Impressions - February 2019 - 44

think.
make.
do.

HEAT PRINTING
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Peak Printer/
Cutter Workflow
Smart planning and good habits cut time and waste.
By JosePh Burt, ContriButing Writer

Time is money, so optimizing your printer/cutter workflow to ensure you are
working efficiently means you also will
be ensuring profitability.
Factors for peak workflow include the
type and size of the jobs you'll be doing,
equipment and more. In setting up your
shop, start with key items and their layout.
The Printer/Cutter: Machine placement is critical, and you should ensure it
is in a clean, static-free, and humidity- and
temperature-controlled environment.
You must be able to easily move around
all sides of the machine, as well as from
one work area to another.Though some

people like to put the machine against
a wall, remember that you will need to
get behind it. Everything should be in
close proximity, but not so close that one
operation and the people performing it
interfere with others.
The Work Table: Some sort of work
table or surface is required for performing
functions like weeding material.The size
of your largest jobs determines the size
of the tabletop. A lot of shops use 4' x 8'
tables, but that may not be wide enough.
If you have the space, 5 or 6 feet may be
preferable and will eliminate the need to
compensate for the printer size.

Position your printer/cutter so
that you can move all around
it. Photo courtesy of Mind's
Eye Graphics, Decatur, Ind.
P.44

i m p r e s s i o n s m a g . c o m FEBRUARY 2019

It's important that you be able to cut
into the tabletop. Put a cutting mat over
the table and make sure it is big enough to
accommodate the materials with which
you're working.
Having a grid on the surface also is
helpful. Some decorators print a 1" x 1"
square grid on decal material to cover the
table's surface and then put clear plastic
over it. This is handier and easier than
trying to use a cutting mat.
Make sure the table height works for
everyone, or consider adjustable tables
so people aren't reaching over or leaning
all day. If someone weeds material better
when sitting down, make sure a sturdy
stool is the proper height.
The Heat Press: You have some flexibility with respect to the location of
the heat press, although you should pay
attention to the temperature controls.
The heat it generates shouldn't affect
other equipment or operations.
Having it closer to the printer can make
your workflow quicker, but it depends
on the application. T-shirt media may
require more drying time for the ink.
After you print and cut, you should wait
a few hours before masking. So keeping
the heat press in a different area is fine.
For example, the printer could be in
one area, and the weeding table and heat
press in another. In fact, you may want to
allow room for a line on which to hang
the prints if time or volume doesn't allow
them to just stay on the printer and you
don't have an external drying system.
Size is an important concern with a heat
press because it can limit what you can
do with your printer/cutter.The industry
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Impressions - February 2019

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