By Cassandra Balentine
Printable blockout materials are primarily used to prevent see through. Common applications include double-sided banners, exhibit graphics, retail displays, backdrops, and silicone edge graphics (SEG).
Steven Weiss, North American sales manager, sign/digital, Serge Ferrari, says blockout fabrics are needed to prevent light from coming through. “Tension structures are the best example of that on trade show floors where a company’s brand is critical in recognition to end users. They want the graphic to be vibrant. Light can wash the graphic out,” he explains.
Uses and Configuration
While blockout fabric media is often utilized for double-sided banners, frontlit graphics, tension structures, and framed frontlit systems, uses continue to emerge.
For example, Serge Ferrari offers a fabric that poses blockout properties like grayback, which gives more stretch to a tubular frame, is 100 percent knit, and has very noticeable stretch for dye-sublimation (dye-sub).
This blockout fabric can be used to prevent seeing the tubular frame in dimensional structures, suggests Weiss.
Blockouts go through rigorous testing to ensure opacity while maintaining printability and ease of use. “Providing a true and consistent white point is also imperative,” says Weiss.
Printable blockout fabrics should be 100 percent blockout. It’s ideal to have some stretch and be able to print UV, dye-sub, and transfer dye-sub.
While the construction of blockout fabrics is often proprietary, Weiss notes that Serge Ferrari carefully uses specific yarns that are textured. “We also use knit versus woven methods in the mechanical aspect to allow the fabric to have stretch,” offers Weiss.
Of course, material design varies by vendor. “We manufacture all our own fabrics and our R&D team carefully tests our yarn, fabric, and coatings in house,” explains Weiss.
On The Market
Here’s a quick look at available blockout fabric solutions.
Fisher Textiles recently added two printable blockout fabrics to its lineup—GF8819 DS Nirvana and DD7118 White-Out. GF8819 DS Nirvana is a printable blockout that has a unique construction consisting of two layers of GF4019 Nirvana black-back laminated together for extreme opacity and two-sided printing. Compatible with dye-sub transfer and UV-curable printing, applications include double-sided banners, exhibit graphics, and retail displays. Stocked 122 inches wide, it weighs 13.2 oz and is flame retardant—NFPA 701 and California Title 19. DD7118 White-Out is an opaque fabric with a soft knit face and white coating on the back to prevent see through. Compatible with dye-sub transfer, direct dye-sub, and UV-curable printing, applications include SEG, pillowcase displays, banners, and back drops. Stocked 125 inches wide, it weighs ten oz and is flame retardant.
Heytex offers a variety of blockout options, including solutions that are PVC-free, blackout in whiteback and blackback, and flame retardant. Options include digitex decoflex nightfever, decoflex whitenight soft, decoflex doubleface, and ecotex blockout.
JC Media’s Blockout Textile is used to create background fabric, mesh display racks, exhibition displays, blackout roller blinds, flip flops, blackout fabric, flag clip lining fabric, light box backing fabric, banners, and wallcoverings.
Mehler Texnologies offers its AIRTEX magic FR blockout. In addition to its characteristic light weight, AIRTEX magic FR blockout features a textile surface that the company says is of particularly high quality. This premium product has a black core that prevents light from shining through, resulting in the blockout characteristic. The material can be printed on both sides without creating distracting print-image overlays.
Among its sign offerings, SENFA THEATER BLACK BLACK is made of 100 percent recycled polyester textile and is 100 percent blockout thanks to it black-back coating. It is suitable for UV, solvent, and sublimation.
Serge Ferrari’s Blockout Premium is a high-end, layflat PVC blockout available in 126- and 197-inch widths. Designed with an excellent white point on both sides, it’s an ideal solution for double-sided printing in retail and trade show applications. The company’s Select Blackback Premium is its high-end textile blackback. Available in 126- and 199-inch widths, this knit fabric offers a slight stretch without pinholing and is the ideal fabric to use in interior signage.
Sihl USA’s 3512 Fabric Banner Plus FR AQ is an 11-mil, blockout, NFPA 701 certified, ultra durable, water resistant banner. The NFPA standard is a measure of flame propagation for textiles and films and is typically applied to curtains, draperies, and other hanging textiles. The broad color gamut achieved with Fabric Banner Plus’ coating combined with its blockout backing makes it well suited for free hanging displays or high-quality roll-up systems.
TVF supplies blockout fabric. Its heavy-duty vinyl fabrics offer maximum opacity and feature waterproof and UV-resistant properties, optimal for outdoor banners and flags. Polyester knit materials are flame retardant, flexible, and come in a range of weights ideal for non-transparent trade show backdrops, safe retail displays, and compact transport. Explore 8 to 18 oz. blockout fabric options designed for precision image printing and displaying vivid colors.
UFabrik Soft Blackback Textile is a 100 percent knitted polyester textile with a blackout coated reverse. Developed to be the supreme direct and transfer dye-sub blackback with a perfectly balanced stretch and softness ratio. It is ideal for expo walls, frame wraps, and high-quality backdrops for retail and events. UFabrik Soft Blackback Textile has a bright white print surface with an anti-scratch black backing.
Ultraflex Systems, Inc. features blockout textile options as part of its VorTex. For example, VorTex Blockout D252 is a 100 percent polyester woven fabric with a smooth print surface. Its unique white, black, white triple layer construction makes VorTex Blockout D252 almost completely opaque. VorTex Blockout D252 is ideal for direct dye-sub, latex, and UV processes. The product is fire resistant and available up to 126 inches wide.
Blockout Options
Many applications require more opaque media options to reduce show through. Common applications include double-sided banners, exhibit graphics, retail displays, SEG, and backdrops. A range of options are available to fill this need.
Nov2023, Digital Output
