Benny Landa and Guy Gecht, chief executives of Landa Corporation and EFI respectively, have confirmed that EFI will build a digital front-end for Landa's sheet- and web-fed nanographicprinters. The announcement was made yesterday during the opening session at EFI's Connectconference in Las Vegas, USA.

Based on established Fiery technology, the EFI front-end will beta alongside Landa's flagship S10FC printer, a simplex B1 unit for folding carton printers, in Q4 this year. Core functionality will include the ability to correct, proof and print rush jobs on the press, while integrating with existing software, such as pre-press, MIS/ERP and workflow. Colour standards adherence and closed-loop colour control are also supported.

EFI's selection hinges on its ability to deliver 'offset-quality' static or VDP jobs at speeds to meet the ambitious throughput rate of 6,500 four-colour B1 sheets per hour advertised by Landa against its S10. With Landa expecting its digital units to sit alongside and use the same media as offset presses, EFI's digital front-end will also need to provide consistency agnostic of process.

"Benny Landa is a legend in our industry, and we are excited to work with his company as its exclusive [digital front-end] technology provider," states Gecht.