EFI's Gecht Debates the Impact of the "Online Force" at Graph Expo 16

Guy Gecht

ORLANDO, Fla. — September 27, 2016 — On the day of the first presidential debate between the two major party candidates, Guy Gecht, CEO of EFI, presented both sides of a different kind of debate — one that asks if the online force is good or bad for the printing industry. While the question leads to a complex answer, in short, the reality is that more printed products are moving online, but as they do, this presents new opportunities for print.

Much of the opportunity in the industry, Gecht said, stems from the "drivers of the digital revolution." These are the factors that have been major players in driving the adoption of digital printing throughout the industry and are presenting new opportunities for creative applications of digital print. Some of these drivers, Gecht added, are the rise of online ordering, personalization and unique print jobs, manufacturing on demand, and more.

One of the main focuses of Gecht’s presentation was the EFI Nozomi C18000, a single-pass, direct-to-board, digital corrugated press that was first unveiled at drupa. The press, combined with EFI’s recently launched Corrugated Packaging Suite, provides the automation and graphical advantages of digital print and workflow to corrugated, which has previously had minimal access to these technologies, Gecht explained.

For example, as the rise of online purchasing continues, digital printing and workflow allow for personalized packaging with high quality graphics to be produced with a high level of automation, allowing brands to connect with consumers in ways that a plain brown box cannot. Gecht explained that this technology can be transformative to the corrugated industry and hopes to have the Nozomi C18000 delivered to the first customer before the end of May 2017.