News from around the world

New commercial digital press from Kodak.

Kodak announced a revolutionary new digital press and innovative additions to its comprehensive portfolio of digital and offset solutions designed to help printers boost their profitability and capitalize on new opportunities for growth.

The Kodak Ascend Digital Press is a solution for commercial printers and digital service providers targetting Retail/POP and Packaging markets. The Kodak Ascend digital press is the first electrophotographic (EP) press designed to print heavy weight substrates at long lengths with eyecatching, high-margin CMYK and flat foil embellishments in one pass. .

It is more flexible than traditional presses and more productive than flatbed inkjet systems, offering production speeds up to 572 sqm/ hour (5280 sqft/hour). Its large sheet length of up to 122 cm (48 inches) allows the press to offer 23% more print area than a B2 sheet. The new press enables printers to deliver sustainably recyclable print by using environmentally friendly Kodachrome Dry Inks, which are Indirect Food Contact rated. Kodak’s new press is a more cost-effective solution for producing Retail/POP and Packaging applications than traditional presses or flatbed inkjet devices. .

The Prinergy On Demand Access, introduced is a cost-effective expansion of its cloud-based Prinergy On Demand Platform. This new option makes the printing industry’s most secure and highest performing software platform affordable for more printers of any size, with or without digital presses.

The new SaaS solution provides full connectivity to digital presses, Microsoft Azure-backed security and the scalability the PrinergyOn Demand Platform is known for. Prinergy On Demand Access includes preflight, color management, file management, backup and routing as well as built-in KodakInsite Prepress Portal functionality for file submission, remote customer collaboration and online approvals. Available in Q1 2022.

The new Kodak Prosper Digital Varnish is a unique, water-based varnish that can be jetted as an area or spot coat to printed packages using Kodak Prosper S-Series or Kodak Prosper Plus Imprinting Systems. The eco-friendly Prosper Digital Varnish can be applied in perfect register with design elements and creates a matte protective layer providing rub and water resistance to paper-based packaging applications.

As Prosper Digital Varnish is applied only where needed and doesn’t require plate making for spot coating, it helps printers eliminate the costs, effort, waste and environmental impact associated with traditional post-coating methods. The new varnish provides an environmentally friendly, waterbased alternative to solvents and UV coatings.

The KodakProsper Digital Varnish will be available worldwide by the end of 2021.

Jim Continenza, Kodak’s Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer said, “The innovations announced today reflect Kodak’s continued commitment to developing breakthrough solutions that enable our customers to improve their productivity and profitability and successfully expand their customer base. With innovations like the KODAK ASCEND Digital Press, we are opening up new profitable application opportunities for printers. We continue to deliver on our promise to provide a complete range of solutions that offer Print that Pays.”

Miraclon Global Flexo Innovation Awards

Miraclon today announced the 13 winners of the Global Flexo Innovation Awards, which recognize businesses that are driving the transformation of the flexo industry with the help of KODAK FLEXCEL NX Technology. Over 200 entries from 24 countries were judged by an independent panel of eight flexo industry experts during a hybrid session that saw the judges convene both in person and through digital collaboration applications.

With high quality a pre-condition of entry, submissions were evaluated on four criteria: the efficiency of the company’s workflow, conversion from other print processes to flexo,

the degree of creativity in the graphic design and the level of sustainable business practices in the project. Excellence in two categories received a silver award (seven winners), in three categories a gold award (five winners) and in all four categories a platinum award, demonstrating to the industry and to the winner’s customers a commitment to the highest level of print production.

This year, Lorytex (Uruguay) became the first winner ever to receive the platinum commendation. The judges also awarded Highest Honors to four of the winners that they believed demonstrated the biggest impact on advancing the flexo printing process.

“At a time where all of us were experiencing the additional challenges because of the pandemic, these winners prove that we’re not only part of an incredibly resilient industry, but one that continues to innovate with companies that drive creativity and efficient, consistent and sustainable manufacturing processes,” comments Grant Blewett, Chief Commercial Director, Miraclon. “The high conversion rates from other printing processes to flexo, focus on fixed color palette printing, and efforts to maximize on-press productivity and efficiency that also contribute to sustainability that we have seen in so many of the entries, all demonstrate how much the flexo industry is set to become the print process of choice for packaging.”

