An Exclusive Interview with Vicente Bagán, Vice Chairman of Altadia Group
The digital textile printing sector is rapidly moving toward more sustainable, high-yield, and versatile chemical formulations. At the prestigious ITMA Exhibition in Singapore, Behnam Ghasemi, Editor-in-Chief of Kohan Textile Journal, sat down for an exclusive conversation with Mr. Vicente Bagán, Vice Chairman of the Altadia Group, to explore how the global titan is transitioning its industrial know-how from heavy ceramics into the textile printing grid.
As the parent group of ITACA, Altadia is a global leader in the ceramic tile industry, historically specializing in pigments, coatings, and digital inks. Now, the group is aggressively diversifying its heavy engineering portfolio to deliver high-performance digital pigment inks tailored for textiles, packaging, and alternative building materials.
From Ceramics to Textiles: The Digitalization Blueprint
Kohan Textile Journal: Mr. Bagán, thank you for joining us. Could you introduce ITACA’s role within the Altadia Group and your historical background?
Vicente Bagán: ITACA belongs to the Altadia Group, which is the absolute leader in the ceramic tile industry. We produce advanced pigments, coatings, and digital inks. While our foundation was firmly in ceramics, we are now diversifying into digital inks for textiles, packaging, and other building materials. ITACA originally started its business back in 1972.
Since 2008, we have been leading the total digitalization of the ceramic industry.
This completely transformed tile decoration from analog systems into digital processing. Historically, ceramic tiles were decorated using flat screen printing or rotary printing machines—exactly like traditional textiles. Today, 99.9% of ceramic tiles worldwide are decorated digitally using the exact same underlying technology that is now landing into the textile sector. By leveraging this deep industrial know-how, we are introducing our new set of digital textile inks.
The Future of Printing: Why Pigment Inks Will Dominate
Kohan Textile Journal: What is ITACA’s primary technological focus within the textile market?
Vicente Bagán: We are highly specialized in pigment inks, because we firmly believe that pigments represent the definitive future of digital textile printing. The distinct advantage of our pigment formulations is their extreme material versatility. They can be seamlessly applied across the entire textile spectrum—from 100% natural cotton to 100% synthetic fibers, and every single material blend in between. With a single set of ITACA pigment inks, an industrial operator can decorate virtually any kind of fabric. Because of this structural simplicity, we believe pigment inks will eventually replace all other reactive ink configurations that currently lead the market.
Kohan Textile Journal: How do ITACA’s inks compare to other market options, particularly chemical suppliers from Asia?
Vicente Bagán: The core differentiator is that our pigment inks feature an integrated binder inside. This eliminate the need for secondary, external coating steps while delivering superior color fastness and intense, vibrant color execution. This structural chemical integrity allows us to successfully compete with traditional reactive inks even within the demanding fashion sector.
Global Trajectory: Singapore, Shanghai, and Hanover
Kohan Textile Journal: This is ITACA’s first time presenting at an ITMA textile event. How has your experience been here in Singapore, and what are your next expansion plans?
Vicente Bagán: Frankly speaking, we are incredibly happy with our presence here at ITMA in Singapore. We have been continuously receiving industrial customers from all across Southeast Asia. We believe that this is definitely the first, but certainly not the last time we will participate.
Looking ahead, we also have plans to showcase our developments at the exhibition in Shanghai, which offers a unique look into domestic market demands. Furthermore, looking into the long-term investment cycle, ITACA will officially be present at the flagship exhibition in Hanover in 2027.
Editor’s Insight: The Strategic Edge of Cross-Industry Tech Transfer
In a global market where water consumption, environmental penalties, and raw energy overhead are driving spinning and printing mills to the brink, the chemical efficiency of the printing room is paramount. ITACA’s entry into the textile grid at ITMA Singapore marks a major milestone. When a corporate group successfully transitions the technical know-how required to print on non-porous ceramic tiles into the flexible fiber grid of textiles, they bring an entirely different standard of durability and chemical calculation.
By successfully housing the binder within the ink droplet itself, ITACA bypasses the lengthy, water-heavy post-treatments required by traditional reactive lines. For premium textile ecosystems looking to achieve extreme manufacturing versatility—enabling a single digital line to switch from cotton to pure synthetic blends instantly—this cross-industry engineering transfer is not just an alternative path; it is the blueprint for modern plant survival.
Read more : From Ink to Industry: How Digital Printing Is Reshaping Textile Manufacturing
