Silicone dots printed on fabric are an uncured dot pattern applied to the textile and cured in place. The fabric keeps its own hand; the raised dots add controlled friction on the face that meets another material.
It looks like printing a row of dots, but three things decide whether it works: whether the silicone wets into the fibre, whether the cure is stable, and whether the array stays uniform at production speed.
1. Three routes, chosen by volume and pattern
Screen printing suits regular arrays at large width and takes one pass per full width. Dispensing suits small runs, many positions or free patterns; it changes fast but single-drop weight has to be watched. Transfer film moves the dots onto a release or hot-melt carrier, so a garment factory can cut and press without a printing line.
| Route | Best for | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Screen printing | Regular arrays, wide format, volume | Screen tension, deposit thickness, squeegee angle |
| Dispensing | Free patterns, small runs, multi-colour zones | Drop weight, flow stability, motion accuracy |
| Transfer film | Factories without printing, cut-and-press | Film grade, press temperature and pressure, cooling |
2. Bond: cleaning, wetting and cure
Textiles are not metal or plastic: they carry fibre hairs, sizing and finishing agents. Sized fabric has to be desized, and silicone softeners stop the silicone from spreading. Viscosity and dispensing pressure decide whether the silicone reaches into the fibre gaps; too little heat leaves a tacky surface, too much makes it brittle.
3. Roll production and size
Printing is done in a roll: 1440 mm wide, up to 10000 mm continuous, so a cutting line can use it directly. The same dots can be printed on TPU or nylon hot-melt film and cut to shape, then pressed on. Colour, diameter, height and shape are made to order, with samples in 3 days.
Conclusion
The difficulty is not printing pretty dots but keeping the bond, the cure and the array consistent. Fix the carrier and the grip target first, then choose the route: roll printing for volume, dispensing for flexibility, film for factories that only press.
Related: grip dots for textiles, wash resistance and testing, dots on elastic, and the product page.