What are some considerations for choosing UV-safe bulbs, and how important are they for my screens? This was a question posed by a Printwear reader, and here is Kieth Stevens’ response:

The design is completed and approved. Your customer has selected the type and color of the shirt. Now it’s time to create a product that reflects the comp you provided to the customer.

The conversion from art to separations is the first important conversion needed to achieve this goal. The most popular programs used in the apparel screen-print industry are Photoshop (raster program), Illustrator, and CorelDraw (both vector design programs). These programs provide the opportunity for a skilled separator to create excellent separations. To achieve the best results, the artist must be diligent to deliver some minimum requirements with the design before going through the separation process.

MagnaColours has announced the opening of its training arm, MagnaAcademy. Designed to develop skills and in-depth knowledge of water-based screen printing for printers of all levels, MagnaAcademy offers courses composed of modules that can be taken online or at the company’s headquarters in South Yorkshire, England.

New article from Marshall Atkinson and atkinsontshirt.com: 

gig e-con-o-my noun •  "A labor market characterized by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work as opposed to permanent jobs." Most businesses don’t think that they fit this description.  However, as markets become more unpredictable, many different companies are faced with working this way.  

In an article that was recently featured in Screen Printing Magazine’s October/November 2016 issue, and on Screenweb.com, Keith Stevens gives us some tips on printing on today’s modern fabrics. Here is Part 3 of the article.
Popular, profitable, and often a pain in the neck to print, the latest fashion fabrics can present quite a challenge to shops accustomed to printing standard plastisols on all-cotton garments.

New article from Marshall Atkinson, atkinsontshirt.com: Speed. What is the average production turn-time your shop? Remember Rocky II, the movie? Sure, 1979 was a long time ago...but I'll bet you remember this one.  Rocky fights a rematch with Apollo Creed, and has to go through an uncomfortable change to defeat the champ.  The trick is simply to become a faster fighter.  

William Shorter shares tips and insider information on Haze Removal, by taking a look at identification of different stains and ghost images and the best methods for their removal. 

Repetitive motion.  That two word phrase defines the decorated apparel industry.
Regardless if you are a screen-printer, embroiderer, or digital print shop, your workers repeat the same task all day.

In The Automation Issue, we present a collection of expert essays on an important topic in the industry today. Here, Marshall Atkinson discusses printroom efficiency and automation.
In the back of any shop owner or production manager’s mind is usually one nagging thought: “How can we get more produced today?” Shop production efficiency is a dragon that every company must slay in order to retain customers, drive down costs, and allow for growth.
Most companies face five common obstacles to making their printrooms efficient. These challenges tend to linger in many shops, but they can be overcome using the following strategies. After all, if you can unglue the bottleneck that is causing the disruption, you can accomplish (and produce) more every day.

Not so many years ago, our industry operated with simpler tools.  Squeegees and ink.  Needles and thread. Maybe a whiteboard or spreadsheet for scheduling.
Remember when you used to plaster parking lots with flyers for your shop?  That was caveman social media.
These days things are far more complicated.
Whether you are the “one-man band” and operate your business by yourself, or your shop has a multitude of employees and is an around-the-clock juggernaut, there is one thing that can help simplify your business: