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Brendan Perring talks to Paul Cripps, EFI’s managing director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, about the wide-format technology developer’s 20-year growth and its business strategy going forward




EFI recently celebrated its 20th year as a NASDAQ listed company, how has the business developed over this time?

EFI has been a public company for two decades, and we’ve achieved double-digit growth for the past consecutive eight quarters. It’s some twenty years ago that we delivered the industry’s first colour server, established our first OEM partnerships with companies like Kodak, Xerox and Minolta, and started selling our Fiery products to Canon. This cemented our foundations as a solutions’ provider to the multi-function printer sector and helped us to bring our technologies to our own devices, such as with the VUTEk and Jetrion platforms.

Our success is built not only on developing the right technologies at the right time but also by anticipating future industry moves and being ahead in addressing the best solutions to suit the print-service-providers’ needs of today and tomorrow.

Your new VUTEk TX3250R was designed to allow more of the industry to diversify into soft-signage, how has it been designed and developed to achieve this?

Back in 2002 VUTEk was the first company to introduce an industrial wide-format printer for the digital textile market with its FabriVu system. EFI has recognised the growing demand for a well-priced fabric platform that’s suitable for producing soft signs, banners and displays, so last year saw us bring the VUTEk TX3250r to market. This brand-new solution addresses the needs of sign-makers and display producers who want to generate high quality output, both direct or as a two-step sublimation process. It’s ideal for existing VUTEk customers as the interface is familiar, but it’s also appealing to new users who want a rugged, industrial-strength unit from a reliable, established manufacturer.

Following the acquisition of Cretaprint you announced an intensified focus on ceramic tile printing, what growth opportunity does this represent for the industry?

Our acquisition of this Spanish developer of inkjet printers for the ceramics’ industry is representative of how EFI is diversifying into new areas for inkjet. This is to bring additional traction to the analogue-to-digital conversion across many industries where print plays a representative role. EFI’s policy is never to stand still but always to be ahead, particularly when it comes to the application of technology into growth areas.

Inkjet continues to diversify away from mainstream markets and into growth areas where analogue production methods now need to be converted to digital processes. This follows the trends for shorter runs and personalisation, with less waste and shorter turnaround times. EFI’s acquisition of Cretaprint is a good example of how technology is extending beyond the traditional print arena and into other industrial areas.
 

Your latest revenue figures showed an increase of twelve percent and eight consecutive months of double digit growth, what is your secret?

There isn’t a secret to EFI’s successful growth pattern. We’ve achieved these revenues through hard work and by assessing what the market needs next. Then we’ve made sure our new developments and our acquisition strategy bring assets to the market which help drive users forward to greater profitability with more cost-effective production solutions.

EFI has never been a ‘me too’ company. We have always excelled in researching our markets and providing a comprehensive product portfolio of software and hardware solutions which give users practical technologies in a reliable and robust structure.

The uptake of management information systems in the UK sign and display industry is rising, how are you addressing this trend?

We see a growing need for MIS at all levels of the display and sign-making industries, and also amongst users running multiple platforms on different sites using a variety of production devices. Through development and acquisition EFI is now able to address the needs for full accountability across all sectors of the printing and display arena. Our products enable businesses of all sizes to integrate all elements of their operations, and become more efficient with greater time savings and improved logistics.

What do you enjoy most about your job and what is its greatest challenge?

Today’s digital printing industry is changing rapidly on a regular basis so it’s vital to keep up with the way in which technology is continuing to shape production printing in all of its segments. In my job I’m involved with all EFI’s products in the EMEA [Europe, the Middle East and Africa] region, and so you have to very resourceful when presented with new challenges.

EFI’s policy is to invest heavily in research and development, so part of my job is to help our sales and service organisations leverage new products and technologies to our growing customer base. These are exciting times, and I’m pleased to be involved with such a dynamic company whose ethos is to innovate and to help our customers increase their market share and generate greater profits.

With Drupa, the world’s largest wide-format and commercial print exhibition, just concluded, what can our industry expect from EFI?

EFI had a major presence at this year’s Drupa, with a full range of our digital print solutions which, today, covers all areas of production from web-to-print, proofing and RIP options, and MIS and RIP specialities. We also be concentrated on our production platforms, which incorporate our latest inkjet technologies, including the newest VUTEk wide-format engines and Jetrion industrial labelling machines.