For decades, polyester has been the cornerstone of the textile printing industry. Its compatibility with the digital sublimation process — a cost-effective, simple technology — has driven exponential growth in polyester printing. However, the very characteristics that make polyester well suited for sublimation printing render this printing technique unsuitable for other types of fabric, such as cotton and some blended fibres, leaving a significant gap in the market.
This gap was, until recently, partially filled by direct-to-textile printing. However, this method requires substantial initial investments in equipment and heavily relies on the time- and resource-consuming pre- and post-processing of fabrics to ensure colourfastness, colour accuracy, and compatibility with different substrates. Consequently, a need arose for a more cost effective and sustainable solution that could cater to a wider range of fabrics.
Bridging the Gap: The Birth of TRAPIS
In response to this demand for sustainable fabric printing methods, Mimaki spent six years developing a breakthrough technology, TRAPIS, a simple two-step textile transfer printing solution, consisting of only an inkjet printer and a high-pressure calender. The design of choice is printed by the inkjet printer onto the company’s groundbreaking Texcol® pigment ink transfer paper. This is then transferred to the application via the calender.
Entirely removing the treatment stages means that printing on non-polyester materials has gone from an expensive and time-consuming task to one that is simple, cost-efficient and more sustainable.
Ideal for home textiles and soft signage which often require vivid colours but varied materials, this technology gives printers the ability to print on a wide range of materials, including natural fibres like cotton and silk without losing stretchability or colourfastness. All this can be done with just one type of ink, making the process flexible and adaptable to print customer demands.
A Bright Future: The Environmental Benefits of TRAPIS
The pre-treatment and washing of the fabric is often needed in the traditional method of digital dye printing, producing a significant amount of wastewater in the process. TRAPIS eliminates those stages altogether and is almost entirely waterless, saving around 14.5 litres per square metre of water, an almost 90% decrease in comparison to digital dye printing1. This reduces water consumption, and as a result, helps the entire printing process’s environmental footprint.
Additionally, this eliminates the need for wastewater treatment facilities, which can be both expensive and constrictive when it comes to where the solution is installed.
This is in stark contrast to traditional methods which generate a staggering 2 billion tonnes of wastewater every day from pre- and post-dyeing processes worldwide approximately2. TRAPIS’ water saving abilities will make a significant contribution to reducing a print provider’s environmental impact. Furthermore, with its simplified printing workflow, the complex and CO2 emission-heavy overseas transportation of textile products is eliminated, and the carbon footprint is reduced.
Mimaki’s bespoke Textile Pigment Ink that accompanies the solution has achieved the ZDHC MRSL Lv.33 certification and is bluesign® APPROVED, verifying that these are eco-friendly inks, as well as ensuring that it is safe for both workers and consumers.
Offering a Simple Solution
TRAPIS’ simplicity and affordability also make it ideal for localised, short-run textile production. As the process only involves printing and transferring, it does not require specialised skills to operate when compared to the more complex seven- or eight-step system needed by most digital and analogue conventional printing. The lack of a fabric conveyor belt in the system further minimises the need for time-intensive maintenance.
By simplifying the digital textile printing process, compatible with a wide range of textiles, the TRAPIS solution is an innovation that helps to set the pace for a more sustainable practices in the textile industry, while offering an unmatched range of creative possibilities.