Roland DG has unveiled the Texart XT-640S-F, a hybrid direct-to-textile and direct-to-garment (DTG) solution the company has developed in order to meet the growing demand for short-run printing in the apparel and textile industry.  

Targeted at apparel print houses and garment manufacturers, Roland is marketing the new printer as requiring virtually no set up and says it can decorate different sizes, colours and types of garment within the same print run, as well as ‘seamlessly switching from direct to garment and direct-to-textile without changing machine.’ As such it can be used to create fashion, sports and leisurewear, apparel and street attire, as well as being well suited to fashion houses looking to build prototype versions of a clothing item or create a one-off piece for a show.

The Texart XT-640S-F, which has been designed to sit alongside more traditional production methods,  can print onto broad spectrum of fabrics including cotton, cotton-rich blends, white polyester, denim and leather. It is available in three different bed sizes, with a vacuum table included, and offers an optional jig system enabling up to six garments to be printed in a single workflow. Its CMYK plus high-density White set-up also means that it can print onto both white and coloured garments. 

Paul Willems, director of business development and product management at Roland EMEA, commented ‘In recent months, we’ve been working in collaboration with a number of our Italian textile customers to design a flat-bed machine that is purpose-built for the ‘fashion drop’ generation. The result is the Texart XT-640S-F, our most flexible textile printer to date, and a product that will help garment manufacturers to capitalize on the demand for short-run printing and incorporate it into their workflows.

‘Roland DG has always been known for leading-edge technology development across different ink technologies and is now evidencing its ingenuity in the textile print arena,’ Mr Willems concluded. ‘This solution provides an affordable mid-range option to textile businesses who want to step-up or scale up existing operations, with the flexibility to deliver on their future growth ambitions.’

Roland says that the Texart XT-640S-F will allow for realistic print costs of around €0.50 (£0.42 or $0.58) per garment.