Print industry news
Cascades acquires newsprint mill for $34.2 million
Cascades, in Kingsey Falls, QC, a leader
in the recovery and manufacture of green
packaging and tissue products, has
acquired White Birch’s Bear Island manu-
facturing facility in Virginia for $34.2
million USD cash. Its on-site newsprint
paper machine will be reconfigured to
produce recycled lightweight linerboard
Mario Plourde,
for the North American mark et. White
CEO, Cascades
Birch will temporarily operate the site as
a newsprint mill under a 27-month lease.
The reconfigured machine is expected to have an annual
production capacity of 400,000 tons. The conversion would
require an estimated investment of $275 to $300 million USD,
with production set to begin in 2021. “This project is directly
in line with the goals of our strategic plan which includes
investing in our core sectors of packaging and tissue through
modernization and expanding our geographical footprint,”
said Mario Plourde, CEO of Cascades. “The Bear Island site
is also strategically located for raw material sourcing.”
Giroux named president of Pazazz Group
Marc Giroux is the new president of The
Pazazz Group in Montreal, a leading
commercial printer specializing in offset,
digital, wide-format and packaging.
Giroux will assume leadership and oper-
ational duties with the company’s senior
management team and report to founder
Warren Werbitt. He brings over 18 years’
Marc Giroux,
experience and his immediate focus will
president, The
be to review all internal systems,
Pazazz Group
reorganize certain departments and
teams, and focus on overall corporate culture. “I truly believe
that hiring a leader like Marc was critical in our overall plan
to generate tremendous growth and bring structure to our
multiple business units,” Werbitt added. “I’m confident Marc’s
leadership will have an immediate impact both internally and
in the marketplace.”
Gecht to step down as EFI CEO
Electronics For Imaging (EFI) has announced that CEO Guy
Gecht intends to step down from his operating role when a
successor is named. Gecht will work closely with the new
CEO to ensure a successful transition. He’ll remain as a mem-
ber of EFI’s board of directors following the change. “Stepping
down as the leader of a great company is never an easy
decision,” Gecht said. “With vast market opportunities, loyal
customers and a robust product roadmap, reinforced by the
unprecedented interest in Nozomi, EFI has never been better
positioned for continued growth and success. This makes it
@graphicarts
the right time, after 19 years as CEO, for
me to hand the reins to the next leader.”
Gecht and his team transformed EFI from
a single product line and OEM business
into a worldwide leader driving the tran-
sition from analog to digital imaging. He
also led EFI’s expansion into software
and industrial inkjet, which drove growth
Guy Gecht, CEO, EFI
to more than $1 billion USD annually.
Heidelberg begins new year with order backlog
Heidelberg has started its 2018/2019
financial year with growth in net sales.
High demand for its newly established
subscription model and the launch of the
Primefire digital production press were
cited as key factors. Incoming orders
improved in the first quarter, from April 1
to June 30, by 6% to €665 million. Order
backlog grew by 18% to €714 million, from Rainer Hundsdörfer,
€603 million the previous year, partly due CEO, Heidelberg
to subscription contracts and lifecycle
business – services and consumables. Heidelberg also record-
ed growth in traditional business during the first quarter, with
sales rising by 9% in total to €541 million. “The strong customer
demand for our new subscription portfolio and digital pack-
aging printing presses has exceeded our expectations,” said
Rainer Hundsdörfer, CEO of Heidelberg.
Langley Holdings’ profits remain strong
Langley Holdings, owner of Manroland
Sheetfed, has reported that in the six
months to June 30, 2018, it registered a
profit before tax of €43.5 million on rev-
enues of €398.2 million. Tony Langley,
the group’s chairman, said the result “was
in line with expectations and on the
whole, very satisfactory.” Profits before
tax for the full year are forecast to be Tony Langley, CEO,
€102.2 million on revenues of €922.0 Langley Holdings
million. Langley added that all five of the
group's operating divisions are performing as expected, and
that “from today’s perspective, all forecasts are achievable.”
The group closed the half year with orders on hand of €314.1
million, net assets of €678.8 million, a consolidated cash bal-
ance of €350.3 million and no debt. Langley Holdings has over
80 subsidiaries worldwide and employs about 4,300 people.
Hampson joins Canon Canada
Industry veteran Philip Hampson has joined Canon Canada as
senior director of production printing systems. Hampson brings
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