BUSINESS | NEWS Manroland Sheetfed to cease offset press production German offset print press manufacturer, Manroland Sheetfed, will cease operations at its Offenbach factory, with the closure directly affecting more than 660 jobs. According to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper, the decision was communicated during a recent staff meeting at the site. According to the report, it was announced that all new machine production is scheduled to end in late May, with 660 of the total 740 staff members on site to leave. All operations at the site will then conclude in early June. A smaller group of around 80 personnel will continue working through the end of the year to manage the shutdown and facilitate the potential sale of the service and spare parts business units. Regional sales operations including Manroland GB in the UK will continue to operate as service and engineering organisations. The news regarding the Offenbach site follows the announcement in March that Manroland was entering into insolvency proceedings with financial support from its parent company, Langley Holdings. The company entered what is known as ‘Schutzschirmverfahren’, which means protective shield proceedings. In an official statement the company described itself as “the beleaguered German press builder”, suggesting it was bracing itself and shareholders for turbulent news. The company was temporarily placed under protective insolvency proceedings, but Langley was unable to find an investor willing to support production of its sheetfed offset presses from its Offenbach site. In its insolvency announcement, Manroland said that despite a “technologically advanced product portfolio”, sales at the company have been declining in recent years with “mounting losses”. The decline has been attributed primarily to the shrinking market for litho printing presses, with China representing the biggest drop of around 40% of historic sales. Founded in Offenbach as Faber & Schleicher before renaming to Roland Offsetmaschinenfabrik, the company pioneered the world’s first sheetfed rotary offset press in 1911. Merging with the print division of MAN in 1979 to form Manroland, it remained a major player and innovator in the offset print market for over a century, The company fell into financial difficulty in 2000s and despite a 2012 rescue by UK-based conglomerate, Langley Holdings, the manufacturer succumbed to factors including a shifting digital landscape and failed attempts at restructuring. Manroland will cease manufacture of presses including the ROLAND 700 and 900 Friedheim announces exclusive partnerships Friedheim International, a UK supplier of print finishing, converting, and binding solutions, has secured exclusive sales representation rights in the United Kingdom for Digibook’s range of production and finishing equipment. Digibook Technology is a Swiss manufacturer specialising in automated bookbinding and finishing equipment for the digital printing industry. Digibook solutions are designed to perform all phases of book manufacturing in house, including perfect binding, endsheet and backlining, layflat binding for photobooks, three-side trimming, case making, and casing in. Earlier this year, Friedheim was also appointed as the exclusive UK sales representative for Sun Automation Group, a global leader in corrugated converting, automation, and material handling systems. This new partnership expands Friedheim’s portfolio to include the full range of Sun Automation solutions including SUN proprietary equipment, Latitude Machinery Corporation (LMC) machinery, and PARA handling systems. The agreement brings LMC’s industry-proven flexo folder-gluers, rotary die-cutters, and printer-slotters to the UK market under exclusive representation. Solutions from Digibook include the Mitabook range of finishing machinery The Wimbledon Print Company acquired by Minuteman Press The Wimbledon Print Company has officially announced its merge with Minuteman Press in a deal made with the franchise and Margaux Evans, owner of a Minuteman Press which was previously based in Epsom. Evans opened her Minuteman Press store in October of 2018, and has now acquired The Wimbledon Print Company, in a move seen as a major win and expansion for the Minuteman Press franchisee. The Wimbledon Print Company is a third-generation printing business with over 25 years in operation which was owned by Michael Woolsey and offers digital, lithographic, large-format, and display printing. Woolsey wanted to sell the business within a short timeframe due to personal circumstances and “lifechanging circumstances”. Woolsey says it was a significant decision after years of dedication and wanted to ensure the future of the company, staff, and customers were in safe hands. [L to R] Michael Woolsey, previous owner of The Wimbledon Print Company, and Margaux Evans, new owner of Minuteman Press in Wimbledon By Jonathan Pert By Jonathan Pert By Jonathan Pert 11 www.printmonthly.co.uk May | June 2026 - Issue 360
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