The entry-level system is said to be suitable for creative entrepreneurs starting a garment printing business or those wanting to add a new profitable product line to their existing offering.
The Ri 100 enables users to print on demand promotional and personalised items including t-shirts, cloth bags, cushion covers and sweatshirts. The device can print on a wide range of materials from 100% cotton to blends with a minimum of 50% cotton.
The device incorporates Ricoh’s piezo-electric inkjet technology intended to deliver crisp, high-quality prints. The integrated variable drop size technology enables the printing of detailed designs and photographs with smooth gradations at 1,200x1,200dpi resolution.
Ricoh said the kit can be used across a wide range of industries and for many activities, including fashion, universities, colleges and schools, corporate brands, SMEs, home decoration shops, tourism, youth groups, sports clubs and charity events.
The machine supports wireless printing from any application or workstation with a simple printer driver. User-friendly automatic maintenance features support uptime, and additional design software can be used to enhance pictures and add text.
TheMagicTouch (GB) managing director Jim Nicol said: “We’ve been involved with this project with Ricoh for some time now. It’s a great little tool – one of the big advantages this machine has over everything else is that there is no pre-treatment going on and – more importantly – you don’t have a visible heat press.
“I believe this will open the door for a lot more opportunity to create business. It can be used to create 50 to 100 t-shirts a day for a retail store, for example, and I’ve got somebody who wants to use one of these for kids’ parties: the kids can design a t-shirt and then print them off – it’s a great idea.”
The complete package includes the printer and an optional heating system with built-in safety features.
Nicol said pricing for the kit would be “very, very competitive” and called it a “no-risk” investment. He added the running cost would be less than 50p to produce a full-colour up-to-A4-size print.
Through its EMEA-wide network, the Ri 100 will also be available from TheMagicTouch’s outlets in France, Italy, The Netherlands and Spain from April while the remaining EMEA countries will follow in June.
The machine will be shown at Fespa in Berlin in May, at both Ricoh and TheMagicTouch’s stands. Last year, Ricoh also launched the Ri 3000 and Ri 6000 DTG printers.
