(Above: EFI CFO Marc Olin offers an update on the company’s hardware initiatives during the second day of EFI Connect.)
Printing, packaging and industrial manufacturing professionals from across the globe are converging on Wynn Las Vegas at EFI Connect. The 20th annual Electronics For Imaging, Inc. users conference is providing insights as well as news of digital print technology innovations, including:
- A new FS350 platform for EFI Fiery digital front ends (DFEs);
- A new Fiery proServer Premium DFE technology
- EFI’s newest hybrid flatbed/roll-to-roll superwide-format LED printer, the VUTEk h5.
Worldwide premiere of new EFI Fiery DFE technology Fiery FS350 Pro will drive new cut-sheet and continuous-feed digital production presses from EFI partners, as well as single-pass inkjet presses from EFI. It handles extended-gamut CMYK+ configurations and offers tools to save on specialty toners and inks, reducing waste.
Using the newest version of EFI Fiery Command WorkStation, customers gain an integrated user experience with a single shared interface for Fiery Driven digital equipment, including wide- and superwide-format inkjet printers and inkjet presses. New Fiery integrations with Duplo finishing devices offer automated cutting, slitting, creasing and spot coating workflows.
For superwide-format inkjet production on EFI printers, the newest-version EFI Fiery proServer Premium DFE launching at Connect uses GPU-accelerated FAST DRIVE technology to process individual jobs twice as fast on average, eliminating idle printer time so users can maximize their printer investments, according to EFI.
The high-volume EFI VUTEk h5 hybrid LED printer making its debut at EFI Connect is part of the VUTEk h series of devices that global EFI R&D teams developed from the ground up to establish new benchmarks for productivity and profit opportunity.
The 126-inch wide printer can run up to 109 boards per hour and offers eight-color and optional four-color printing modes plus white, as well as an up to nine-layer print capability. The h5 model, which is also available as a field upgrade to the EFI VUTEk h3 printer, features UltraDrop Technology with native 7-picoliter grayscale printhead imaging and true multi-drop addressability.
VUTEk h series printers’ automated table and carriage alignment ““ along with a new camera-based vision system for subpixel alignment, printhead density balance, and step and bi-directional setup.
The Connect exhibit floor also features the EFI Pro 24f flatbed and Pro 32r roll-to-roll LED printers, along with the EFI VUTEk 3r+, an LED roll-to-roll printer. Plus, attendees can see the company’s latest advancement for the expanding soft-signage market: the EFI VUTEk FabriVU® 340i ““ an aqueous dispersed dye-sublimation printer offering in-line calendering.
Connect also features displays and VR demos showcasing the broader scope of advanced capabilities in EFI’s digital portfolio, including ultra-high-speed, direct-to-board corrugated production on the multiple award-winning EFI Nozomi C18000 single-pass LED inkjet press, and advanced tile decoration using new 5th generation EFI Cretaprint printers.
Several conference workshops, keynotes and demonstration areas highlight important industrial production and re-shoring opportunities in textiles ““ a market where EFI is a leading innovator with a unique ecosystem that includes cutting-edge EFI Optitex 2D and 3D CAD solutions and Fiery DesignPro software for textile design. Numerous samples of creative output applications are on display from EFI Reggiani, a leading line of technologies offering eco-friendly printing and new, high-volume single-pass production, with stunning colors and color fidelity using a variety of inks to support virtually any fabric type.
“Our commitment to innovation means EFI customers have few limits in how they can create new opportunities in digital print,” said Frank Mallozzi, EFI’s chief revenue officer. “With the advanced solution demonstrations, training and networking happening this week, EFI Connect will prove that it is an exciting time to be an EFI customer, and it is an exciting opportunity for all of us at EFI to once again put on what has become a landmark event for the industry.”
The speaker lineup at this year’s conference will help customers develop new strategies and processes that can spell future success in an increasingly diverse range of applications. Keynote and general session presenters include new EFI CEO Bill Muir; Joseph Popolo, CEO of The Freeman Co.; fashion designer Ariel Swedroe; Olivier Gariépy and Michel Savoie of the Cirque du Soleil® Costume Workshop; EFI CFO Marc Olin; and Gabriel Matsliach, senior vice president and general manager, EFI Productivity Software. The conference also includes more than 200 presentations and hands-on training sessions from top EFI specialists and some of print’s leading management and technology experts.
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