Connect returns with analogue to digital theme

EFI’s global user event Connect has returned as an in-person conference after going virtual last year, with the company focusing on its analogue to digital theme.

Opening proceedings CEO Jeff Jacobs eschewed the usual keynote in favour of inviting several guests onto the platform with him, and told the audience that the events of the past two years have changed the way the industry operates and will hasten the analogue to digital transformation.

The guests included the CEO of its newly divested software business, Gaby Matsliach now owned by a private equity group and named eProductivity Software, and Kevin Warren, CMO of delivery giant UPS. Marco Boer, vice president of industry consultancy IT Strategies, also joined Jacobs on the platform, to talk about the opportunities in print applications such as décor, textiles and ecommerce packaging.

Display graphics inkjet offerings at Connect from the company’s product portfolio include the new EFI Pro 30h production printer. Connect also features the first live demonstration of the new EFI Fiery FS500 Pro digital front end (DFE) – which it says is the most-advanced print server in EFI’s 30+ year history – and the debut of the EFI Fiery Impress DFE, a scalable, flexible server and colour management solution for inkjet label and packaging applications as well as for inline manufacturing lines that need variable print.

EFI Connect has 130 break-out sessions presenting the latest tips and trends across all the industry segments EFI supports. This includes sessions addressing the growing analogue-to-digital transformation opportunities using EFI’s industrial corrugated & packaging, textile, and building materials/décor solutions.

EFI Connect also marks the debut of an innovative prepress product for display graphics businesses, EFI Fiery Prep-it software for the preparation, layout, and automated production of print-for-cut jobs. Designed to address productivity needs amid continued labour shortages, EFI says this true-shape nesting solution reduces the time needed to nest complex objects for wide-format printing by up to 90 per cent. Fiery Prep-it software also reduces media usage, helping to alleviate media supply constraints. According to EFI, with the media savings it generates, this affordable, effective software can pay for itself in four months or less, helping print shops become more competitive.

EFI Pro 30h

The newly launched, 126-inch-wide EFI Pro 30h UV LED printer at Connect prints up to 2,477 sq ft per hour, offering a combination of speed and efficiency that EFI says makes it an ideal hybrid flatbed/roll-to-roll superwide-format solution for businesses targeting production display graphics as a growth opportunity.

Designed to provide broader application capability, versatility, and profit potential, the printer maximises productivity by printing large boards or multiple small boards continuously. It switches from rigid to flexible media with the printer, and the Pro 30h can print on dual rolls, giving users high throughput and the ability to run multiple jobs simultaneously.

Super High Speed

Connect attendees are also learning about the accelerating signage production opportunities by EFI’s advanced Super High Speed class of superwide-format inkjet printers. According to EFI conference sessions exploring the faster, better, state-of-art possibilities in high-quality display graphics showed how these solutions can drive digital production to new, higher levels.

This power trio of printers includes the EFI VUTEk XT, a robust, 126-inch-wide hybrid solution with available media handling automation that prints at speeds above 375 boards per hour, the EFI VUTEk Q5r, a 208-inch-wide UV LED inkjet production workhorse that EFI claims is the fastest roll-to-roll printer in its class, and the EFI Nozomi 18000+ LED single-pass printer for display graphics, a 71-inch-wide signage solution. Available with up to six colours, plus white ink, it prints on synthetic and paper-based media at up to 1,000 sheets or boards per hour – a speed that EFI says is three or four times faster than the most productive shuttle-based/multi-pass display graphics printers.

Fiery innovation

Connect is also where print professionals are witnessing, for the first time, the FS500 Pro platform, scheduled for release this quarter with new office and cut-sheet production systems from many of the world’s leading digital printer manufacturers.

The advanced, new DFE platform for commercial and cut-sheet digital printing rips graphics-intensive jobs up to 50 per cent faster than previous EFI Fiery DFEs. And, a Fiery JobExpert feature for the DFE can streamline job prep tasks, saving time by automatically choosing correct colour and imaging settings. Fiery FS500 Pro also provides an extensive collection of additional, new features that address top challenges print businesses face, such as shorter runs, faster turnaround times, less experienced staff, increased security standards and the need to reduce costs.

EFI is also expanding its leading DFE technology offerings at Connect with the worldwide debut of the Fiery Impress DFE, a scalable, flexible off-the-shelf server and colour management solution. The Fiery Impress DFE helps equipment manufacturers achieve productivity and image quality. Specialty inkjet equipment vendors with low unit volumes, as well as single manufacturing lines that want to add in variable or personalised print with a print bar, can expand their digital offerings with this technology.

The Fiery Impress DFE can drive entry-level, mid-range or high-volume inkjet equipment on a range of hardware platforms. For example, users can output TIFFs to a storage location for entry-level CMYK digital presses, or produce rapid, rip-while-printing output of variable-data content to high-volume, continuous-feed 7-colour digital presses. Fiery Command WorkStation is standard with the Fiery Impress DFE. A wide range of integrated software options are also available, including prepress, color management, workflow automation, and EFI IQ cloud analytics.

Speakers

EFI says Connect 2022 features one of the most dynamic speaker lineups in the event’s 22-year history, and says the conference’s in-depth educational agenda gives customers a broader range of knowledge to strengthen their position and capture new market opportunities.

“As the industry works to regain its footing after a very difficult couple of years, EFI customers and partners are coming to Connect to learn about the actionable strategies and important tech developments that could be essential to their future success,” said Ken Hanulec, vice president of worldwide marketing, EFI. “And, more than anything, this year’s conference reflects the community, collaboration and innovation that print businesses can use to capture the growing opportunities of the industry’s analogue-to-digital transformation.”