Hunkeler & Müller Martini on INKISH

The media got the embargoed press release about 20 minutes before the information could be published at 16:00, December 6th, 2023 - which is BREAKING news. Of course, acquisitions between companies like Hunkeler and Müller Martini will always create headlines and have consequences. However, this is not just an acquisition, but in our view, a game-changer for several reasons. First of all, we believe it will change the dynamics in the finishing industry - and yes, initially only in the digital space. However, as the digital space continues to grow, the impact of a merged Müller Martini with Hunkeler can have huge opportunities. We are, in particular, curious about what this does to the long-time relationship between Horizon and Hunkeler - mainly because the two companies have worked closely together for years, and now the acquirer is maybe Horizon's biggest competitor - but it may also have other consequences as the biggest market for Hunkeler and probably Müller Martini, North America, have Standard Finishing as distributor for both Hunkeler and Horizon - can that continue? Or what will happen? All of these are speculations, and time will tell - but they are interesting - and an acquisition with further impact than most other M&As lately. Warm congratulations to Hunkeler and Müller Martini. Find the official press release below: Müller Martini and Hunkeler join forces for the future After careful consideration, the owner families have decided to merge the Hunkeler Group with the Müller Martini Group. Müller Martini Holding AG has acquired all of the shares of the Hunkeler Group. With this transaction, the Hunkeler family and Crédit Mutuel Equity have sold off all their shares to Müller Martini. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. Hunkeler AG and Müller Martini AG are both global market leaders with innovative solutions for post-print paper processing. Both companies focus a significant part of their innovative strength on the economical production of individualized print products within an automated smart factory. Hunkeler and Müller Martini have been very close for many years. The long and successful history began during the 2nd World War, when Hans Müller worked for Hunkeler as a mechanical engineer before setting up his own business in 1946 and founding the company Hans Müller / Grapha. These good relations have been maintained for decades. The local proximity in the Zofingen region and the already existing and successful partnership in the machine and component business form an ideal starting point for even closer cooperation in the future. By joining forces, both companies see great opportunities to bundle their innovation activities and to serve their global customer base even better in the future through joint sales and service activities. The two owner families have therefore decided on this strategic transaction that led to the acquisition of Hunkeler AG by Müller Martini AG. Bruno Müller: "The graphic arts industry is constantly changing and regularly calls for new innovations. By combining the key components of the two companies, such as personnel, expertise and technology, we will be able to serve our global clientele even better with innovative solutions in the future." Stefan and Michel Hunkeler: "There is a long-standing partnership between Hunkeler and Müller Martini and a regular exchange. The opportunity for the merger is currently greatly beneficial for both partners and our joint customers, as it will result in considerable advantages in a combined enterprise. This is also a strong commitment for the Zofingen region."

Morten here from INKISH, reporting from Printing United in Atlanta. If you notice the distinct blue-purple hue, you'll recognize I'm at the Müller Martini booth, a signature color of this Swiss brand. Not far from them in Switzerland is Hunkler, another exceptional company. While Hunkler specializes in digital paper finishing, Müller Martini excels in book finishing and saddle stitch products, and they're renowned in their field. Although Müller Martini was once a larger company, it's now more streamlined, profitable, and innovative. What's intriguing is their evolution from a leader in the offset realm to a significant player in the digital world, meeting its unique demands. Case in point: their variable binding equipment. Many print companies now use their machinery for 'books of one'. A notable example is Linemark in Maryland, which efficiently handles thousands of such orders daily. The booth is quiet as they're setting up for a presentation. Even though the equipment isn't running now, it's a testament to the power of trade shows like this. Attendees can see, touch, and discuss these machines with experts.

First, we had to talk about Hunkeler Innovationdays, which took place in Switzerland in February - and CMO Hans Gut confirmed what we already knew - a fantastic success for everybody. As HP has been a strong partner for years, it's only natural to meet Hans Gut at the HP #PrintAhead event, and with all the new machines already announced but also expected shortly, we talk about the opportunities Hunkeler has - as always, great listening to Hans Gut. Enjoy!

