Fujifilm enters into new partnerships 

Fujifilm, which is part of the FUJIFILM Corporation, has announced a number of new collaborations and partnerships in Europe.

The company has recently unveiled a number of deals and partnerships at drupa print exhibition in Düsseldorf, Germany, including the first sale of the new HS Series single-pass inkjet platform, made for the sign and display market.

The new inkjet solution is a collaboration with Fujifilm and Barberán, a Spanish owned producer of digital printing, laminating, and profile wrapping machines.

The two companies made the first global sale of the HS Series single-pass inkjet solution on the Barberán stand at drupa to Linney, a full-service UK-based marketing agency.

Jesús Barberán, owner of Barberán says: “We’re hugely excited to be working with Fujifilm on the HS Series project and we’re delighted to welcome our first customer for this ground-breaking platform. 

“Linney, like Barberán, is a family business, and like us, over the decades, they’ve grown by investing in the future and by leading the way in adopting new technologies. We look forward to a long successful future working together.”

Charles Linney is currently company director of Linney, which was founded in 1851, making Charles Linney part of the sixth generation of the family working in the business. 

Mr Linney says: “It’s so important for the business to keep on top of the changing technologies available in the industry, and something we watch carefully. The HS series really does feel like a huge step forward and will help us cater for the ever-increasing speed to market that our clients need.”

“We strongly feel that the time for single-pass inkjet is here; we wanted something with reliability, speed, quality and excellent up-time in equal measure. On all of these measures, the HS Series has hugely impressed us. It’s five to ten times faster than the previous technology, the quality is fantastic, and our operators have been mightily impressed.”

As well as its work with Barberán, Fujifilm announced the expansion of its strategic partnership with XMPie at drupa 2024.

Fujifilm says the partnership will deliver “cutting-edge variable data solutions to the European print market” by providing new solutions to customers in the print-on-demand (POD) sector.

The agreement means the integration of XMPie’s software into Fujifilm’s POD offering including its XMF PressReady workflow, a solution designed to streamline the digital print production process.

XMPie, a Xerox Company, is already established within reseller agreements in North America and the Asia-Pacific region. The new deal means Fujifilm is able to extend this offering to European customers.

Also announced at drupa was a new strategic partnership with IGEPA Belux to support the sales of the Acuity Prime range of Fujifilm printers to areas of the Benelux region.

The arrangement means IGEPA Belux will take on commercial distribution responsibilities for the Acuity Prime range and will therefore be the only distributor in Belux which will sell and support these printers within the visual communication market.

Lastly at drupa Fujifilm launched SMARTcure, a software solution for curing technology, made in collaboration with IST METZ.

IST METZ is a supplier of UV curing solutions for graphic arts and the is the official supplier of LuXtreme, Fujifilm’s UV LED curing system which was launched at Labelexpo last year.

The new software offers a comprehensive comparative calculation of how much energy within a curing device is needed to cure ink with precision, resulting in energy, time, and cost savings for customers.

Manuel Schrutt, director of Business Strategy Packaging at Fujifilm Global, says: “We are delighted to partner with IST METZ to bring SMARTcure to market. This innovative technology aligns with Fujifilm’s commitment to sustainability and efficiency, and we believe it will significantly benefit our customers by optimising curing processes and reducing operational costs."

Finally, since the opening of drupa, Fujifilm also announced a collaboration with ColorBase, a smart media profiling business based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

The partnership means ColorBase will profile a selection of premium material to support companies that have invested in the Acuity Prime Hybrid printer.

ColorBase (formerly known as Color Concepts) uses software to “revolutionise” how its partners collaborate and test printed products providing colour tools and video content for PSPs to improve printing performance. 

ColorBase now works with Fujifilm to ensure Fujifilm’s Acuity printers only work with certified media, ensuring the longevity of the hardware and optimum performance output.

Marco Roos, chief executive officer and founder of ColorBase, says: “We are thrilled to bring our profiling expertise to the new Acuity Prime Hybrid platform by Fujifilm – an expert in manufacturing inks and printing technologies. 

“Sharing printer profiles that streamline PSPs’ colour management and reduce waste is one of our core missions, and tracking material performance on this new print platform helps us to build the digital foundation for a smarter printing industry. We are honoured to collaborate with Fujifilm and look forward to a bright future together.”