Hollywood Monster takes delivery of new POD Iberia MTEX 5032 wide format direct-to-textile printer

Hollywood Monster has taken delivery of one of the first new MTEX 3.2m wide direct-to-textile printers.  Branded the MTEX 5032, the printer has in-built fixation and is manufactured and developed in Portugal by specialist textile printer manufacturer, POD Iberia.

On the new arrival, Simon McKenzie, Hollywood Monster's sales director, comments “We’re not shy of saying we are one of the leading wide format printers in the UK and we’re proud of the reputation we have for excellence in design, print and delivery. When you have several customers asking for a particular kind of print â€" like dye-sub for example â€" we have to listen. The demand seems to have increased certainly in the past 6 months, so we found ourselves on a mission to find the best direct-to-textile printer to meet these needs. The MTEX 5032, launched at FESPA London this year, ticked all the boxes for us.”

Hollywood Monster will start off by keeping it simple, printing onto backlit, display textile and black-out polyester based textiles that are tried and tested and give stunning visual results. Short bespoke work will also feature as will an amount of exhibition and retail displays, which will be predominantly indoor but will also include some short-term outdoor work. The wide format direct-to-textile work perfectly complements the company's existing wide format business and Simon sees it growing as the demand for flexible, lightweight and re-usable visual graphics becomes more commonplace.

The MTEX 5032 was launched at FESPA London earlier this year to much acclaim. Ideal for printing applications such as lightboxes, home textile decoration, flags, interiors and much more.  The MTEX 5032 has an integrated heat fixation unit, meaning waste is reduced to a minimum and the whole solution has just one footprint, saving space, time and money. The MTEX 5032 prints vibrant colours and intense blacks, which means dramatic light box and wall graphics can be produced at a standard never seen before at this price point.

Simon adds, “When we settled on the MTEX, we were invited to the manufacturing plant in Portugal by specialist textile printer distributor Digital Print Innovations Ltd (DPI) to see for ourselves and conduct a rigorous testing demonstration. We spent hours there, throwing all sorts of files at the MTEX 5032 and every time, without fail, it produced a vibrant finished result. We couldn’t be happier with our choice and recommend anyone thinking of getting involved in direct to textile printing to speak with DPI as their honest and down-to-earth approach really helped us make the right decision for our business.”

Stewart Bell, Managing Director of DPI concludes, “We’re delighted for Hollywood Monster on their acquisition of their new MTEX 5032. We knew for sure that this new series would change the way we approach digital textile printing in the UK, and they’ve recognised that. No longer do you have to buy a printer and separate calendar - essentially halving production time compared with traditional digital methods. Now with the inbuilt fixation unit, the MTEX 5032 saves you time money and wastage and with unrivalled quality for the price. I look forward to seeing some of the very exciting digital textile print work that will come out of Hollywood Monster over the coming weeks and months!”

One of the first jobs to be produced on the MTEX 5032 was for the Birmingham REP Theatre for a production called Tartuffe.   The graphic (pictured) is a 30m x 9m back wall and had to be extremely light-weight and not crease. The job took round 7 hours to print and 5 hours to sew together.  Hollywood Monster also produced around 400 sqm of digital wallpaper on the set.