Xeikon reaches 30

Xeikon is celebrating 30 years since its founding with a series of blogs exploring the history and future of digital printing.

It has been 25 years since the Xeikon DCP1 was introduced at IPEX 1993

Xeikon was founded towards the end of 1988, and Danny Mertens, corporate communications manager at the digital printing specialist, commented: ‘It’s quite special to be part of Xeikon, a company that was a key player in giving birth to the era of full-color digital printing and a company that continues to innovate as digital printing evolves.

‘Of course, none of this would have been possible without the knowledge, expertise and dedication of our talented employees. We had the right people in the right place at the right time – and still do. This 30-year anniversary is the perfect time for a shout-out to all of the Xeikon family that made this achievement possible.’

The ‘Triple X’ blog series will be author by industry experts Laurel Brunner and Ed Boogaard, and will run between now and November, when Xeikon celebrates its 30th anniversary. The blog series begins with a discussion of the desktop publishing revolution and how that led to the birth of full-color digital printing.

Brunner noted: ‘It’s been 25 years since the Xeikon DCP1 and the Indigo E-Print 1000 were introduced at Ipex 1993. The Agfa Chromapress, based on the Xeikon engine with an Agfa front-end system, one of the first integrated digital production systems on the market, was also introduced at that time.

‘The digital printing industry has come a long way over these years, and it is a good moment in time to explore digital printing’s evolution and what it can tell us about the possible future of media and communications, especially the printed variety. We hope it will be beneficial to those who are relatively new to the industry, and a walk down memory lane for veterans who have been around for a while.’

Boogaard continued: ‘In addition to strolling down memory lane, we also invite readers to sharing their stories, successes and expectations, and to join us in celebrating the present while exploring the roads to the future of print as well.’

The Xeikon Triple X blog series can be read at www.pastprintfuture.com.