Electronics For Imaging, Inc. is showcasing the advanced, leading-edge technologies that make EFI Reggiani a textile innovator at ITMA 2019, 20-26 June in Barcelona, including the game-changing EFI Reggiani BOLT single-pass inkjet printer – the first digital textile solution capable of high-quality output at record production speeds of up to 90 linear meters (295 linear feet) per minute.
Leading innovation in digital textile
EFI is presenting one of the most important showcases of new digital textile printing technology in the industry, emphasizing leading-edge innovations that make EFI customers successful in the global textile industry. The EFI exhibit in Hall 3, Booth B204 at ITMA also features:
- the EFI Reggiani COLORS printer, a high-quality, highly productive solution that prints with up to 12 colors and offers unmatched printing quality and uniformity with an extended color gamut, superior color depth and increased penetration into fabric
- EFI Mezzera indigo dyeing and finishing technology that reduces chemical usage by up to 40% compared with other dyeing technologies and ensures deeper shades and superior fastness
- New EFI Reggiani FUOCO water-based acid inks, specifically designed to deliver amazing prints for highly demanding textile applications and incomparable color depth and vibrancy
- a new EFI Fiery BT-1000 digital front end (DFE), that streams jobs directly to the Reggiani BOLT printer at engine-rated speed for top-quality print results and increased profitability
- the newly launched version of EFI Optitex 2D/3D textile CAD software offering streamlined Print & Cut workflow integration with Reggiani printers for up to 15% greater efficiency in textile usage
- Fiery DesignPro, a suite of Adobe Creative Cloud plug-ins that streamline design of textile repeats, colorways, wovens and knits, plus communicate color consistently from design to production.
- ITMA attendees will see how they can do more, and drive new success, using a renewed product range of EFI Reggiani printers to accompany them through their digital journey, from small scale to mass production.
The EFI Reggiani portfolio of textile solutions includes a complete, integrated design, color management and pre- and post-treatment solution offering unmatched by any other digital technology supplier in the industry. Plus, users also benefit from one of the industry’s broadest lineups of high-end, superior-quality textile inks, including reactive inks from EFI’s recent acquisition of BDR Boya Kimya, along with EFI Reggiani AQUA reactive, IRIS dye-sublimation, ARIA direct disperse and TERRA pigment inks.
As print technology analyst company Keypoint Intelligence recently noted in a report, EFI, with its expansive portfolio, “is positioning itself as a one-stop-shop for industrial textile needs, addressing not only the fundamentals of the business with equipment supplies and service but also demonstrating a vision for an evolving supply chain.”
Transformational technology for the industry’s digital migration
The new, 1.8-meter (71-inch) wide Reggiani BOLT printer at ITMA is designed to give textile manufacturers high uptime and reliability, high performance throughout and unparalleled printing uniformity and accuracy, in addition to superior printhead life and minimal maintenance needs. Thanks to its cutting-edge printhead concept and high-performance ink delivery system, the Reggiani BOLT reaches a record throughput speed of 90 meters/minute at a 600 x 600 dots per inch (dpi) resolution. It features high-end imaging in drop sizes from 5 to 30 picoliters, and also provides premium-quality 600 x 4,800 maximum-dpi resolution printing, allowing customers to address their full range of design needs.
A robust, industrial platform designed for 24/7 operation, the Reggiani BOLT printer offers an innovative, low-maintenance, fast-startup recirculation printhead that delivers more-uniform, high-quality printing with superior uptime. Users can reduce the cost per meter of digitally printed textiles with the Reggiani BOLT while creating a broader range of designs quickly and efficiently. The printer also has another remarkable advantage in its ability to include one or more analog printing stations as an option, integrated into the digital printer for special effects.
The Fiery BT-1000 DFE is a professional color management and RIP solution that enables efficient job management and streams jobs directly to the Reggiani BOLT printer in real time. It is purpose-built to deliver fine detail, smooth gradations, clean solid colors, deep blacks, and high saturation. Superior screening and fine dithering algorithms provide high-quality print results.
Time-to-market miracles: design and sampling solutions
EFI’s stand at ITMA features one of the industry’s most-advanced workflows for design through production. The newest-version EFI Optitex software featured in the EFI exhibit addresses retailers’ and brands’ urgent need to bring new products to market faster. The new release delivers true-to-life fabric simulations, enabling custom views of designs for consistent and adaptable 3D sample displays, minimizing the need for physical samples and costly photo shoots across the design and production workflow. A new EFI Optitex Print & Cut feature enables complete garment printing on a single roll, creating significant savings in fabric roll inventory, with typically 15%-40% greater efficiency compared to traditional methods. Fashion and apparel manufacturers also benefit from an improved nesting algorithm in the software that increases fabric utilization.
The Fiery DesignPro textile design software tools EFI is showing at ITMA work seamlessly with Adobe® Photoshop and Illustrator in Mac or Microsoft Windows environments. This set of powerful textile and fashion design plug-ins are efficient to use, fast to learn, and make it easy to switch between DesignPro and native Photoshop or Illustrator software during the design process. The plug-ins significantly reduce the time and effort needed to create repeat patterns, colorways, separations, weaves, knits, or garment sketches. Plus, Fiery DesignPro gives designers the ability to effectively and efficiently communicate colors and seasonal palettes through the entire design team, all the way to production.
EFI is also announcing a new EFI Reggiani BOLT Capsule proofing printer model, designed to perfectly match Reggiani BOLT print results to let users preview them before moving to production. This high-end scanning/multi-pass printer delivers high coverage and uniform printing with highly accurate fabric feeding. It features the same special, high-quality, highly reliable inkjet heads as the Reggiani BOLT model, with an efficient, innovative recirculation feature to ensure that it stays ready to print without extensive preventive maintenance.
Greater sustainability in denim production
The EFI Mezzera DENIM system at ITMA – the latest innovation in the renowned Mezzera line of low-impact indigo dyeing and finishing solutions – uses patented Nitrogen Indigo technology. Key advantages include:
- an up to 35-40% reduction in chemical usage compared to other dyeing technologies
- up to 6.5% higher indigo intensity compared to other dyeing technologies
- improved colorfastness
- deeper sulphur dyeing shades with no steaming
- a smaller machinery footprint.
“We are very excited about our ITMA exhibit, especially to be showing the Reggiani BOLT to the general public for the first time along with our unmatched portfolio for advanced, efficient, high-quality digital textile production,” said EFI Reggiani Vice President and General Manager Adele Genoni. “This innovative single-pass printer will be printing live at the show, and visitors will be more than pleased with how it creates a new path for the future with digital production. EFI is a true partner to our customers in this transformation as the only provider with a complete offering of advanced printers, inks, pre- and post-treatment technologies and integrated design and workflow solutions.”
The EFI ecosystem of textile technologies at ITMA leverages EFI Reggiani’s 70+ years as a leader in textile industry innovation with digital and conventional processes. EFI Reggiani products, along with some of the industry’s most advanced pre-treatment, post-treatment and software innovations, simplify the transition from conventional to digital production to give customers new profit and growth opportunities.
