Saturday, November 14, 2015

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.

When selecting ink, you need to consider a number of factors. The ink should not have the heavy metals which degrade the environment. The best type of ink is one which has great versatility such that it usable with a wide range of materials which include nylon, cotton, silk and rayon among others. Additionally, it can produce high quality imprints on any color of fabric.

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.

Another areas in which great improvements can be made is in the machine used for the printing process. The main types of printers used currently are the conventional and the digital printers. The former has been known to be very inefficient in terms of water, energy and ink utilization. The digital type conserves each of these raw materials and even creates better impressions on your 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.

Engraving is an energy intensive process. Digital techniques use less energy by employing laser energy this has helped reduce the total amount of energy required. The other option is to turn to alternatives of inks such as the use of pigments. Pigments have the advantage being used on almost any type of medium. They do not require pre and post treatment. For this reason, they require less water and energy.

Using sustainable techniques should be looked at as a win-win situations for the environment and the business. Many consumers are wary of products which have potential harmful effects on their health and will for this reason avoid them. Many governments are providing incentives for eco-friendly industries and increasing the taxes. It is increasingly becoming expensive not to go green.




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