Business News

Heidelberg investing in digital postpress operations with takeover of MBO Group

Wednesday 03. October 2018 - Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) is taking over the international MBO Group in a bid to further expand its offerings in the growing market of postpress operations for digitally printed products. The move will also see the company gain access to new customers in the pharmaceutical industry and add mailing system offerings to its offset portfolio.

This decision highlights the company’s strategic focus on consistently aligning its portfolio and new business model with the growth segments of digital and packaging. Furthermore, Heidelberg aims to use this extended offering to tap into new customer groups for its entire product portfolio.
“The planned takeover of the MBO Group enables us to attain further sustainable and profitable growth by leveraging new technologies and customer segments,” said Rainer Hundsdörfer, CEO of Heidelberg. “By acquiring MBO’s digital portfolio, we are closing a gap for our customers and helping them achieve a smooth industrial process in the digital future. We also expect to see synergies in our own value added chain, which will bring about tangible benefits for customers, too.”
The acquired operations account for a sales volume of around € 50 million and will see Heidelberg expand its postpress offerings. The acquisition involves, among other things, taking over the sites in Oppenweiler and Bielefeld, Germany, and the production site in Perifita, Portugal, which employ a total of approximately 450 staff. Besides the German sites, the efficiently structured site in Portugal opens up particularly interesting opportunities for the entire Heidelberg Group.
“Even when postpress operations are running efficiently, there is still huge potential for boosting productivity throughout the entire print shop,” claims Stephan Plenz, Member of the Management Board responsible for Digital Technology. “The takeover is another important step in offering our customers a comprehensive portfolio that generates value and covers everything from technology and consumables right through to service.”
Strong MBO brand to be retained
The MBO brand is well-established on the market and its technology complements the Heidelberg product range well. Continuing to expand offerings together will optimize the portfolio and supply chain, while leveraging the MBO dealer and service network will also result in mutual benefits. Overall, the acquisition is set to create a better basis for unlocking shared potential for future-focused developments that are geared toward market demands.
The planned takeover of the MBO Group is another strategic step for Heidelberg as it seeks to secure its future by pursuing continuous innovation for the benefit of customers. The aim is to increase productivity and decrease costs by achieving maximum efficiency across all print shop processes. The Heidelberg Push to Stop concept and the company’s industrial digital print portfolio for the packaging market, which includes the Labelfire and Primefire product ranges, is driving forward digitalization. In this regard, integrated postpress solutions are playing an increasingly important role when it comes to optimizing the end-to-end process.
Subject to the agreement of the antitrust authorities, the takeover is due to be completed provisionally by the end of 2018.