Out of the top 13 companies, seven winners are based in Latin America, three in Europe, two in North America, and one in the Asia Pacific region. “We’re pleased to see companies from around the world innovating and being creative in growing their businesses as well as driving the transformation of the flexo printing industry,” continues Grant. “Each one of the winners, as well as the companies that received special mentions, demonstrated incredible commitment to the advancement of flexo and set great examples of what can be achieved when fully utilizing the tools and technology at their disposal; it should motivate the rest of the industry to do the same.”

The full roll of honor is as follows:

Highest Honors Winners (in alphabetical order)

Bosisio SA, Celomat SA & Mondelez SA, Argentina (Joint Entry) – Gold

Fathom Optics, Grace Label Inc and Confluence Brewing Company, United States (Joint Entry) – Gold Mega Embalagens, Multipack & Pontyn, Brazil (Joint Entry) – Silver Sunshine FPC & Trisoft Graphics, United States (Joint Entry) – Gold

Winners (in alphabetical order) Platinum: Lorytex, Uruguay

Gold: Cromograf & Strong SA, Uruguay (Joint Entry) Günther GmbH & Flexo-Service Cl. Jaehde GmbH, Germany (Joint Entry) Litoplas Colombia Numex Blocks India Ltd Tadam & Gruppo Sada spa, Italy (Joint Entry) Technofilms, Guatemala Teruel – Papeis Amalia Ltd, Brazil Victory Graphics & Caps Cases, United Kingdom (Joint Entry)

EFI Highlights its Leading Broad Portfolio of Advanced Inkjet Solutions to Create Opportunities for Customers

Efficient, high-quality, versatile digital inkjet solutions can be key to helping display graphics providers drive profitability and capture new growth opportunities. Electronics For Imaging, Inc. is working closely with those providers, presenting them innovative solutions that can drive their display graphics business forward faster in an economic recovery.

This week, dozens of EFI™ customers, prospects and industry media and analysts are attending a series of EFI Ignition open house events that deliver a morecomprehensive view of growth opportunities display graphics providers can capture.

The events – one-day invitation-only presentations and demonstrations at the EFI Global Inkjet Innovation Center in Londonderry, New Hampshire – highlight the ways print providers can take their businesses to new heights by leveraging leading-edge production solutions.

“The pandemic has understandably forced the cancellation or postponement of several large tradeshows that would have served as launch events for these products, but that does not diminish our customers’ need for continued advancement and innovation,” said Ken Hanulec, vice

CANON SINGAPORE PTE. LTD.

EFI Pro 30h

president of Worldwide Marketing, EFI. “Our conversations with customers at this week’s Ignition event will give a strong representation of the market opportunities display graphics businesses have for success in a recovering market using our leading portfolio of innovative solutions.”

This week’s events highlight new product launches and a range of topic areas that address specific display graphics challenges and opportunities. New product launches and presentation topics include:

- Growth opportunities in premium soft-signage applications with the launch of the new VUTEk® FabriVU® Plus series 70-, 133- and 205-inch dispersed dye-sublimation printers, including the 133-inch-wide VUTEk FabriVU® 340i+ model with in-line sublimation making its debut at the Ignition events.

The FabriVU 340i+ model delivers upgraded performance thanks to eight high-performance printheads, and enhanced high-quality and backlit print modes, with the ability to print on transfer paper or direct to fabric using the same ink set. The FabriVU Plus series’ new CMYK x 2 configuration printhead array – along with new electronics, a new vacuum system, and a new heating element – deliver higher-quality 600 dpi graphics with better saturation and more density.

- Achieving value with a wider range of possibilities with the newest EFI Wide Format hybrid printer, the 126inch wide EFI Pro 30h LED flatbed/ roll-fed system dual-roll capabilities in Continuous Board printing models to give commercial print shops, sign shops and in-plant print departments an efficient, highly versatile entry point into high-quality display graphics production.

- An overview of digital print for packaging opportunities, with a presentation of market benchmark data from industry analyst Kevin Karstedt. EFI is also presenting highlights of the EFI Nozomi C18000 Plus printer – the world’s leading single-pass inkjet solution for corrugated – and an upcoming, premium-quality, shuttle-based UV LED printer, the EFI MCORR 1300, scheduled for release in 2022.

