DTF Transfer Safety

Safety documents and supplier referral

What we publish, why it is a summary rather than a Safety Data Sheet, what we do not publish, and how to be referred to the manufacturer.

What we publish

• The Product Safety Summary: one printable document for the finished transfer, prepared from the manufacturers' Safety Data Sheets, covering every material that is in a transfer.
• A page for each material, with its composition and the manufacturer's classification: Ink, Adhesive powder and Carrier film.
• Guidance for pressing, wearing and washing, and children's products.

Every page carries the date it was last reviewed against the documents we hold.

Why a summary and not a Safety Data Sheet

Two reasons, and both are the honest ones.

A finished transfer has no Safety Data Sheet, and none is required. Under the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, a manufactured item with a fixed shape, whose use depends on that shape, and which does not release more than trace amounts of a hazardous chemical in normal use is an article, and articles are outside the standard. A cured transfer is an article. We have made that determination for our transfers and keep the reasoning on file. The ink, the adhesive powder and the carrier film we buy are chemicals, and they each have a Safety Data Sheet from their manufacturer.

A Safety Data Sheet must name its responsible party. The standard requires the manufacturer's name, address and telephone number in Section 1. A sheet with that section removed is not a de-identified Safety Data Sheet; it is a defective one. So we do not republish the manufacturers' sheets with the name taken out, and we do not call what we publish a Safety Data Sheet. We publish a Product Safety Summary prepared from the manufacturers' Safety Data Sheets: the same composition, the same classification, the same handling, first-aid, fire and disposal guidance, with nothing softened and nothing added, and with the manufacturer's identity replaced by an offer to put you in touch.

What we do not publish

• The manufacturer's identity. Our materials and the way we run them are part of how we compete, and our supplier relationships are confidential. We will refer you directly on request; see below.
• Process chemicals that never touch a transfer. We use cleaning and maintenance fluids on our printers. They are workplace chemicals for our team, they do not come into contact with the product, and they are outside the scope of these pages.
• Certifications we do not hold. ProTransfers holds no textile-chemistry certification of its own. Schemes such as OEKO-TEX, GOTS and bluesign certify the chemical maker or the finished article, not the transfer printer in between. Our material manufacturers may hold certifications for specific products; if you need to verify one, ask us and we will refer you to them, who can answer for their own certificates.

Getting the manufacturer's own documents

What a referral is: a person on our team contacts the manufacturer on your behalf, tells them what you need, and connects you. What it is not: a form that returns a file. The manufacturer answers for its own documents, and some requests, such as a certificate for a specific lot, are theirs to grant.

Claims we do not make

Some vendors describe their transfers with words you will not find on this site. Here is each one, and why.

“non-toxic”also “nontoxic”, “non toxic”

An unqualified safety claim about every route of exposure. Nobody has tested a finished transfer that way, and the Federal Trade Commission treats the word as a promise about all of them. Instead: We publish what the manufacturer classifies each input as, and what remains in the finished transfer.

“hypoallergenic”

Needs a dermatological test on the finished article. The manufacturer's data reports that the skin-sensitisation classification criteria are not met for the ink; that is a chemical classification, not a wear test. Instead: We report the classification and say what it is and is not.

“OEKO-TEX certified”also “ECO PASSPORT certified”, “GOTS certified”, “bluesign approved”

We hold no textile-chemistry certificate. Our manufacturer may; those schemes certify the chemical maker, not the transfer printer. Instead: Ask us and we will refer you to the manufacturer, who can answer for their own certifications.

“CPSIA compliant”also “CPSIA certified”

Certification under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act belongs to the manufacturer or importer of the finished children's product. A transfer is a component of that product, and we are its supplier. Instead: We explain the responsibility split and provide the documents a certifier needs from a component supplier.

“phthalate-free”also “PVC-free”, “lead-free”, “heavy-metal-free”

"Free" is a tested absence. We have not commissioned that test on a finished transfer. Instead: We say what the materials are formulated from — a water-based pigment ink and a thermoplastic polyurethane, neither of which needs a phthalate plasticiser or PVC — and we say that this is a statement about composition, not a test result.

“eco-friendly”also “environmentally friendly”, “sustainable”

An unqualified environmental-benefit claim, which the Federal Trade Commission's Green Guides say not to make.

“FDA approved”also “food safe”

Not a thing for a garment decoration, and we would not claim it.

“safe for babies”also “safe for children”, “safe for kids”, “child safe”

A fitness-for-use claim about a regulated product category we do not certify. Whether a finished garment is suitable for a child is the decision of whoever places it on the market, informed by their own testing. Instead: We give the children's-products page a straight account of who is responsible for what, and we help with documents and a referral.

How these pages are kept

We review the safety pages against the manufacturers' documents when a document changes and at least once a year. The review date is at the foot of every page. If you find an error, tell us and we will correct it.