CHICAGO -- Sept. 10, 2007 -- AlphaGraphics, Inc., a leading provider of visual communications solutions, and EFI, the world leader in customer-focused digital printing innovation, today announced that AlphaGraphics will deploy XMPie(R) uDirect(TM) Professional Premier Edition optimized for EFI solutions. Focused on the value-added service of variable data printing, today's news further strengthens the long-standing strategic relationship between EFI and AlphaGraphics benefiting the company's 250 franchises and their customers. AlphaGraphics already has standardized on EFI Fiery(R) color digital print servers with connectivity to PrintSmith(R), an EFI Print MIS solution, and the EFI Color Profiler Suite color management workflow solution. These industry-leading EFI solutions will be highlighted at Graph Expo (Chicago, Sept. 9-12) in EFI Booth 3000.
"We value our strategic relationship with EFI because they continually support AlphaGraphics with increased automation, efficiency and cost savings for our owner-operated, locally based business centers," said Darnell Ghidotti, vice president, Business Solutions, AlphaGraphics. "And now, combining XMPie uDirect Professional Premier Edition with our EFI products and services, we can offer advanced variable data printing services to our customers. This new capability helps us enhance client relationships and win more business, for AlphaGraphics, and for our customers."
From XMPie(R), a standalone business unit of Xerox, uDirect Professional Premier Edition enables AlphaGraphics franchises to produce for their customers powerfully-personalized, visually-rich one-to-one communications. For example, in addition to varying text, AlphaGraphics is able to change a customer piece's color schemes to appeal to a different locale, change type styles per age group, show a picture of a the specific product model each customer purchased or display special offers only to credit card holders. This value-added service helps AlphaGraphics customers achieve significantly higher response rates to direct marketing programs. uDirect Professional Premier Edition integrates with the EFI Fiery(R) color digital print server.
With more than 14 million users, the Fiery platform offers unparalleled color quality, open VDP workflow flexibility, and expert-level tools for graphic arts professionals. EFI collaborates with the leading personalization software vendors, such as XMPie, and supports such VDP languages as industry standard PPML, Fiery FreeForm(TM), and a host of legacy proprietary languages, ensuring that the Fiery server readily integrates into existing workflows and delivers consistency regardless of whether the job is VDP or non-VDP. EFI is a reseller of XMPie technology, as well as an OEM, integrating XMPie personalization technology directly into its line of web-to-print solutions, including Digital StoreFront(R), PrintSmith Site(R) and Printersite(R) Fulfillment. Print service providers using these powerful EFI solutions are able to create customer-orderable VDP products, ranging from simple items like business cards and stationery, through to complex integrated marketing campaigns, all orderable on the web.
Via the EFI Fiery JDF Connector, AlphaGraphics' Fiery-driven digital output devices integrate with EFI Print MIS solutions, including PrintSmith, providing a more accurate, more efficient production workflow - from capturing the designer's original intent to real-time estimating, accounting and billing, to producing brilliant digital output. Further, EFI's compliance with GRACoL, CGATS, ICC, JDF, PDF, PPML and other open standards, and EFI's collaborations with leading native pre-press workflow providers, ensure that EFI solutions readily integrate into AlphaGraphics business centers' respective workflows and will grow with them.
"EFI is committed to providing an open VDP solution tailored to our customers' individual needs, and we're excited about this new element to the AlphaGraphics-EFI relationship," said Frank Mallozzi, senior vice president, worldwide marketing and sales, EFI. "The power of personalized marketing will enable AlphaGraphics - and their customers - to realize business growth and increased profits."