Published in WTIN by Joseph Link

Dye-sublimation technology has dominated inkjet textile printing output in China over the last 10 years, and Zhengzhou-based digital ink and equipment manufacturer Hongsam has capitalised on its growth. However, the company now believes that the tide is turning slowly towards pigment inks. The company, which produces its own dispersions to stabilise quality and keep costs low, has been at the forefront of ink innovation in China since it was established in 2021.

According to company chairman Qin Guosheng, lower costs and simpler processing initially accelerated investment in dye-sublimation solutions but growth is slowing. He said: “It is true that sublimation printing still dominates the market in China but, following the Covid-19 pandemic, the growth rate has slowed. “Nevertheless, the digital textile printing sector is scaling up and production costs are falling.”

Direct-to-fabric printing processes have increased their share of output in China over recent years, according to Guosheng, and a surge in demand for pigment ink is further accelerating the trend. “We believe pigments are the future,” he added. “They enable a simpler printing process and respond to environmental concerns by removing the need for washing and steaming, which are water and energy intensive.

“But the quality of pigment printing has also improved. Our Jetextile pigment ink is equal to a reactive formula in terms of handfeel and colour performance, which is why an increasing number of customers are now opting for the more sustainable ink chemistry.”

The slogan in the digital textile printing hall at ITMA 2023 in Milan was ‘pigment is now’, which emphasises the progress that has been made in pigment production. But Guosheng believes more advancements are on the horizon, which will ensure that pigment inks are the dominant solution in the digital textile printing market of tomorrow

Global Expansion

Hongsam is one of the biggest producers of digital printing ink in China. It manufactures 2,500 metric tonnes across three inkjet sectors each year. Guosheng says more investment in Hongsam’s research and development and manufacturing capabilities will further expand its capacity in the coming years.

Currently, the company sells 60% of its products domestically, with the remainder exported overseas. However, if you focus solely on Hongsam’s sublimation and reactive ink production, less than half is sold to customers in China. Guosheng says it is a result of a maturing market, but the ratio also highlights the growing dominance of China’s ink producers on a global stage.

Tradtionally, China-made inks were dismissed internationally due to quality concerns, but this is no longer the case. And despite substantive advancements, they are still cheaper than formulas manufactured in Europe and North America.

Hongsam and its rivals in China have utilised their proximity to key resources to keep costs down and improve product quality. In contrast, Western ink manufacturers rely on raw material imports – often from China – to manufacture their inks, which results in price rises and weakens their competitiveness. Since 2021, consumer markets have suffered from higher inflation, which has triggered a global drop in demand for printed textiles. During this period, print houses have been more open to China-made inks in an attempt to increase their bottom lines.

Meanwhile, Guosheng says he is proud of Hongsam’s product integrity: “Between 2005 and 2017, our reactive, acid and disperse dye inks were developed and enhanced. They have all received OEKO-TEX Certification which was key to obtaining international recognition.

“We are devoted to increasing our global market share and we have partnered with printer manufacturers and print head developers to enhance our products and benefit the digital textile printing process.”

Guosheng continued: “We have also built a systematic sales network, which has enabled us to export products to more than 110 countries so far.” In addition to pigment formulas, Guosheng predicts a rise in demand for high-energy disperse dye ink in 2024. Chinese print houses currently acquire 90% of Hongsam’s high-energy disperse production, but that is because their inks are used by two domestic high-volume single-pass textile printers. There are currently no international single-pass printer installations using Hongsam’s high-energy disperse dye ink but, despite that, Guosheng is confident demand for the chemistry will grow globally.

Now that the quality of China’s digital textile printing inks has improved, there are no longer fundamental differences between the needs of China’s print service providers and those of the rest of the world. But according to Guosheng, the country is a huge market that is sensitive to speed and efficiency. He continued: “Sublimation printers in China have long been equipped with 15 to 30 print heads to improve production times. In other countries, four or eight print head machines still dominate, which explains why China’s output represents the largest share of global production.”

Direct-to-film Printing

Arguably the biggest development in the digital textile printing market over the last five years has been the growth of direct-to-film (DTF) printing. It originated in China and, according to Guosheng, has been a focus of Hongsam since 2010. But it took another decade before the technology really gained traction. Guosheng said: “It is now a very hot topic. It has been implemented globally and is popular for facilitating personalisation, flexibility and smallscale production.

“We claim to have been the first company to launch a pigment ink specific to DTF printing. The market is really improving our sales performance and we expect this to continue in 2024. The technology can be a complementary solution to high-volume roll-to-roll printers or used by online start-ups to build on-demand businesses.”

However, while DTF printing is more cost effective and versatile – in that it can print onto any material – the technology has already come under scrutiny as a result of environmental and safety concerns.

In response to the latter, Hongsam is working on a powderless DTF printing process for textiles and other substrates. Guosheng said: “The powder can be very harmful to your lungs, so the future of DTF must be powderless.” It is believed such a development will boost the appeal of DTF and increase its total addressable market.