What is the difference between decal printing and direct printing?

Decal printing puts the image on transfer paper first and applies it later, so it works on any shape and can be outsourced. Direct printing prints straight onto flat ceramic on the line, faster for high volumes of flat ware.

Can INEQS integrate with an existing tile line?

Yes. Industrial systems are engineered per project, including line integration.

Over 80% of service issues are solved within one working day (Mon to Fri, 08:00 to 17:00 CET), remotely or on site, and INEQS holds printers and consumables in stock to cover a shortfall.

Digital Decoration Lines for Ceramic Factories

For factories, the case for digital ceramic printing is economic. No screens, no setup, no stock of decorated ware: decoration happens when the order arrives, from quantity one to a full container, and a design change costs nothing. INEQS builds both routes: high-duty decal printers, and industrial inkjet printers that print ceramic ink straight onto tile and flat ceramic without a decal.

Decal production at scale

SRA3 printers such as the IM C3010 or Canon ImagePRESS series run daily production of decals for porcelain, tableware and tile. INEQS RIP software manages nesting, numbering and colour, and one ICC profile per line keeps every sheet identical. Developer units, drums and fusers are stocked in Weinsheim.

Direct printing

Where the substrate is flat and the volume is high, the CTG-XC-17 and the 6-colour system print directly, one pass on the line. These systems are specified per project: tell us substrate, format, line speed and colour requirements.

Special machines

INEQS also engineers printers for non-standard products, such as the urn printer for spherical objects. If your product does not fit a standard machine, that is a conversation worth having.

Discuss a production line

Planning a digital decoration line

An INEQS engineer will need five things to propose a configuration:

The substrate and its glaze, or a sample piece
The decoration size and the largest format you need
Colour requirements: CMYK, a true ceramic red, spot colours or brand colours to match
Daily or monthly volume, and how often designs change
Your firing process: kiln type, curve and whether decoration can share a glaze firing

Decal or direct: a quick comparison

Decal printing works on any shape, from quantity one, and decals can be printed ahead, stored and applied as orders arrive. It adds a coating and an application step.
Direct ceramic inkjet prints straight onto flat ware on the line, with no decal to apply, and is the faster route for high volumes of flat tile and ceramic.

Many factories run both: direct printing for flat standard products and a decal line for shaped ware, small batches and personalised orders.

Uptime and running costs

In production, the cost of a stopped line outweighs the cost of consumables. INEQS keeps developer units, drums and fusers in stock, supplies a developer change schedule per machine, and can cover a production shortfall from its own printers while a fault is fixed. Colour is held with one ICC profile per line and RIP software that nests, numbers and colour manages every sheet.