March 31, 2005
Buyout in BC
Richmond, BCCommercial printer 3S Printers has purchased Landsdowne Press and amalgamated the two operations into the Landsdowne location. Jim McCurdy, general manager says the company now has 46 employees and five sheetfed presses and offers a wide range of services such as magazine and catalogue printing.
March 30, 2005
JYT Express, JYT Graphics go separate ways
VANCOUVERCommercial print shop JYT Graphics is now partly owned by Burnaby-based Trade Business Forms as of the beginning of January. PrintCAN recently reported that JYT Graphics’ quick print division, JYT Express was purchased by The Printing House, which operates more than 60 quick print locations across the country. The two JYT entities were sold after owner, Bill Gwillim passed away. A spokesperson from JYT Graphics says that the company will operate as before under the new ownership.
March 24, 2005
New print shop up and running in New Brunswick
FREDERICTONTaylor Printing Group, a new 29”-format commercial sheetfed facility is open for business as of last week. The shop boasts a six-colour press with coater, which it says is the first in New Brunswick, and plans to serve the Eastern Canadian and Northeastern U.S. markets. According to a press release, the shop is built around a core management team of former owners, but it isn’t yet releasing information on the shop’s ownership or number of staff. Look for more information in an upcoming issue of Graphic Monthly.
Transcontinental has good Q1
MONTREALTranscontinental’s first quarter earnings increased about 10% to $29 million, compared with $26.4 million a year earlier. Revenue was up 12% to $517 million, from $460 million. The company said the development of direct-marketing operations in the U.S. and increased sales has boosted earnings. Last month Transcontinental acquired JDM, a company with reported revenue of $112 million in 2004 and 1,100 employees. Last year, it acquired U.S. direct marketer CC3, Atlantic printer and publisher Optipress, and magazine publisher Avid Media. Daniel Denault, CFO, told analysts that integration of CC3 was progressing well, but Optipress is progressing at a slower pace than what originally thought. Denault said he forsees the negative effect of the rising dollar to be more significant in the second half of the year, but is optimistic about the company’s internal growth. He said there could be plans for a potential reorganization of certain units and that the company will continue to look for acquisitions.
March 22, 2005
GBC merges with ACCO
MISSISSAUGAGeneral Binding Corporation (GBC) is merging with ACCO, a U.S.-based provider of office products owned by Fortune Brands. The newly created company will be called Acco Brands Corporation and is expected to have combined revenues of US$2 billion. It will combine ACCO’s office supplies lines with GBC’s GBC and Quartet brands. At the same time, Fortune Brands will spin off its ACCO unit. Completion of the simultaneous spin off and merger, including all regulatory and shareholder approvals, is expected this summer. There is no word yet how the merger will impact GBC operations in Canada.
MAN Roland to distribute Ryobi
VAUGHAN, ONMAN Roland has announced that it is now the sole distributor of Ryobi presses in Canada. Canadian printers who purchase Ryobi presses will be covered by MAN Roland’s sales and service organization.
March 18, 2005
Printcrafters buys Westcan in Winnipeg
WINNIPEGPrintcrafters, a commercial shop specializing in book and magazine printing recently acquired Westcan Printing Group. Printcrafters president and CEO Bob Payne, says Westcan will operate as a stand alone shop for the time being, but plans to bring the two operations under one roof in the future. The combined company now has 120 employees and is expected to have sales of approximately $18 million. Printcrafters’ previous annual sales were about $13 million.
March 15, 2005
Delta in Ottawa acquired by Nashville in Quebec
OTTAWADelta Printing has been acquired by Nashville Printing & Reproduction near Montreal. Former owner Claude Choquette has retired and his son, Victor, has taken on the role of general manager and president for the company under new ownership. Choquette says the shop hasn’t missed a beat since the takeover and will likely be servicing more of the Quebec market now. Delta has approximately 65 employees and sales of $10.2 million in 2004.
KBA acquires Grafitec, grows small-format business
Wurzburg, GermanyGerman press manufacturer KBA is acquiring Czech counterpart Grafitec from the American investment fund Charles Investment Partners. Grafitec manufactures the Polly Prestige and Polly Performer presses and employs 400 people. The acquisition is part of a strategic expansion for KBA in the small-format sheetfed offset market.
