Printing Innovation Asia Issue 5 2020
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Kornit Enables Digital Tex Answer the COVID-19 Ag Versatile Technology Means Adapting to a Disrupted Economy By Robert Zoch, Global Content Manager, Kornit Digital
In times of emergency, it’s common for manufacturers with production infrastructure in place to repurpose their operations to fulfill demand for vital goods. In times of war, an automotive company will stop making sedans and start churning out airplanes. Facing a pandemic, that same automotive company produces respirators. Textile manufacturers offer a perfect example in the COVID-19 era. Since the outbreak, such businesses have answered the call for personal protection equipment in the form of face masks, medical apparel, and other necessary goods for those fighting on the front line. Being the world’s leading provider of solutions for sustainable digital textile print-on-demand, Kornit Digital has been contributing free ink, as well as continuous technical support, to customers who have shifted their focus to producing gear for healthcare personnel, victims, struggling families, and others in harm’s way. This piece highlights two such businesses that have stepped outside their traditional business models to meet these sudden challenges. When Social Distancing Shrinks Print Runs, DTG Bears Fruit in Thailand As distributor for Fruit of the Loom in Thailand, Chaiyaboon Brothers has been using digital direct-to-garment (DTG) technology for more than a decade, most recently implementing the Kornit Avalanche HD6 system for industrial-scale decoration of shortand long-sleeve t-shirts. Currently, the
business imprints 600-800 pieces for FOTL Thailand daily, most of them one piece per order. With print-ondemand capabilities, they ensure a consistent profit margin for these small orders.
