Hate pretreating your tees? HanesBrands (asi/59528) has a solution for that. The apparel basics brand just launched what it’s calling PrintNOW technology for direct-to-garment printing, with its new Perfect Pre-treat Tee (498PT).

The T-shirt, which is ready to print right out of the box, cuts DTG production time by about 40%, according to Hanes.

HanesBrands (asi/59528) recently released the Perfect Pre-treat Tee (498PT) for direct-to-garment printers.

“We’re transforming how printers handle DTG printing, streamlining the process in significant ways,” said Rachel Newman, vice president and general manager of Hanes Activewear. “DTG with PrintNOW is truly direct-to-garment right out of the box. As a result, this innovation saves printers time and money, two big wins for printers trying to deliver quality printed apparel to their customers efficiently.”

The pretreated shirt has a number of benefits, according to Hanes. It eliminates human error, since the treatment is already evenly applied across the entire surface of the garment. That even application also means that the shirt is ready to print anywhere, whether it’s the front, back, neck or sleeves. Hanes estimates that using the pretreated shirt trims three minutes per shirt, compared to the traditional DTG process; plus, it reduces overhead cost associated with pretreating.

“The Hanes Pre-treat Tee is a great option,” said Ed Levy, director of software technologies and marketing for Hirsch Solutions, which sells both Epson and Brother digital garment printers. “A fully pretreated T-shirt reduces the labor and consumable costs associated with the DTG process, especially for multilocation prints.”

The new T-shirt from Hanes is made with U.S.-grown, ringspun cotton in a lightweight fabric with a soft drape. It has a modern, semi-fitted silhouette and unisex sizing. The shirt is available in sizes S to 3X in black, white, navy and smoke gray.

Threadfast Apparel Launches TAP Tee

The TAP Tee from Threadfast Apparel (asi/91163) has an NFC patch on the sleeve, which apparel decorators and brands can program for a custom digital experience.

Threadfast Apparel (asi/91163), which sells in the promo products industry through a partnership with Top 40 supplier alphabroder (asi/34063), is adding a digital layer to its newest shirt. The TAP Tee features a near-field communication (NFC) chip, which allows customers to connect to a personalized digital experience by tapping their smartphone on the NFC chip. Doing so will direct them to a website, app, video or social media post that has been custom programmed, without the need to download an app first.

Brands and apparel decorators can use Threadfast’s NFC Connect app to easily program the chip in seconds, according to the company. And the experience can evolve over time, by updating the content of the URL the chip is directed to.

“Consistent with our history of disruptive product innovation, we are thrilled to introduce our TAP Tee, which allows you to engage with the wearer in an entirely new way that is sticky, tech-savvy and can evolve with the lifecycle of the garment,” said Abe Anteby, president of Threadfast Apparel.

The NFC antenna is located inside a washable, decoration-friendly patch on the left sleeve of the tee and can easily be programmed with the TFA NFC Connect app, available for free download from app stores. The T-shirt is made from 100% combed ringspun cotton and is available in black and white, in sizes XS to 4XL.

Roland DGA Adds Rotary Rack Attachments

Roland DGA’s new Rotary Rack attachments allow decorators to customize various cylindrical objects.

Roland DGA, a provider of wide-format inkjet printers, vinyl cutters and other digital imaging technology, has introduced two new Rotary Rack attachments that enable its recently launched VersaOBJECT CO Series UV flatbed printers and VersaUV LEC2 S-Series UV flatbeds to print directly around cylindrical objects.

Sturdy, accurate and simple to use, the new Rotary Rack XL and Rotary Rack XXL attachments allow users to perform full 360-degree printing around a variety of cylindrical items, including larger objects, with ease and precision.

“In addition to being durable, reliable and simple to operate, these innovative accessories significantly enhance the capabilities of our wide-format UV flatbeds. They add direct-printing on cylindrical objects to the long list of things these amazing machines can do,” said Kitt Jones, product manager. He added that the attachments allow decorators to customize everything from drumsticks to large water bottles.

Stahls’ Launches Faux Suede Patches

Stahls’ (asi/88984) offers Faux Suede Patches with a soft, velvety hand.

Want to add to the perceived value of a garment? Stahls’ (asi/88984) has a solution, with its recently released Faux Suede Patches. The patches are laser-etched for a contrasting, tone-on-tone finish that appeals to a wide range of markets. Featuring a soft, velvety hand, these custom patches have over 20 vibrant color options and are available with heat-applied or pressure-sensitive adhesive.

The patches can be ordered with a borderless finish or an overlock stitch border with over 90 thread color choices. They’re an ideal choice for headwear, outerwear, apparel, bags and hard goods such as tumblers, water bottles and notepads.

Name Badges International Offers Chalkboard Tags

These Chalkboard name badges are ideal for the education market or industries with high employee turnover.

Name Badges International, a division of Top 40 supplier World Emblem (asi/98264), has an ideal solution for identifying speakers and staff at education events. The Chalkboard identification tag is perfect for grade schools, colleges, conventions or any other educational event.

The tags are also a great alternative to metal and plastic reusable name badges for businesses – like restaurants and fast-food chains – that have high turnover.

Names are handwritten with a special chalk marker that once dry is durable yet erasable using a microfiber cloth. A full-color logo or other text can be printed on the top or left-hand side of the badge. Choose from a range of background colors and fonts with no setup or design fees. Each badge order comes with what the company says is an appropriate number of liquid chalk pen and microfiber cloth sets. Choose from a pin or magnetic setting.

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