The need to have a more localized supply chain has been one of the many lessons learned by business during the COVID-19 pandemic. This has also proven to be true for the textile industry, which found itself at the mercy of shipping and logistics nightmares as goods were shipped from overseas. By the time the products arrived, demand in some cases evaporated.

We already know the advantages of digital printing of textiles, including just-in-time production, customization and inventory reduction. The ability for textile printers to be able to produce fabrics and garments closer to their customers is another important benefit.

For Epson, this presents an opportunity, and the company is responding with the North American launch of its Monna Lisa 8000 direct-to-fabric printer. The Monna Lisa series is a staple in other regions including Europe; first introduced in 2003, it’s been developed through a  long-standing partnership between Epson and Robustelli, which was acquired by Epson in 2016.

“Epson Monna Lisa printers have long maintained a strong reputation and market position in Italy where they have been used to digitally print fabrics for some of the world’s largest international high fashion brands,” said Mark Krzywicki, product manager, Professional Imaging for Epson America. 

He noted that the Monna Lisa 8000 will help enable textile manufacturers to bring production back to the Americas region.

“The textile supply chain today is primarily concentrated in Asia,” Krzywicki said. “Especially considering today’s shipping environment, this creates to long lead times, making it difficult for brands to align their inventory with rapidly changing fashion trends. In addition, there is a high risk of disruption due to political, environmental or other factors.

“We see the possibilities and benefits of brand owners having many factories distributed globally, closer to the end user,” Krzywicki added.

“The Monna Lisa 8000 is a result of years of customer feedback and Epson know-how in precision manufacturing and printhead technology,” observed Krzywicki. “We’re also leveraging a lot of the technology  ad user-friendly features from Epson’ high-production dye-sublimation printer, the SureColor F10070.”

The Monna Lisa 8000 uses Epson’s Genesta inks. Before installation, customers have the option of selecting either pigment, disperse, reactive and acid ink formulations, depending on the fabric type. The inks are ECO PASSPORT certified.

The printer employs eight of Epson’s latest generation 4.7-inch PrecisionCore Micro TFP printheads. The printhead’s maximum ink droplet size is 1.4 times larger than previous Epson Monna Lisa series printers, enabling high speed and print quality.

Krzywicki sees plenty of potential customers, including large dye-sublimation companies looking to expand to printing on natural fibers, analog textile printing companies who might want to move into digital, as well as brand owners and designers who are looking to have more control over production.

Krzywicki said that building a digital textile printing factory in North America today is a reality. “With digital pigment ink printing technology, in as little as 1,000 square feet, companies can have the potential to produce strong volumes up to 150,000 to 500,000 square feet of production per month,” he noted.