Nearly 300 people from 40 countries traveled to Bergamo, Italy, to see the EFI Reggiani BOLT digital textile printer unveiled during a gala event. The company had expected about 100 customers to attend, but with the last-minute demand, arrangements were made to handle nearly three times that many. EFI’s new CEO, Bill Muir, who was celebrating one month on the job, was at the event to welcome attendees. He stated, “The culture of courageous innovation, creating value through products for our customers, is what attracted me to this company.” And innovation abounds with the new BOLT printer, which underwent an astounding one-year development cycle.

(It’s so big, it’s hard to get the whole thing in one image!)

Like EFI’s Nozomi digital direct-to-corrugated printer, elements of which are incorporated into this press, BOLT’s development was a company-wide effort, and drew on the expertise of everything from Cretaprint ceramic tile and Nozomi single pass printing to Reggiani’s textile expertise, the company’s software development team in Germany, Silicon Valley, and Pittsburgh Pa., ink development in the UK and Ypsilanti, Mich., and EFI Fiery as the digital front end. The printer is being manufactured in Bergamo.