Heidelberg acquires Hi-Tech Coatings

Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG will take over the high-performance coating manufacturer Hi-Tech Coatings based in the UK and the Netherlands. This move will enable Heidelberg to add the manufacture and sale of high-performance coatings for the production of printed materials and packaging to its solutions portfolio for consumables. Based in Aylesbury in the UK and Zwaag in the Netherlands, Hi-Tech Coatings develops and produces over 1,000 environmentally friendly products and formulations for the print media industry, primarily water- and UV-based coatings.

“By acquiring Hi-Tech Coatings, Heidelberg is pursuing its consistent strategy of expanding the range of services available to our customers,” said Heidelberg CEO Bernhard Schreier. “Using high-performance consumables on our machines makes customers more efficient and enables us to achieve margins that are not tied to economic cycles.” Heidelberg has been successfully selling the print coatings of the newly acquired company for a number of years in the UK, China and parts of Eastern Europe. The global Heidelberg sales network will in future provide Hi-Tech Coatings with an international platform for expanding its operations.

Hi-Tech Coatings was founded in 1993 and was under the ownership of the management team. The company sells its products worldwide via dealers and licensees, focusing today most strongly on Britain and Eastern Europe. In 2007, Hi-Tech Coatings achieved sales of around €25 million.

“We have long been aware of how important it is to have links to presses and the printing process. This makes it a logical step to merge Hi-Tech Coatings and Heidelberg,” said Hi-Tech Coatings managing director, Paul Bass. “Coatings play a key role in the graphic arts industry. The enhanced durability of coated products and ongoing improvements in terms of esthetics make a major contribution to increasing print shop productivity.”