While the press may get the attention, the real driver behind today’s print revolution lives upstream. Before a job enters the queue, software already is interpreting files, managing color, routing jobs and keeping production moving. In today’s print landscape—defined by shorter runs, faster turnarounds and growing workflow complexity—this digital layer is essential to how print businesses operate.
Fiery sits at the center of this ecosystem, with digital front ends and cloud-based workflows that help printers automate processes, streamline production and unlock the full potential of their equipment. Working with partners such as Fujifilm, Fiery helps ensure presses run not just faster but smarter.
“Partnerships are a vital component of our business model,” says Mark Gwaltney, Fiery’s Global Partner Alliance Manager. “We create the most widely used digital front ends for digital printing, while our OEM partners create printers and presses—so we need to work closely with partners like Fujifilm to make sure the DFE and printer work together seamlessly.”
The partnership is particularly evident in Fujifilm’s production portfolio, where Fiery technology powers devices ranging from entry-level production systems like the ApeosPro series to high-end presses such as the REVORIA PRESS™ PC1120.
Fiery’s founding runs parallel with digital printing’s rise. In 1991, founder EFI Arazi connected a laptop to a color copier, creating the first digital front end capable of translating digital files directly to print output. The simple but transformative concept helped establish the foundation for modern digital production.
“With the ever-increasing volume of short-run jobs, customization and the growing skilled labor shortage, PSPs are having to do even more with fewer resources. Fiery’s products are designed to help PSPs punch above their weight class.“
– Mark Gwaltney, Global Partner Alliance Manager, Fiery
Fiery continued to expand its stature across the global print ecosystem by developing advanced DFEs that manage everything from color calibration and job processing to workflow automation and production analytics. Recently, the company acquired Spain-based Inèdit Software, an industry leader in the digital textile printing space. This allows Fiery to offer a true one-stop-shop of solutions for everything from high-speed inkjet to direct-to-garment printing.
“In terms of broader shifts, we’re right at the beginning of a major transformation as AI becomes a practical, embedded part of print production,” Gwaltney says.
Today, Fiery’s technology is at the heart of print production environments around the world. “Fiery makes an impact by bringing together performance, quality and workflow intelligence in a way that simplifies production for print service providers,” Gwaltney says. “Our DFEs deliver consistent, high-quality results across a wide range of applications, while also streamlining prepress, color management, automation, MIS integration and analytics.”
Capabilities like these become increasingly important as printers adopt an expanded color gamut, complex substrates and more automated workflows. Because Fiery works across a wide range of press platforms—including Fujifilm’s Revoria portfolio—it also brings a broad perspective on operational challenges facing print providers today. “That perspective allows us to help customers solve everything from advanced color reproduction to scaling production efficiently without increasing complexity,” Gwaltney says.
Equally important, Fiery prioritizes usability alongside performance. “The industry is facing a well-known skills gap, and younger operators entering print expect intuitive software, smart automation and modern user experiences,” Gwaltney says. “Fiery designs its products with the end user in mind—shortening learning curves, reducing manual steps and enabling productivity from day one.”
Tools such as Fiery Command WorkStation and global training resources help operators get up to speed quickly in increasingly sophisticated production environments.
AI and Workflow
Artificial intelligence (AI) is quickly becoming central to Fiery’s evolution. Rather than viewing AI as futuristic, the company is embedding it into tools that eliminate repetitive tasks and speed job processing.
“Fiery is one of the foremost AI technology leaders in digital print, and we view AI as a natural evolution of print automation,” Gwaltney says.
Take the Fiery Scribe, an agentic AI solution that reads incoming email job requests and automatically converts them into ready-to-print jobs inside Fiery Command WorkStation. “It eliminates repetitive manual steps at the very start of the workflow,” Gwaltney says.
Another is Fiery JobFlow Pro, an AI-assisted workflow platform that reduces manual touchpoints across prepress and production. “In both cases, the emphasis is on solving concrete problems that customers face every day, not on AI for its own sake,” Gwaltney says.
Beyond automation and AI, Fiery is tracking digital print’s rapid expansion into applications such as packaging, labels, industrial inkjet and specialty print. “One major area of focus is the ever-increasing amount of digital print being produced for industrial applications, including packaging, labeling and high-speed inkjet,” Gwaltney says.
Solutions such as Fiery Impress are designed to support these environments by delivering scalable DFEs that integrate easily with high-speed inkjet presses and complex workflows. At the same time, Fiery has expanded into specialty production markets through acquisitions such as Inèdit Software and CADlink. The moves strengthen its capabilities in textile printing, direct-to-film, direct-to-garment and other emerging applications.
Across all of these developments, Fiery’s strategy remains rooted in helping print providers operate smarter, faster and more profitably. “With the ever-increasing volume of short-run jobs, customization and the growing skilled labor shortage, PSPs are having to do even more with fewer resources,” Gwaltney says. “Fiery’s products are designed to help PSPs punch above their weight class.”
As digital print continues to evolve, Fiery—working with partners like Fujifilm—intends to remain a steady presence behind the scenes, powering the intelligence that keeps modern print moving forward.
