Electronics For Imaging, Inc. has named veteran print technology executive Douglas Edwards as its chief technology officer (CTO). Edwards replaces Ghilad Dziesietnik, who recently retired after nearly 25 years with EFI – the last 14 as CTO.

Edwards has had an extensive career as a senior print executive and R&D technologist. Immediately prior to this appointment, Edwards was CEO of Cambridge, England-based Xaar plc, a developer of inkjet print head technologies for industrial printing, and chairman of Xaar 3D Ltd – the company’s 3D printing joint venture with Stratasys Ltd.

Before joining Xaar in 2015, Edwards was president of Kodak’s Digital Printing and Enterprise Business, with responsibility for flexo packaging, functional printing, electrophotographic solutions, commercial and consumer inkjet solutions – with combined revenues of around $800 million. Prior to this, Edwards ran Kodak’s largest graphics business, Prepress Solutions, with revenues of $1.5 billion. Edwards joined Kodak from Kodak Polychrome Graphics (KPG), a 50/50 joint venture between Eastman Kodak and Sun Chemical Corporation, where he was vice president of R&D. He has also held senior R&D leadership roles with International Paper, Zeneca Specialties (formerly ICI Colors & Fine Chemicals) and Ilford Photographic Ltd in the UK.

“Doug possesses one of the best technological backgrounds in our industry and combines technology with demonstrated business accomplishments,” states EFI chairman and CEO Jeff Jacobson. “EFI has a history of providing its customers with a competitive advantage by keeping them at the forefront of technology. I had the pleasure of working closely with Doug – when I was the CEO of KPG, as well as when I was the COO of Kodak’s Graphic Communications business – and I cannot think of a better person in our industry to lead EFI’s strategic and technology developments.”

Edwards, who is based in EFI’s Manchester, NH facility, has a Bachelor of Science in chemistry and a Ph.D. in conducting organic materials – both from London University. He has several patents, scientific papers and books to his credit in topics such as solid-state conductivity and photographic materials. He has also published research in textile dyeing, including work on the aqueous solution behavior of anionic azo dyes for textile fibers.

“EFI was a customer of mine while with Xaar, and I am very aware of the unique opportunity EFI has now to further develop a portfolio that includes many of the world’s leading digital inkjet and print workflow solutions,” says Edwards. “EFI, with its printhead-agnostic approach, is leveraging technology from many different vendors, and I look forward to bringing my inkjet experience to help drive value from this strategy and further enhance EFI’s ‘best of breed’ approach.

“Dating back to my time with Kodak and KPG, I have long appreciated Jeff Jacobson’s approach to innovation and technology development,” he adds. “I look forward to working with him and the global EFI team to drive our customers’ success in high-quality print production.”