Finally, we are ready to show you our films from Brazil and Argentina, and the first is from Gráfica Forma Certa and COO Francisco Souza. Forma Certa is an amazing printing company that has almost entirely been transformed into one of Brazil's leading digital printing companies. Having a company that used to supply other printing companies with plates and is now so dedicated to IT development, digital books, and all the amazing things the company does is amazing. The perspective is even more challenging for US and European people as buying technology and getting into Brazil is considerably more difficult than in our countries. Francisco Souza explains how his three HP T-series are configured with three Hunkeler finishing lines - an amazing company and a super interesting story. The language is in Portuguese but, of course, with subtitles in English. Enjoy!

Hunkeler has worked with digital print post-press for 41 years and has so many installations that it has almost become the de facto standard in digital post-press. Marco Kunz explains the Starbook Plow Folder in this presentation, and Hans Gut shares about the company's roll-based finishing solutions. Super great chat around the presentation with good insights! Get Work Done is for sure a good headline for what Hunkeler delivers!

In this online interview, Stefan Hunkeler shares his view on Hunkeler Innovationdays and how important the event has become for the entire industry. As usual good things to learn in a casual format. Enjoy!

In this film, Head of Product Management & Corporate Marketing Adrian Mayr gives us some insight from the Müller Martini operation in Zofingen, Switzerland. It's not the first time we've filmed from Müller Martini, but it was interesting to see it again and learn how they service their customers globally. Enjoy!

In this Coffee Break session from Bronte's booth at Innovationdays, Francesco Crotti speaks with Jan Friedrich from Hunkeler. Friedrich explains how important Bronte is as a glue between the customer and the ability to produce books of one. Interesting views!

Who's better to conclude on the Innovationdays than Michel Hunkeler? In our fourth and last Bonjour session, your hosts Jacques Michiels and Morten B. Reitoft talk to Michel Hunkeler. A very satisfied Michel Hunkeler also says that Hunkeler has many great things in the pipeline for the future - though without revealing any details - but we tried - promise!

Christoph Müller runs the customer experience center at Müller Martini's headquarters in Zofringen in, Switzerland, but at Innovationdays, he is presenting the company's binding lines. In the short interview, he explains how he tests papers and binding when not at Innovationdays to help customers maximize their investment. Enjoy!

Hunkeler can do “Books of 1”, so let's look at their new Book Sorting Module. Benjamin Locher, product manager, explains to us some of the important advantages of this particular module at the end of the impressive new Starbook plow folder line. As NEXT LEVEL AUTOMATION is the motto and dominant theme of the Hunkeler Innovationdays 2023, we see how they practice what they preach.

At Innovationdays, INKISH starts early, and though today's Bonjour was filmed a bit later due to the late arrival of planes from America, we are certain that you will like this format. Informat, fun, and still to learn from. In the first Bonjour, you'll meet Annette Friskopp, General Manager, HP PageWide - responsible for HP T-Series Advantage 2200, and Daniel Erni, who took over the CEO position for Hunkeler on January 1st, 2023. Interesting chat moderated by your INKISH hosts, Jacques Michiels and Morten B. Reitoft.

Michel Hunkeler is one of the owners, board members, and former CEO of Hunkeler AG in Switzerland. Among the interesting topics is Michel Hunkelers new role, but also how it is to hand over the CEO position, for the first time ever, to a person out of the family, Daniel Erni. Michel Hunkeler was hit last year with severe health issues but has fought back to an almost 100% everyday life. We talk about brotherly competition and how a strong family, for now, generations, has formed the 100 years old company. A very personal interview with great insights - that you, of course, only find on INKISH.

In this interview with Stefan Hunkeler, we discuss the Hunkeler Innovationdays 2023. It takes place in beautiful Lucern in Switzerland, February 27th - March 2nd, 2023 - and we can't wait! Hunkeler Innovationdays has grown to become one of the most important events in the industry but had to postpone, like everybody else, because of the pandemic. Now it's the point of no return, and exhibitors and many customers are planning to attend the maybe only end-to-end event for digital print/finishing. INKISH will be covering Innovationdays intensively and will also talk to many of the vendors exhibiting before the event to encourage you to attend. Registration opens November 2nd, and it's a must-attend event, to be honest! Enjoy!