- EFI’s expanding super high speed signage production solutions – the EFI VUTEk h5 hybrid roll/flatbed printer with ¾ automation along with the EFI VUTEk XT hybrid printer and single-pass Nozomi 18000+ LED printer for display graphics producers coming in 2022 – that deliver the automation, reliability and productivity needed to lower costs per square foot, at higher volumes, for an extended range of signage and display products.

- High-volume, higher-value UV LED graphic production with the EFI VUTEk Q series – the fastestever VUTEk roll-to-roll production printers offering. Launched in 2021, the 138-inch-wide VUTEk Q3r and 208-inch-wide VUTEk Q5r printers offer expanded capabilities for a wide range of challenging, high-volume applications, with premium features such as multi-layer white and highvalue in-line finishing, collection, and auto backlit and blockout options that help users achieve a remarkably low total cost of operation.

- Emerging and high-growth industrial applications, with a presentation highlighting advanced inkjet printer, ink and coatings solutions that bring greater value, versatility, quality, and efficiency to markets, including for wood decoration and wood flooring production, luxury vinyl tile manufacturing, and more.

- End-to-end workflows to drive profit. Ignite will highlight the unique advantages possible in display graphics production with comprehensive EFI Midmarket Print Suite MIS/ ERP workflow solutions that handle web-to-print order entry, estimating and costing, accounting, production, fulfillment and more. This Ignition session also highlights the launch of new EFI Fiery® XF and Fiery proServer digital front-end solutions, offering significantly faster spot color processing and expanded print-and-cut support features.

- Higher value in hybrid printing, leveraging the cost and productivity advantages of the 126-inch-wide EFI VUTEk h3 and h5 LED printers. Four-color is the new eight-color on these printers, thanks to an exceptionally wide color gamut that has successfully given users worldwide the power to drive faster throughput on premium work by moving away from eight-color process to a CMYK x 2 configuration with little to no loss in imaging quality.

EFI VUTEk h5

Debs Corporation Implements Kornit Presto to Deliver Sustainable, Customized Textiles on Demand

One of Japan’s largest fabrics exporters selects single-step, pigmentbased production system to expand product portfolio, demonstrate versatility of digitized textile production

Kornit Digital Ltd, a market leader in sustainable, on-demand, digital textile production technologies, announced today that Debs Corporation, a producer of exclusive textiles to prominent brands worldwide and one of Japan’s largest fabric exporters, is adopting Kornit Presto for fast, ecofriendly textile production without graphic or color limitations.

In addition to supporting Debs Corporation’s production needs, their installation will serve as a live production showcase to educate textile industry professionals regarding the expanding possibilities of digitized production as an efficient, streamlined mechanism for supporting global webdriven demand for custom materials.

Supplementing a production environment that already incorporates sustainable raw materials and waterless dyeing and printing technologies, the company’s adoption of Kornit’s proprietary single-step, pigment-based production process aligns with Debs Corporation’s corporate philosophy of growing via digitalization, innovation, and sustainability. Their efforts reflect a “Made with Japan” mantra, combining the best of the Japanese textile industry with enhancing global technologies such as Kornit Presto.

“Having served the textile industry for more than 100 years, Debs Corporation is committed to maintaining its leadership in the textiles industry by setting the standard for quality and working to sustainably manufacture fifty percent of all products by 2025,” said Hani Debs, President of Debs Corporation. “Many recognizable brands rely on us to provide high-quality, responsiblyproduced materials in various quantities and performance standards, and Kornit’s technology checks all of the boxes to answer those needs, and support evolving opportunities and challenges that may arise in the years ahead. We look forward to a long and prosperous partnership with Kornit, a technology innovator that has demonstrated an understanding of the digitized marketplace and capitalizing on the trends that dominate our industry.”

“Debs Corporation supports more than 250 fashion, intimates, and sports apparel brands globally, and has a thorough understanding of custom textile production as any supplier on the planet,” said Ilan Elad, President of Kornit Digital Asia-Pacific. “Kornit is proud to work with them to demonstrate the many ways digitized production can deliver unlimited graphic and color capabilities, profitability in any quantity, and a cleaner, more eco-conscious process, to the benefit of producer, consumer, and the broader textile industry alike.

We share a common vision of making the industry more capable, more responsible, and more responsive to the values of today’s marketplace, and delivering on the superior end-to-end experience digitization promises.”

Hani Debs will be a featured speaker at Kornit’s upcoming “Fashion Without Limits” sustainable fashion event in Tokyo, available via virtual presentation on November 4.