Epson Group has acquired Italian textile printing business Fratelli Robustelli in a deal aimed at expanding the two companies' collaboration in digital inkjet textile printing.
Fratelli Robustelli is a leader in the textile printing market and manufactures the award-winning Monna Lisa digital inkjet textile printer.
The entry of Robustelli into the Epson Group will allow it to leverage Epson's manufacturing capability to bring the advantages of its digital inkjet textile printers to more customers around the world, according to a statement from Epson Group.
The move will assist Epson in using Robustelli's expertise to accelerate the development of digital inkjet textile printers that further enhance the companies' abilities to meet customer needs with a wider lineup of products. As part of the enhanced acceleration, the two companies plan to focus on joint R&D efforts to achieve this goal.
“This is a very exciting development for Epson in Australia and New Zealand," said Craig Heckenberg, GM Business Division, Epson Australia. "The market for high-quality digital textile printing is expanding and acquiring Robustelli puts us in a great place to meet the technology needs of the growing numbers of customers who are seeking to leverage the advantages of advanced digital solutions that will help drive their businesses forward.”
The digital textile printing market is expected to grow worldwide at an annual rate of approximately 25% until 2019, according to the latest WTiN Intelligence report.
"We are happy and proud to become members of the Epson Group," said Valerio Robustelli, one of the proprietors of F.lli Robustelli. "Our cooperation with Epson led to the development of Monna Lisa, an industrial digital textile printer that is today a market benchmark for high-quality textile printing. The combination of our respective skills is the natural conclusion of a process of innovation to satisfy customers in Italy and the rest of the world."
Located in Como, the heart of the Italian and European high-quality printing textile industry, Robustelli specialises in the development, manufacture, and sale of digital inkjet textile printers.