What Aleph S.r.l. does

Aleph S.r.l. is an Italian industrial digital printing solutions manufacturer founded in 1999 in Lurate Caccivio (Como), operating at the intersection of textile and visual communications industries. The company designs and manufactures the LAFORTE series of large-format digital inkjet printers in two configurations — Direct-to-Fabric and Direct-to-Paper (sublimation) — spanning models from the entry-level LAFORTE 100 up to the high-volume LAFORTE 600, with print speeds reaching 1,000 sqm/h and resolutions up to 1,200 dpi. Around the hardware, Aleph offers an integrated ecosystem comprising proprietary software (SmartPrint, SmartColor, Newton, Design Collection), water-based inks (Pigment M22, Graphic Pigment A22/A22-SP, reactive, sublimation, acid, disperse), transfer papers, pre/post-treatment auxiliaries, and accessories (unwinders, dryers including the DryForte line, ovens, inline cutting systems). Underlying technology includes Dynamic Stitching Technology (sub-40-micron accuracy), proprietary rotating belt and drying systems, and an IoT-enabled web platform introduced with the LAFORTE MY 2021 release.

Aleph monetizes primarily through capital-equipment sales (LAFORTE printers and accessories), recurring revenue from proprietary inks and consumables, and software licensing under royalty agreements. The company goes to market exclusively through a global authorized distributor network, with presence at major trade shows (ITMA, Fespa, SGIA, Heimtextil, Viscom), and has historically partnered with Mimaki as an OEM manufacturer (2009 onwards, 200+ JV5 units placed 2014-2017). Its customer base spans high-end and fast-fashion textile producers, sportswear companies, billboard/poster printers, and home décor / soft signage manufacturers — anchored by reference customers such as Tintoria e Stamperia di Lambrugo (Italy) and Stead McAlpin (UK). R&D intensity is reported at 6% of turnover.

Ownership and corporate trajectory: Aleph received an H2020 EU grant in 2015, took majority investment from Italian private equity firm WISE sgr in 2017, obtained €1M in UniCredit sustainability financing in February 2022, and was acquired by Durst Group S.p.A. in October 2023 to jointly advance water-based sustainable textile digital printing. A merger by incorporation of Aleph into Durst Group S.p.A. is scheduled to take effect 1 December 2025, after which Aleph's product information is migrating to durst-group.com.

Name

Aleph S.r.l.

Legal name

Aleph S.r.l.

Website

https://alephteam.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Aleph S.r.l. is an Italian manufacturer of large-format industrial digital inkjet printers (LAFORTE series) for direct-to-fabric textile and direct-to-paper sublimation applications, serving fashion, sportswear, billboard, soft signage, and home décor producers worldwide through a global authorized distributor network, with proprietary inks, software, and accessories.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Digital Printing Equipment

NAICS

Printing (32311), Printing Ink Manufacturing (325910), Printing and Related Support Activities (3231)

SIC

Printing Trades Machinery & Equipment (3555), Service Industries For The Printing Trade (2790)

akta.pro primary industry

Production & High-Volume Printing Systems (HDACAEAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Direct-to-Container & Digital Printing (Inkjet/Laser) (IMALAKAF), Printing Operations (Rotary/Flat/Digital/Sublimation) (IMAOACAC), Printing Inks (IMAEAHAG), Flexible Packaging Printing (Film/Poly/Paper Print) (IMALAKAG)

Keywords

• Industrial digital printing
• Textile printing equipment
• Digital inkjet printers
• Sublimation transfer printing
• Direct-to-fabric printing

Headquarters

HQ city

Lurate Caccivio

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Industrial Digital Printers: Sale of LAFORTE series industrial digital printers for direct-to-fabric and direct-to-paper applications. Hardware constitutes the primary revenue stream.
2. Inks & Consumables: Sale of proprietary water-based inks (Pigment M22, A22, reactive, sublimation, acid, disperse), transfer papers, and pre/post treatment auxiliaries.
3. Software Licensing: Non-exclusive worldwide license for software use with royalty payments per the signed offer. Includes SmartPrint, SmartColor, Newton, Design Collection.
4. Accessories: Sale of unwinders, dryers, ovens, and inline cutting systems for LAFORTE printers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Aleph designs, manufactures and distributes industrial digital inkjet printers under the LAFORTE brand for direct-to-fabric and direct-to-paper (sublimation transfer) applications, serving the textile and visual communications industries. The integrated offering also includes proprietary print-management software (SmartPrint, SmartColor, Newton, Design Collection), water-based inks, transfer papers, pre/post-treatment auxiliaries, and accessories such as unwinders, dryers and inline cutting systems.