March 11, 2005
Willie’s changes ownership
MISSISSAUGA, ONAfter 38 years in business, Willie Cahill of Willie’s Quick Print has sold his shop to Glen Ario Pereira. Periera brings more than 20 years’ experience in the printing industry to the helm of Willie’s Quick Print, which will continue operating as is, with Cahill staying on for a transitional period. Pereira is also operating Tabs Plus, an index tab manufacturing business out of the location. Cahill isn’t retiring completelyhe is in the midst of starting up a copier business, Ale Enterprises, in which he will sell and lease out Canon high-volume copiers.
The Printing House opens number seven
VANCOUVERThe Printing House has acquired JYT Express, a division of JYT Graphics, as it’s seventh location in Vancouver. The new shop will offer digital printing, bindery and fulfillment services. The Printing House company operates more than 60 locations across Canada and has been in business for 43 years.
March 8, 2005
Transcontinental gets more Time
MONTREALTranscontinental will continue to print TIME Canada magazine, as part of a five-year extension to its contract. The agreement is worth $20 million beginning in January 2006. The magazine will continue to be printed at the company’s Owen Sound, Ont., location. The Canadian edition is printed 51 times a year and is 63 years old. It is the only single-country edition of the weekly news magazine outside of the U.S.
March 4, 2005
Metro Label plans to buy Invesprint
TORONTOMetro Label Group Inc., a large label printing operation with three locations in Toronto, Vancouver and California, has offered to buy all the outstanding common shares of Invesprint Corp. It will pay $1.20 per share, a 200% premium, for a total of about $6.4 million. Pramad Gupta, CFO at Metro Label, says the shares will no longer be publicly traded. Last October, Metro Label bought the Jonergin Pacific division of Invesprint, which operates in the Napa Valley in California. This deal, which is expected to close in April, is for the Jonergin division in Quebec.
Alcan to create print facility in Quebec
MONTREALAlcan is creating a printing facility in Baie d-Urfé, Quebec, just outside of Montreal. Alcan Packaging will move printing processes from its site in Pennsylvania to the Baie d’Urfé facility, where it will create approximately 50 new jobs. The move is planned to be completed by the end of the year. Alcan’s contract packaging and specialty cartons business unit employs more than 500 employees with manufacturing sites at Baie d’Urfé and Pennsylvania. It offers folding-carton and contract-packaging services to Canadian and U.S. pharmaceutical and personal care markets.
March 1, 2005
Paper prices on the rise
TORONTOSappi Fine Paper Europe has announced price increases for all coated papers to take effect as of April 1. Woodfree coated paper and mechanical coated paper sheets will increase by 50 Euros per tonne. Mechanical paper in reels will see an increase of 30 Euros per tonne. Sappi cites rising costs of raw materials, energy and transport as contributors to the increases. Industry pundits speculate that price increases at Sappi, which is one of the largest coated paper manufacturers in the world, will lead to similar increases among the other large coated paper suppliers.
In other paper news, last year’s uncoated stock price increases have been making their mark in the industry. Spokespeople at envelope manufacturers Supremex and Royal Envelope say they have already or will be raising prices on certain product lines due to the increase in white wove, which has gone up 8% - 10%. Both companies say they are honouring existing price contracts.
Quebecor drops France operation, continues restructuring
MONTREALQuebecor World is selling its printing plant in Torcy, France to a group led by local management. The company says the deal is part of the its plan to reorganize and improve efficiency at its troubled French offset printing business. Despite the sale, Quebecor says it's still committed to the French market and noted its recent decision to buy an additional wide-web press for its plant at Mary-sur-Marne, France. Earlier this month, Quebecor reported a fourth-quarter profit of US$44.5 million, compared with a loss of US$53.9 million a year ago. The company cut 2,228 jobs in 2004 and plans to eliminate another 290 in 2005 as part of a restructuring to improve its profits. The company says the restructuring, which involves the relocation of several pieces of equipment, will create 567 new positions spread across several plants for a total net workforce reduction of 1,951.
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