The Benefits of DTF for Screen Printing Businesses
- Martin Lowe
- Oct 6
- 4 min read
Updated: Oct 7
In the fast-evolving garment printing industry, traditional screen printing is often compared with newer digital methods like Direct-to-Film (DTF) printing. Each has its place, but DTF has now developed to the point where it has a place in the screen printer's arsenal, particularly when paired with advanced equipment from Resolute. In this post, we’ll break down the benefits of DTF printers for those who are currently invested in screen printing, and show how machines like the R-Jet PRO DTF™ V9 and Resolute Auto 6/3 strengthen your business.
What Is DTF: A Quick Overview
In DTF, a design is printed onto a special PET film (with DTF ink), then powder adhesive is applied and cured. The finished DTF film is then heat-pressed onto the garment, transferring the ink and adhesive in one step.
By contrast, screen printing forces ink through mesh screens directly onto material, often requiring multiple screens, registration, and manual steps for each colour.
Core Advantages of DTF for Screen Printing
Here’s where DTF can help:
Benefit | DTF Advantage | Why It Matters in Practice |
Faster setup & lower overhead per job | No need for screen creation, emulsion processing, or cleaning. | You can take on small or varied orders easily, without setup time for each design. |
Better for short runs / print-on-demand | Economical even at 1–10 units. | Reduces waste and allows for just-in-time fulfilment. |
Full colour gradients, photo imagery, and complex designs | Digital printing handles thousands of tones without extra screens. | No compromise on design complexity. |
Consistent colour & repeatability | Digital workflows, RIP software, and calibration ensure consistency. | You avoid human variation or screen wear over time. |
Flexibility across fabrics and colours | DTF works on many textiles (cotton, polyester blends, etc.), light or dark shirts. | You can offer a wider product range. |
Reduced labour & manual steps | More automation, less manual intervention. | Cuts labour costs, speeds production, and lowers error rates. |
Scalability & automation ready | Digital systems integrate into automated workflows. | Growth is easier. You upgrade throughput rather than rethinking your entire process. |
While screen printing still offers advantages in extremely large, simple jobs (e.g. bulk runs of one- or two-colour designs), DTF is catching up rapidly, particularly once you modernise your workflow.
How Resolute is Taking DTF to the Next Level
To get the full benefit of DTF, you need robust, production-grade machinery. That’s where Resolute’s offerings stand out.
The V9 model in the R-Jet PRO DTF™ range employs a nine-colour ink system (CMYK + orange, red, green, blue, white), giving you superior colour gamut, vibrancy, and detailed tone transitions, far beyond typical CMYK + white setups.
It’s built for high throughput, achieving up to 50 metres/hour in production mode (25 m/h in high quality) thanks to six Epson i3200 print heads.
The V9 supports inline automation, integrating with finishing systems (for example, flatbed cutters) so the process from printing to finishing can run seamlessly.
Media handling is engineered for speed and consistency: pneumatic-assisted feeders, strong mechanical stability, and a rigid chassis.
The machine is designed to pair with Resolute RIP software for efficient spot-colour management, ink control, and Pantone matching, crucial for output consistency.
With the V9 you get a digital production engine that can rival (or exceed) many traditional screen set-ups, but with far more flexibility and lower marginal cost per print.
The Resolute Auto 6/3 is a multi-platen automatic heat press carousel designed to bring automation into the finishing stage.
By automating the pressing / curing step, it links smoothly with DTF printing workflows: films come off the printer, get cut or processed, then automatically pressed. This reduces manual labour, bottlenecks, and timing errors.
The combination of V9 (or V8i with Auto) plus the Auto 6/3 turns your production line into a mostly hands-free, integrated system. This allows your team to focus on design, quality assurance, and new orders, not manual operations.
Because it's multi-platen, you can queue different garments or jobs, overlapping pressing time and maximising throughput.
In short: the Auto 6/3 ensures that the gains from automated printing aren’t lost in finishing. It closes the loop.
Use Cases & ROI: When DTF Helps Screen
Here are scenarios where migrating to a DTF printer combined with a robotic heat press delivers quick wins:
Custom orders, micro-brands, print-on-demand apparel
You can fulfil small batch orders or one-offs profitably; desirable in the e-commerce / activewear / print-on-demand market.
Fast turnaround
No screen setup delay means you can respond to rush orders or trends quickly.
Complex, full-colour designs
You can offer photo-quality prints, gradients, soft transitions, and vivid colours not possible with traditional screen runs without many screens.
Flexible merchandise & product diversification
Because DTF handles light/dark garments and many fabric types easily, you can expand your product catalogue with minimal cost risk.
Cost control & labour reduction at scale
Once setup is mature, reducing manual steps and wasted materials leads to lower cost per unit.
Depending on your volume, your payback on high-end DTF printing systems (like the V9 and Auto) may come faster than you expect, especially when factoring in labour savings, faster turnarounds, and fewer rejects.
Challenges
It’s important to be realistic. DTF is strong, but not a panacea. Here are common challenges, and how using machines like the V9 and Auto help overcome them:
Challenge | Why It Happens | Mitigation via Resolute Equipment |
Adhesion failures, edge lifting | If heat / pressure / dwell time isn’t correct | Automated pressing (Auto 6/3) ensures consistent pressure/time across jobs |
Colour shift or inconsistency | Ink, calibration, environmental variation | Resolute RIP with spot colour & profiling controls output stability |
Costs of consumables (film, powder, ink) | DTF requires high-quality film, adhesive powder, maintenance | Volumes help reduce per-unit cost; automating reduces waste and misprints |
Initial capital investment | High-end DTF printers plus automation is more expensive upfront vs basic screen shop | ROI through labour savings, speed, flexibility, lower per-unit cost at scale |
If you pair the right volume, workflow discipline, and training, the benefits tip heavily toward DTF, especially using best-in-class hardware.
Final Thoughts
Screen printing still holds value in some niche, ultra-high-volume or specialty ink jobs, but for most garment decorators today, DTF also offers great flexibility, speed, and margin potential. When your DTF process is powered by machines like the R-Jet PRO DTF™ V9 and completed with the Resolute Auto 6/3 heat press, you’re enhancing what your production line can do.
