The open rotary printer and textile digital printing are still widely used in the textile printing industry. Several printing companies, solution providers and trend observers expect (or hope?) that one day digital will completely replace rotary screen printing. The fact is that these two printing methods have their own advantages and disadvantages, which makes it logical for them to coexist (as described in the previous blog). This presents a difficult choice for printing companies. Which type is most suitable for their printing process and products? Is traditional printing more profitable, or will digital printing provide more advantages in the long run? Nowadays, many printing companies have digital and rotary screen printing internally. But when to use which technology?

In this blog, I will list 7 different factors that show the difference between rotary screen printing and digital printing. With this list, you can make targeted choices. This not only has a positive impact on efficiency, but also on quality and customer satisfaction. Having said that, let's take a look at these decisive factors.

1. Run length
One of the most important factors that determine the choice between rotary screen printing and digital textile printing is run length. In short, the number of meters you must print determines which of the two printing technologies has the lowest total cost per meter. Using a smaller amount of rice-based on experience, we use less than 2,000 meters-digital printing is always cheaper. Rotary screen printing has a setup cost (because the design must be divided into colors and the screen must be engraved first), while the digital setup cost is little or no. However, if these set-up costs are distributed over many printing meters, these set-up costs can be ignored, so rotary screen printing usually above 5,000 meters is a cheaper option. Between these trips,

In the upcoming blog, we will explain this break-even point in more detail.

Logically speaking, the cost price per printed meter is usually decisive for the choice you make as a company, and rotary screen printing is usually cheaper when printing larger run lengths. We have to make a subtle difference here: Today, digital single-pass printers are so fast that they can also print well in an acceptable time for longer running times, and the cost per meter is much lower The expectations of printing houses for digital printing presses.

2. Delivery time
The second point is also related to the production process, just like the quantity of rice printed. The delivery time required by the customer may have a significant impact on the choice between rotary screen printing or digital textile printing.

Companies that print for big brands are often forced to shorten strict deadlines. These brands only need to provide a USB with a design and need it in large quantities within a few days. This is almost impossible for rotary screen printing. I have already mentioned that rotary screen printing requires a set-up time due to the engraving of the screen, but there is more. Color separation is usually necessary, and in addition, the time required to start the rotating machine is longer than the digital equivalent. It takes time to adjust the registration of different colors in a rotary press (and several meters of fabric!). In short, the total delivery time of rotary screen printing from receiving the design to delivering the printed rice is usually longer.

If the delivery time required by the Flat Screen Printing Machine Factory allows and your design can be reduced to fewer colors (one per screen), rotary screen printing is a logical choice for larger print volumes. If the final product must arrive within a short delivery time, digital textile printing will be a faster option. In this case, the printing company can demand high prices (fast delivery) and let the brand choose: fast delivery or cheaper prices.