- Despite the arrival of digital apparel decorating technologies, like direct-to-film (DTF) and direct-to-garment (DTG), the future of T-shirt screen printing remains strong as ever.
- Apparel screen printing continues to be the best way to execute larger custom T-shirt and decorated apparel orders
- Recent technological advances have increased screen printing’s productivity and reduced its environment footprint as well
The decorated apparel industry has seen an explosion in the use of DTF and DTG by commercial decorators in recent years. Does this mean there will no longer be the need for apparel screen printing in the years to come? If a recent study published by the market research firm QYResearch is any indication, the answer is, a definitive, no! Just the opposite, as QYResearch expects the global automatic apparel screen printing equipment market to grow from $239 million in 2025 $344 million by 2032, at a CAGR of 5.4 percent.
(For details go to “Report: Global Automatic Apparel Screen Printing Equipment Market to Top $344 million by 2032.”)
The Avient DMC DispenseMaster is just one of many technological advances taking place in apparel screen printing. Photo courtesy of Impressions Expo
This should come as no surprise to anyone who’s attended or been an exhibitor at any if the three Impressions Expo decorated-apparel trade shows held each year in Long Beach, California, Atlantic City, New Jersey, or Dallas, Texas, each year. Granted, there’s been plenty of hype surrounding DTF and DTG. Take a look around, though, and you will still see crowds of decorated apparel professionals checking out the latest automatic screen-printing presses from the likes of such equipment manufacturers as ROQ, M&R, Anatol, Workhorse Products and other leading brands.
Will Apparel Screen Printing Remain Relevant in Future Years?
As veteran decorator Terry Combs, co-host of the 2 Regular Guys (2regularguys.com) writes in his piece on screen printing due out in the next issue of Impressions magazine: “Fear not, screen printers and anyone considering the craft of screen printing, after decades in the industry, I have lived through the impending demise of this technology over and over again… I’m here to tell you, though, not so fast garment decorators!”
Then there are the great strides being made in terms of today’s apparel screen printing tech in the areas of:
- cutting-edge automatic screen-printing presses
- specialty inks, low-temperature inks
- water-based inks
- the latest user- and environmentally friend screen reclaim systems
For an industry and a technology on the ropes, there sure is a lot of innovation going on out there! Granted, there’s nothing like DTF and DTG for small order and super quick turnaround. There also nothing like embroidery for truly premier decorating and personalization.
When it comes to large order numbers and cost-effective custom-apparel decorating at scale, screen printing is clearly not only here to stay, but getting bigger and better every day.
