Kornit Digital, a maker of on-demand textile and apparel printing technology, has announced that its Apollo direct-to-garment platform is now available commercially, after what it described as a “rigorous 4.5-year development phase and extensive beta testing with three industry leaders.”

The Kornit Apollo DTG printer is now commercially available.

The Apollo has the capacity to decorate more than 1.5 million garments a year with a single operator. It has a proprietary automation system that integrates smart drying and can concurrently manage various garment types with the ability to decorate up to 400 garments an hour. The printer is able to scale on-demand, handling both bulk orders and one-offs, according to Kornit.

“Our team was not only impressed by its performance throughout the peak season, but also its ability to easily connect across our automation system to deliver vibrant, high-quality prints,” said Scott Valancy, chief operating officer at T-Shirt Central, one of the beta sites testing the Apollo printer.

Kornit said the Apollo will be particularly valuable for retail, brands and screen-printing segments. Retailers and brands will be able to react in real-time to new trends, while streamlining inventory costs, and screen printers can shorten lead times, thanks to the increased productivity the Apollo provides.

“Kornit Apollo is the most advanced and proven solution on the market allowing digital production to go mainstream – creating real business opportunities for brands, fulfillers and retailers,” said Ronen Samuel, CEO of Kornit Digital.

Stahls’ Announces Family Scholarship Winners

Stahls’ (asi/88984) has announced the 2023 Q4 winners of its Stahl Family Scholarship – a program that was founded in 2020 to help celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit by rewarding small businesses.

The heat-printing technology company rewards one small business and one school quarterly through the program. Winners receive specialized Dream Shop packages, valued at more than $6,000 and complete with everything needed to enter the heat printing industry. Winners are chosen by a panel of industry experts and receive personalized training from the Stahls’ team.

For Q4 2023, the winners were Country Hillside Designs, a small-town business in rural North Dakota, and Jayhawk-Linn High School in Mound City, KS.

Entries for the Q1 2024 contest are now open.

Roland DGA Launches New UV Printer

Roland DGA offers the VersaOBJECT MO-240, a benchtop flatbed UV printer.

Roland DGA, a provider of wide-format inkjet printers, vinyl cutters and other digital imaging technology, has launched the VersaOBJECT MO-240, a benchtop flatbed UV printer that combines print quality with productivity. Ideal for product customization and personalization, the printer allows users to create detailed graphics and text on a variety of 3-D objects.

The MO-240 features two newly developed large printheads in a staggered formation, a more powerful UV-LED lamp, and dot-control technology optimized for high-speed output – allowing for productivity of 22.28 square feet per hour in standard mode. The 24-inch-by-18-inch print area enables direct printing on 3-D objects up to 8 inches thick, and an option rotary rack unit makes it simple to print on bottles, flasks and other cylindrical objects.

“The MO-240 is tailor-made for small-volume, high-mix production,” said Dave Hawkes, UV benchtop printer product manager for Roland DGA. “Whether you want to print directly on products for industrial applications or differentiate your offerings by customizing them with eye-catching graphics, this innovative device will get the job done efficiently and effectively, giving you an edge over the competition.”