From florals to stripes to plaid, patterns are a consistent fashion trend season after season. Printed fabrics bring patterned designs to life. With many different printing methods available today, it can be a challenge to choose the right one for your garment. Different methods react different ways depending on the materials, and all have environmental and manufacturing factors to consider.
Digital heat-transfer sublimation printing is a sustainable option that still allows you to create beautiful, cutting-edge fabrics. At Eastman, we are committed to creating a better future for sustainable fashion. Collaborating with industry-leading partners across the value chain will help make that vision a reality. To that end, Eastman and Transfertex-a global market leader for heat-transfer printing—are joining forces to help brands create high-quality, sustainable printed fabrics made from Eastman Naia™ cellulosic fiber.
Naia™ is the best fiber option for producing alluring, colorful fabric designs. It allows the ability to use digital transfer printing, creating stunning printed fabrics without compromising on sustainability and cost. And unlike most cellulosic fibers, Naia™ can be digital sublimation heat-transfer printed with ease.*
Transfertex’s innovative digital heat-transfer technology is a sustainable printing solution. Its digital heat-transfer sublimation printing process is water-free with minimal environmental impact from dyes or chemicals. No pretreatments or post-printing processes are needed, making it both sustainable and cost-effective. Digital heat- transfer printing with Naia™ is also less expensive than digital direct printing of other cellulosic fibers such as viscose or cotton.
Digital heat- transfer printing with Naia™ will allow brands to fulfill sustainability commitments while delivering the performance, quality, and style consumers expect. The digital heat-transfer printing process produces fabrics with print color quality and colorfastness comparable to other digitally printed fibers. With Naia™ and Transfertex, brands can achieve print-on-demand scalability and choose the sustainable option for their fashion designs.
“Partnering with Eastman is the perfect fit for us,” said Transfertex marketing manager Markus Staudt. “As leaders in sustainable print solutions, we have the opportunity to make a big impact on the fashion industry. Combining our innovative technology with Eastman’s innovative fibers allows us to create new possibilities for sustainable fabrics.”
This collaboration gives brands the ability to create a large print collection with Transfertex’s production-ready designs or precise reproduction of their own custom designs with short lead times. Digital heat-transfer printing with Naia™ allows the creation of sharp and detailed prints with short lead times, making it ideal for fast fashion and garment manufacturers that need large collections of production-ready designs. Or designers can have the versatility to create smaller-scale, customized new garment collections.
Transfertex’s myTFX online design platform makes it easy to offer beautiful print options for any application or quantity. Customers get access to an extensive design library with thousands of ready-to-print designs by application, 3D online prototyping, and same-day global sampling.
“We’re committed to partnering with companies across the value chain to provide brands and designers the ability to create collections made from sustainable fabrics, without compromise,” said Carolina Sister Cohn, global segment manager for fashion at Eastman. “Digital heat-transfer printing Naia™ with Transfertex’s innovative technology creates stylish patterned garments that consumers will love.”
Today’s consumers are more concerned about the sustainability of fashion than ever before. Eastman’s U.S. Sustainable Leader Consumer Community found that 70% of these consumers say materials define the sustainability of an item. However, sustainably minded Americans still have a difficult time finding apparel that contains sustainable materials while also meeting their primary expectations of quality, comfort, style, and cost.
Brands that use environment-friendly clothing materials and sustainable manufacturing processes can bridge the gap between sustainability commitments and consumer needs. Garments made with Naia™ deliver on both style and sustainability, helping brands increase their customer base while positioning themselves as sustainable leaders.
Naia™ cellulosic staple fiber is more than just an eco-conscious material. It’s wonderfully versatile for a variety of womenswear—from athleisure to business casual. It also blends well with other eco-friendly materials, producing sustainable fabrics and garments that are ideal for comfortable casual wear.
Sourced from sustainably managed forests, sustainable Naia™ transforms into luxurious, astonishingly soft, and easy-to-care-for fabric. With full transparency from tree to fiber, Naia™ is produced in a safe, closed-loop process where solvents are recycled back into the system for reuse. Naia™ is OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 Product Class I certified and made with no hazardous chemicals listed on the ZDHC Manufacturing Restricted Substances List.
Like Naia™, Transfertex’s service is environmentally responsible. Committed to transparency and traceability, their printing process uses sustainable inks. Transfertex’s service is also OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 Product Class I certified and made with no hazardous chemicals listed on the ZDHC Manufacturing Restricted Substances List. Transfertex digital heat-transfer printing has a closed-loop design and production processes to increase sustainability. Because it is a clean, dry process, it produces zero emissions and no water or air pollution. “We are excited about the possibilities we can achieve by collaborating with new partners to expand our efforts and make the greatest collective impact,” said Cohn. “By leveraging the right resources and expertise, we can drive significant change.”
For more information, visit naia.eastman.com. Stay up-to-date on the latest Naia™ news by following us on LinkedIn and Instagram. To learn more about Transfertex, visit www.transfertex.de.
