Pointing to low sales volumes, Müller Martini will cease production of printing presses in the first half of 2015 but it will continue to provide service support for printing press customers.
As part of its strategic realignment, the company will focus on print finishing in the future, strengthened by its recent takeover of Heidelberg service and spare parts business for its saddle stitchers, perfect binders and thread-sealing machines.
The Swiss company says it could only partly absorb the substantial slump sales, despite extensive periods of short-time work at its Maulburg production site in Germany. It adds that the drastic contraction of the traditional market for forms printing presses over the past decades prompted it to focus on new business segments in recent years, with an aim to establish size-variable web offset printing for labels and flexible packaging in the growing packaging market.
Bruno Müller, chief executive at Müller Martini
Bruno Müller, chief executive at Müller Martini, says, “Despite extensive investments and years of effort, the broad take-up of offset technology on the packaging market has only succeeded to a limited extent. Since established business segments such as security and commercial printing could by no means make up for the loss in volume in recent years, the company believes that the chances of a successful turnaround from its own efforts alone are extremely slim. The search for suitable partners in the packaging market has also proven unsuccessful to date.”
Müller Martini will begin transferring the Maulburg production site into a services company in order to secure the service support for installed machines. Up to 80 jobs may be affected by this step. The company says, socially responsible solutions will be sought for those employees affected.
