EFI sells software business to focus on Fiery and inkjet, new company named eProductivity Software

EFI has sold off its Productivity Software business to a US-based private equity company, which will rename it eProductivity Software and has installed two senior execs formerly with EFI to run it.

The EFI business, which included MIS, ERP and W2P, has become a substantial operation over the years, as the company acquired a plethora of developers around the world and merged them into one entity. It now has 4,000 printers as customers around the world working in everything from commercial print to packaging display graphics, corrugated, labels and packaging, and publications.

Daniel Aloi, senior regional sales manager APAC said, “It is great news for the business and the industry. Now as a fully-fledged stand-alone software business dedicated to print, packaging and corrugated we will be able develop new partnerships, stengthen relations with all industry vendors, and contribute fully to the growth and development of the industry.”

Aloi says everything will remain as is for ANZ customers, with the same contact details, same staff and same support systems in place. Aloi stays as regional sales manager, with Brad Hall remaining as operations manager. Globally the R&D centres in the UK, US and India will remain.

The new standalone business has been named eProductivity Software. EFI exec Gaby Matsliach, who was COO of its EPS wing, becomes the CEO, while former EFI CFO and COO Marc Olin, who worked at EFI for 18 years before departing a year ago, becomes executive chairman. Olin was the driving force behind EFI’s charge into software.

The software business is now owned by Symphony Technology Group, which already has several technology and software-related businesses, including Trace One, an SaaS provider for business applications including packaging lifecycle management.

Aloi says, “They have a strategy of taking software business units out of the bigger business and driving focused growth. It is exciting to be part of that.”

For EFI the realignment, it said, will enable it to "accelerate investment into its Inkjet and Fiery business units".

Jeff Jacobson, EFI CEO and executive chairman it was fully focused on the opportunity in the industrial inkjet markets, and its ability to capitalise on Fiery technology.

He said EFI would “continue to drive the analogue-to-digital transformation in all high-value segments of imaging – while increasingly serving new adjacencies including e-commerce, direct-to-garment, and other rapidly growing segments.

“We are making significant investments to continue to be the clear leader in the packaging & corrugated, display graphics, textile, and building materials/decor markets,” he added.