Baden, Switzerland - 27th October, 2006: Top newspaper industry managers from three continents attended the ABB customer dinner held during IfraExpo, Amsterdam, to bid farewell to industry pioneer, Dieter Koch, the former head of ABB's Business Unit Printing, who is retiring after 45 years in the industry. Dieter Koch led the printing activities at ABB, and formerly BBC, for 30 years before, in 2001, handing over management to Wolfgang Felber. Since then Mr. Koch has supported the business in a consultancy role, something that he did with his usual energy and enthusiasm. (ABB requires that senior managers give up their management roles at 60, but are encouraged to continue to deploy their experience in a consultancy role.) Mr. Koch was the pioneer behind many industry developments that have become standards in newspaper printing. These include press management systems, monitor-based control consoles and shaftless printing. He leaves a legacy of ideas and technologies that have made ABB amongst the world's most influential newspaper production control, automation and system integration suppliers, and his opinions on future trends in the newspaper industry are still widely sought. During an emotional evening Wolfgang Felber paid tribute to Mr. Koch and also to his wife Emilie, who always supported her husband despite his many absences when away from home visiting ABB customers around the world. "He earned huge respect both as a person, a manager, and also due to his vision and deep technical knowledge," said Mr. Felber. In reply Mr. Koch thanked everyone who had accompanied him over the years, and had helped to turn his ideas into reality. After his speech the standing ovation from customers, business partners and colleagues present underlined the esteem in which Dieter Koch is held by those who have experienced working with him. He now plans to spend more time with his family and with his hobbies of photography and foreign travel.