How To Adopt Digital Printing That Is Eco Friendly

By Mattie Knight


In a bid to conserve our environment the world is increasingly embracing eco friendly technologies. The main challenge is the fact that it has bit difficult to achieve the best quality without increasing the costs of production unnecessarily. The traditional printing techniques have been shown to be harmful not just to the users but to the environment as well. We will look at some of the ways in which you can adopt digital printing that is eco friendly.

Selecting ink requires which you take a number of things into consideration. The ink selected should be free from the harmful metallic elements or have them in very little quantities. In addition they should have great versatility as to be used with any type of materials such as cotton, nylon, rayon and silk. Ensure the ink can be used for a wide range of colors so as to improve on the efficiency.

Ink selection should be done with due diligence. Today, there are many types of water-based inks which are friendlier to the environment. The ink chosen should be versatile as relates to the materials on which it can be used. Choose one that can be used for materials such as silk, rayon, cotton and nylon. In addition, it should be usable with any color.

One of the most important raw materials in the process is water. Water is used at almost every stage. The problem is that most of it goes to waste. Printing firms are challenged to set up water treatment plants which will make it possible to recycle and re-utilize this water. In a sufficiently efficient system, at least 65% can be recycled. This goes a long way in lowering the production costs.

You need to re-evaluate the type of printer you are using in your firm. Two main types of the machine exist; digital and conventional. The conventional type is the most widely used. It has greater inefficiency in terms of water, energy and ink use. Replacing it with the digital type will without a doubt achieve greater conservation of these raw materials while maintaining high quality imprints on fabrics.

Quite a number of chemicals are used during pre-treatment. Urea is the most important chemical here. As the urea is broken down during steaming carbon dioxide is released into the environment. The gas has well-known effects on the ozone and its reduction should be minimized as much as possible. There is a special foam available to be used in place of the urea. This foam is more eco-friendly.

During the engraving stage, a lot of energy is used. With digital based technologies, however, less amount of energy is used. This helps lower the amount of energy required. Another option is to turn to pigments as an alternative for ink. Pre-treatment is not required hence it is possible to save on energy. They also have the advantage of being used with virtually any type of medium.

It should be emphasized that adopting environmental friendly techniques is not just about the environment but is also a sound business decision. Many consumers are now well informed about chemicals likely to be harmful to their health. They are likely to reject products which have such chemicals. At the same time, governments have tightened regulations in a bid to force the use of sustainable materials and processes.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment