EFI enters digital ceramic printing market with Cretaprint acquisition

The privately held company based in Castellon, Spain, is expected to post a 5-7% contribution to EFI's 2012 revenue as the business looks to capitalise on an industry at the early stages of transforming from screen to digital.

EFI chief technology officer Ghilad Dziesietnik said EFI is aiming to maintain the 122-staff company's 25% market share in the digital space, as it experiences significant growth over the next three years and that Cretaprint showed "outstanding business performance".

He said with between 12,000 and 15,000 ceramic manufacturing lines across the world, China and India offered great potential for growth, despite having competition from the likes of Chinese company Hope, because of Cretaprint's superior product.

The business will continue to operate as an independent unit under current chief executive Victor Blasco, although back office and financial departments will be integrated.

The Cretaprint brand is also likely become a product name under the EFI umbrella in the same way Vutek became EFI Vutek.

"The ceramic tile industry can greatly benefit from our innovative portfolio of technologies," said Dziesietnik. "We look forward to sharing our success with Cretaprint's 1,700-plus global customer network and expanding their talented employee base in Castellón."

The equipment is highly specialised, using non organic ceramic inks that are applied directly to the tile substrate that have to withstand kiln temperatures up to 1200c, with manufacturing lines running at speeds of up to 40m per minute.

Dr. Ray Work of Work Associates said: "The financial incentives are so great that the entire industry is converting rapidly to inkjet. The ceramic tile manufacturer can pay back their investment in an inkjet digital press for ceramic tiles in as little as six months."

EFI chief executive Guy Gecht, said: "We have been tracking the swift transformation from analogue to digital technology in tile imaging for quite some time, and have been deeply impressed with the fast growth and global leadership position of Cretaprint."

The company also announced preliminary results for its fourth quarter ending 31 December 2011 with record revenues of $163m compared with $145m in the corresponding quarter of 2010 marking two years of double digit growth.

It also said it had succeeded in its defence of an intellectual property suit brought against it in Germany in 2007 by Durst, in which it alleged that EFI had infringed a utility model - a form of less strict patent - after a German appeals court ruled the technology was not novel.

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