Hunkeler Innovationdays is around the corner, so when we got the chance to talk to Reto Zaugg from Hunkeler, obviously a topic to discuss. However, we also got a chance to talk about how seamlessly Hunkeler and Horizon integrate into the new Stitchliner Mark V shown at Horizon Finishing First event. But take a listen yourself!

This is a truly great Learn With Us session where CEO Andy Fetherman from Müller Martini gives the audience a great introduction to how Müller Martini enables printers, and to support the story, Andy Fetherman has invited Adi Chinai from King Pringint in Massachusets to talk about the partnership the two companies has. A great session, and as usual amazing technology.

Hunkeler is one of the most recognized companies in the finishing industry, and in this Learn With Us session, Patrick Treyer and Dominik Scheidegger present the Hunkeler Docutrim. Though Hunkeler is known for web-based finishing, Hunkeler has a background in also cut sheet finishing, and with Docutrim, Hunkeler adds a new product to their exciting range of products. Enjoy!

Linemark serves three different business segments - direct mail, print-on-demand, and general commercial business. Entering the production, you very soon realize how organized and busy people are, and you understand right away how the company sees the future. Books-of-One is for sure an exciting opportunity, and as David Ashton explains in the film, POD is the fastest-growing segment and also the most profitable. Investing in digital printing equipment combined with the Müller Martini solution - and skilled people - Linemark does make a difference! LinkedIn Profiles: Steve Bearden David Ashton

In 1947 Bridgeport National Bindery was founded. Times were different, but Bridgeport served books of one despite all the commercial and technical differences. The product wasn't a finished book but library binding, handled in small runs. Today Bridgeport National Bindery is a modern printing- and binding company still focusing on small print runs down to copies of one. We got the chance to meet with Bruce Jacobsen, who gave us a tour of an amazing company producing beautiful hard- and softcover books. They produce 20,000 unique titles per day in peak seasons, and only possible because of their HP and Screen presses + the Hunkeler setup creating perfect book blocks! Books of one are for sure one of the mega-trends in book printing, and it's been fantastic to see how different, same equipment is utilized with different printing companies. Stay tuned for more films like this, soon on INKISH :-) LinkedIn Profile: Bruce Jacobsen https://www.linkedin.com/in/brucefjacobsen/ Richard Healy https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-healy-88615818/

Hunkeler is among the most successful companies in the graphic arts industry, and being a family-owned company with success, the future looks bright. Today Michel Hunkeler is the CEO in close collaboration with his brother Stefan Hunkeler, who used to be the CEO but today has a role as President of the board. With increased interest in digital print from PSPs, the need for smart binding increases, and Hunkeler is well-positioned in the global market - but listen to what Michel Hunkeler has to say! LinkedIn Profile

The COVID pandemic is for sure still not over, and the number of cancellations and postponements of events is still something we have to live with. Hunkeler Innovationdays, one of the most beloved events, has already been postponed a couple of times. Though many had hoped for the event to occur in February 2022, Hunkeler President Stefan Hunkeler gave the sad message about moving the event to 2023 a few weeks ago. INKISH went to Switzerland to talk to Stefan Hunkeler but focused more on what to expect in 2023. Our colleagues from WhatTheyThink did also talk to Stefan Hunkeler - see the interview made by David Zwang at the following link: LinkedIn Profile

In this Over the Skype we talked to Héctor Castro, Managing Director of Müller Martini Latin America, who tells us about the wide portfolio of finished solutions, as well as the importance of automation. En este Over the Skyple platicamos con el Ing. Héctor Castro, director general de Müller Martini Latino America, quien nos platica acerca del amplio portafolio de soluciones en terminados, así como la importancia de la automatización.

In this film, Michael Tuchscher from Beltz Grafische Betriebe explains what considerations and why they ended up investing in a Hunkeler and HP-T-series solution. With the Hunkeler investment, Beltz can produce book blocks that can be handled in the company's binding department, and, well - judge for yourself - but it looks pretty cool! This film was made for our Learn With Us Inkjet series and is recorded remotely.

Beltz Graphische Betriebe, located in Bad Langensalza (between Kassel and Leipzig) is a 180 year old family owned and managed company. With a 2.5 million Euro investment into digital printing and digital print finishing equipment from Hunkeler the company optimized its production process for short run soft- and hardcover books.