is one area that is really important. How comfortable are you with the company or name brand of the machine you are purchasing? How do their other products hold up and what is the general public opinion about the company? If it is a no name brand from a no name manufacturer you might want to reconsider the purchase. I am not saying you shouldn't purchase that machine, however are they going to be around in 2 years to fix your machine if it is broken? Are they going to be able to continue development of new products? Do you want the peace of mind to know that they are going to be able to continue to support you as your business grows?

I am not saying that there aren't a lot of good new companies that are getting into this field, as everyone has to start somewhere. But, are you willing to chance the future with your hard earned dollars?

Consumables & Maintenance
Items in this category would be ink, head cleaning kits, and other items that might be "consumed" in the process of producing a finished garment. We covered inks earlier in the article but all of the consumable items need to be taken into account as they do add to the finished price of the garment. This might include items such as ink collection bottles or trays, ink cleaning kits, inks, pallets tapes, etc.

And finally - how much maintenance is your machine going to require? Do the heads clog up a lot and do I have to clean them often (which uses ink up costing me more money)? What machine maintenance to I need to do as well as is it really difficult and take a lot of time (both of which all relate back to money). The easier the machine is to care for the easier it is to make money with it. Remember that the more your machine is down the more time you have lost in making money. If the machine is well built you won't have much maintenance. So, look for these things.

In Conclusion
In conclusion you need to weigh all the variables when considering a purchase of this magnitude. We did that with our shop and decided on which machine to go with after looking at the available units at the time. As a distributor for the Brother machine I still encourage my customers to "shop" around and make sure they are comparing apples to apples. The discerning customer will see through any smokes and mirrors they may encounter. Remember that it is YOUR money you are spending and you need to get the most bang for your buck. Just make sure that you are comfortable with your decision and who you are purchasing it through as you will have to live with this decision for quite a while.

Have fun in your search and have fun after the purchase making money. The great thing about digital garment printers is that they really can print money - they can allow you to print shirts more quickly and easily and let you put more money in your pocket faster than traditional screen printing.

Written by Brian Walker of Direct2Shirt.com - www.direct2shirt.com