Mergers acquisitions and alliances from around the world: 21 September 2011

This week’s M&A activity is headed by Edsys Computers appointment as a Konica Minolta distributor, iMedia to carry Colorific’s alternative French inks plus the launch of Heidelberg’s co-developed first W2P solution.



Edsys Computers to distribute Konica Minolta

Konica Minolta’s full range of pagepro and magicolor printers and consumables is now available to system integrators and resellers through EDsys Computers’ NSW and WA branches.

According to EDsys marketing manager, Gareth Davies, one of the selling points for their alliance was the fact that Konica Minolta printers have exceptional colour output with low running costs.

“Not previously having a printer category in our portfolio, the Konica Minolta pagepro and magicolor printer and consumable range offers the perfect opportunity to enter this category.

“The Konica Minolta range fits our traditional small to medium business resellers and provides them with a quality product, that offers excellent opportunities to maximise margins, without competing against mass merchants,” he says. In addition to the distribution agreement, EDsys will also recruit resellers to the Konica Minolta Platinum Program.

David Vogt, sales manager of the IT Channel within Konica Minolta Australia says the company looks forward to working with EDsys’ national reseller network. “We will work in partnership with EDsys to advocate the strengths of the Konica Minolta portfolio and attract new partners.

“With EDsys having warehousing in both NSW and WA it offers the channel local access to product. EDsys are an excellent fit for our growth strategy and laser printers will complement their business,” says Vogt.



Colorific signs distributor deal with iMedia

French ink manufacturer, Colorific has successfully signed its second PaperlinX division to take on its range of high quality alternative inks, the deal was struck with iMedia at the recent Visual Impact Image Expo in Melbourne.

According to Colorific business manager, Shaun Holdom, the company is the fastest-growing alternative ink brand in the UK and is pushing to reproduce this success around the world.

“It’s great to welcome iMedia on board as the Australian distributor for our inks. We are able to offer a high quality alternative ink to suit every requirement – regardless of printer and application. All our inks are fully tested and proven in the field and have a track record of reliable and trouble-free performance.

“Once customers have seamlessly switched to our inks, they are sticking with them because they profit from the significant savings that can be made – up to 50% in some cases – without compromising the quality of output,” he says.

This deal follows soon after PaperlinX’s Robert Horne Group adopted the Colorific ProMax inks for Roland in the UK and Ireland.

Chris Lewis-Williams, group manager at iMedia, says the range of alternative inks is a natural fit for its customers who are always looking for ways to reduce costs and improve profits. “Switching to high quality alternative inks is a great way of doing so,” he says.



Prinect Web-to-Print Manager launched at GraphExpo 2011

Heidelberg’s first W2P solution co-developed with Pageflex was unveiled recently in the US, to help printers focus online shop applications in B2B sector.

The Prinect Web-to-Print Manager is particularly suited for B2B applications by offering a more efficient customer interface for medium-sized and industrial print shops. US-based Bitstream division, Pageflex has been a member of the Heidelberg W2P Partner Program since IPEX 2010.

According to Heidelberg board member, Marcel Kiessling, the new solution expands the existing Prinect print shop workflow into a growth area. "In Pageflex we have found a partner that already has a high-quality portfolio of web-to-print solutions with a proven track record worldwide.

“By integrating this portfolio into the Prinect system, our customers will benefit two-fold - from the W2P expertise of our partner Pageflex on one hand and the comprehensive automation and process transparency of the Prinect production workflow on the other,” he says.

GraphExpo represented the first step in the products global launch with US and Europe now covered. The product will be available worldwide by drupa 2012.

The frontend customer portal enables data processing and online document editing, in addition to offering an interface to systems of third-party providers like payment systems, shipment systems or data list acquisition.




Opus spreads its wings with global print alliance

International borders are no obstacle for Opus Print Group’s new global content delivery as US-based Sheridan Group joins the publishing market force.

According to Cliff Brigstocke, Opus Group CEO, an agreement for the international Content Delivery Alliance (CDA) system was formalised just three weeks ago. Talks with the North American print provider have been taking place for some time.

“We really needed Sheridan to complete the Americas component of our offer. It is the missing element that brings together an international solution,” he says.

The Sheridan Group joins foundation partners Hobbs the Printers and MPG Books Group who signed up six months ago in the UK and Europe, with the OPUS operations handling the Asia Pacific region from its facilities in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore.

Alongside the Content Delivery Alliance, OPUS’ long-standing partnership with Hung Hing in China broadens the print group’s global delivery options to 27 facilities with over 600,000sqm of factory space and over 14,000 staff.

John Saxton, CEO of the Sheridan Group says the partnership will fulfil an increasing customer need to have content produced closer to the end user. “With this alliance, The Sheridan Group can now print our customers’ products closer to their ultimate destination, thereby reducing the time and the cost of overseas distribution,” says Saxton.