FREMONT, Calif. - Cestrian Imaging Ltd has become the first printing company in the UK to install a fully loaded EFI™ Reggiani PRO 340 digital textile printer. The new 340 cm-wide device will meet increasing demand for high-quality fabric-printed displays, branded apparel and more. 

The printer, which has 16 ink channels, will enable Cestrian Imaging to grow its business even faster as it capitalizes on growing opportunities, such as the trend for printing larger designs onto large-format rolls of textile. The Cheadle, UK-based company's customers love the flexibility of fabrics, the unparalleled vibrancy of the colors and the ecological benefits that come from being able to reuse rain-proof branded fabrics.

In a recent report, industry analyst company InfoTrends values the worldwide digital textile printing market for garment, home décor and industrial applications at approximately $7.5 billion globally. The market is experiencing strong growth of around 34% CAGR to 2019. Europe, according to the report, continues as the biggest market for digital textile printing due to strong regional manufacturing industries.¹

High-end, complex designs, delivered just in time
"With the EFI Reggiani PRO 340, we can offer even more customized work, spectacularly colored and complex print designs," said Paul Gibson, Cestrian's Production Director. "This printer will allow us to deliver just in time designs for freestanding fabric walls, light boxes and other fabric displays."

With its 16 heads, eight colors, drop sizes from 4 to 72 picoliters and resolutions up to 2400 dpi, the EFI Reggiani PRO knows few limits, and Cestrian can reliably use it to achieve photo-quality imaging. The printer also provides exceptional, accurate and consistent fabric handling thanks to a "sticky belt" industrial feeding feature that can handle everything from stretch fabric to stiff papers consistently and reliably at high rates of speed.

The printer's 340 cm width guarantees greater variety in terms of size or repeat, while its specified fabric weights from 30 to 450 gr/sqm lets Cestrian achieve high throughput of up to 800 sqm/hour on a range of textiles that includes polyester, cotton, cotton-linen, polyamide, viscose and even wool.

"We are also excited about the EFI Reggiani PRO's fluorescent ink capabilities. These inks produce bright colors beyond the range reproducible by process color printing, while the availability of 16 ink channels guarantees smooth gradations," said Gibson.

Fluorescent inks are popular for eye-catching, intensely vivid soft signage. For example, fluorescent pink and yellow deliver bright neon colors that are not seen in graphics produced using normal ink sets.

Cestrian's new printer is versatile in the types of inks it runs as well. The company can use any kind of process color inks it deems necessary in its new EFI Reggiani printer, including disperse direct, reactive, acid, disperse sublimation, and textile pigment.

Greater sustainability in fabric display printing
In addition, the new machine will allow Cestrian to reap other benefits from Reggiani technology. EFI Reggiani printers are very eco-friendly, as they can run water-based inks with little to no odor, and they have low power consumption.

"We also look forward to our customers also saving on shipping," added Gibson, citing the fact that fabric-printed display signage pieces are lightweight and fold up easily, reducing the energy and costs need for freight.

EFI Reggiani printers also offer increased sustainability because they produce high-quality printed textiles while using less ink. The printers' ink recovery system is especially beneficial in the amount of savings it can create for customers.

Employing more than 80 people, Cestrian's aim is to bring brand communications to life, from design to production. The company is an industry leader in visual brand communications and printing for retail point-of-sale signage. The diversity of Cestrian's state-of-the-art equipment - which includes the new EFI Reggiani printer and a pair of 3.2-metre EFI VUTEk® inkjet presses the company installed late last year - gives Cestrian the ability to deliver successful projects, no matter the complexity or scale. Cestrian also is a long-time user of EFI DirectSmile™ software, which the company uses to develop personalized marketing materials and help multi-channel direct marketing clients synchronize print, URLs, email and SMS whilst tracking response rates.

"Our partnership with Cestrian Imaging reflects how important it is for EFI to provide technologies that can fuel greater success in a wide range of print signage and marketing applications," said Paul Cripps, regional vice president of sales for EFI. "After helping the company successfully expand its signage and graphics capabilities with a pair of high-speed EFI VUTEk inkjet presses, we are happy to see the company continue its remarkable expansion with an EFI Reggiani PRO printer to address the rapidly expanding textile imaging market."

1. www.infotrends.com/public/Content/Press/2015/09.02.15.html