Product overview

Aleph S.r.l. is an Italian manufacturer of industrial digital printing solutions, offering a comprehensive integrated product portfolio centered around the LAFORTE series of high-performance digital printers. The product line includes two main categories: Direct-to-Fabric printers (LAFORTE 100/200/340/400/600 Fabric) for textile printing on various substrates, and Direct-to-Paper printers (LAFORTE 100/200/320/400/600 Paper) for sublimation transfer printing targeting the visual communications and OOH markets. Supporting the core printer line is proprietary software including SmartPrint, SmartColor (colourways management), Newton, and Design Collection for image database management. The company also supplies a complete range of consumables including water-based inks (Pigment M22, Reactive, Sublimation, Acid, Disperse for textiles; Graphic Pigment A22/A22-SP for graphics), transfer papers (ECO-HD, ULTRA-HD), and pre/post treatment chemicals. A full accessory ecosystem includes unwinders, dryers, ovens, and cutting systems. The LAFORTE H MY2023 Series represents the latest cutting-edge sustainable technology for waterless printing on non-coated fabrics. All products are distributed globally through a network of distributors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LAFORTE: Flagship series of industrial digital inkjet printing systems for textile and visual communication industries. Includes LAFORTE 100, 200, 320, 400, and 600 models in Fabric and Paper variants.
• SmartPrint
• SmartColor
• Newton
• Design Collection
• DryForte

Products and services

• LAFORTE 100 Fabric Entry-level direct-to-fabric industrial digital inkjet printer for textile printing with compact footprint.
• LAFORTE 200 Fabric Medium-volume direct-to-fabric digital printer with 3400mm print height for home décor textile applications.
• LAFORTE 340 Fabric Direct-to-fabric digital printer for industrial textile applications, recognized with Future Textile Award.
• LAFORTE 400 Fabric (including Hybrid H variant) High-performance direct-to-fabric printer for industrial textile production; the H variant enables in-line pre-treatment of fabric.
• LAFORTE 600 Fabric Flagship high-volume direct-to-fabric industrial printer for large-scale textile printing operations.
• LAFORTE 100 Paper Entry-level industrial digital printer for sublimation transfer paper printing.
• LAFORTE 200 Paper Medium-volume digital printer for sublimation transfer paper with 3200mm print height addressing the soft signage market.
• LAFORTE 320 Paper

Quantifiable outcome

• Print speed up to 1000 sqm/h with LAFORTE 600 Paper
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• MimakicoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2009Collaboration began in 2009 resulting in development and production of TX-400B plotter (branded as Mimaki). In 2012, focused on production of TX-500B. From 2014-2017, sold over 200 units of Mimaki JV5 sublimation plotter. Manufacturing and assembly done at aleph's headquarters.
• COLOR COLORISminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial member of COLOR COLORIS, a cultural association bringing together colour professionals in research, industry, fashion, and art for exchange of know-how in colour expertise.
• IACC ItaliaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSponsor and partner of IACC Italia (Italian Association of Colour Consultants), operating in colour education, research and design in accordance with IACC International guidelines.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• SPGPrints: Dutch manufacturer of rotary screen, digital, and inkjet printing systems for textile and graphics applications. Competes head-to-head with Aleph in industrial digital textile presses and engraving/coating systems.
• Mimaki Engineering: Japanese manufacturer of wide-format inkjet printers and plotters for textile, signage, and graphics. Long-standing Aleph partner (since 2009) on TX-400B/TX-500B and JV5 sublimation plotters, making Mimaki the closest like-for-like competitor and OEM partner.
• Kornit Digital: Israeli-headquartered maker of industrial direct-to-garment and roll-to-roll digital textile printing systems. Directly comparable to Aleph's LAFORTE Fabric line in addressing fashion and apparel digital production at industrial scale.
• EFI Reggiani: Italian digital textile printer business within Electronics For Imaging, offering industrial inkjet printers for fashion and home textiles. Directly comparable product category and customer base to Aleph's LAFORTE Fabric and Paper lines.
• MS Printing Solutions (JK Group): Italian manufacturer of industrial digital printers for direct printing on fabric, serving fashion, sportswear, and home décor. Overlapping product category, geography (Como district), and customer base with Aleph.

Broad incumbents

• Roland DG: Japanese manufacturer of wide-format inkjet printers and print/cutters for signage, graphics, and textile applications. Competes with Aleph in the visual-communications/OOH segment of LAFORTE Paper printers.
• Durst Group: Italian manufacturer of industrial digital printing systems for ceramics, labels, corrugated, and textiles, and now Aleph's parent company. Highly comparable in product category (industrial inkjet presses) and target markets (textile and visual communications).
• Epson (Professional Printing): Global printer OEM with a growing industrial and textile digital printing portfolio. Competes broadly in the same end-markets and overlapping technology stack (PrecisionCore inkjet) as Aleph's LAFORTE series.
• Agfa-Gevaert (Agfa Inkjet): Belgian chemical/imaging group with an industrial inkjet division supplying inks, printheads, and integrated solutions for textile and graphics printing. Adjacent competitor and potential technology partner to Aleph.
• Konica Minolta (Industrial Inkjet): Japanese industrial inkjet press manufacturer active in textile and label digital printing. Operates in adjacent industrial digital print categories with comparable technology and customer overlap to Aleph.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/embed/6tMi6MzmnnM
• Xx.com/aleph_team
• Facebookfacebook.com/alephteam

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Aleph S.r.l.