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Heidelberg to Relocate Manufacturing Facility from Ohio to New Hampshire

Press release from the issuing company

  Move will concentrate high-volume finishing operations at single site   January 29, 2002 -- Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) will move all operations from its Dayton, Ohio site to recently expanded facilities in Durham, New Hampshire during 2002. The relocation will combine the development and manufacturing functions for high-volume postpress systems at a single site, allowing Heidelberg to maximize efficiency and synergy. Heidelberg will continue to produce its extensive range of postpress products for commercial web and newspaper production at the Durham site. The Dayton plant was responsible for manufacturing these products, while engineering and support functions were located in Durham and nearby Dover, New Hampshire. "Combining the Dayton and New Hampshire operations will have a synergistic effect that will be reflected in increased efficiency and better products and service for our customers," stressed Heidelberg CEO Bernhard Schreier. "Establishing Heidelberg as the leader in the postpress sector remains an important part of our strategic plan, and this move will assist us in reaching this goal," he added. In the middle of last year, as part of its repositioning effort, Heidelberg identified the finishing market as one of three areas of growth and established a dedicated Postpress Solution Center. Products that will now be produced in Durham include Pacesetter saddlestitchers, Universal Binder adhesive binders and newspaper inserters as well as a wide range of high-volume postpress auxiliary components. Heidelberg will complete the relocation in a manner that will ensure continuity of service. Delivery schedules for existing and upcoming orders will not be impacted. The closure of the Dayton plant will effect around 200 employees, most of whom will be offered the opportunity to transfer to the Durham site. The phased relocation will begin in April 2002 and is expected to be completed by the fall of this year. The Heidelberg facilities in Durham and Dover, New Hampshire are the worldwide headquarters for the company's Web Systems Solution Center. In addition to high-volume postpress systems formerly manufactured in Dayton, the two New Hampshire sites will continue to manufacture and support web presses for newspaper and commercial printing applications. Q & A How many employees are currently working in Durham and Dover? There are approximately 1,000 Heidelberg employees at the two locations.  Approximately 200 are involved in the high-volume postpress sector.   What is produced in Durham and Dover? The sites produce a wide range of web offset presses for commercial and newspaper applications, including Mainstream newspaper presses and Sunday commercial presses.  Heidelberg training facilities for newspaper and commercial web customers are also located in New Hampshire, along with extensive R&D, engineering and support resources for the Web Systems and Postpress Solution Centers.   What are the volumes of the newspaper postpress and high-volume commercial postpress markets? Newspaper postpress: approx. $500 million annually High-volume commercial postpress: approx. $300 million annually   What products are involved in the relocation? Pacesetter 870 and Pacesetter 1000 saddlestitchers Universal Binder adhesive binders Magnapak, NP630 and NP2299 newspaper inserters Auxiliary components for newspaper and commercial postpress applications, including stackers, bundle handling equipment and gripper conveyors.   What synergies will the move bring? The relocation will concentrate the development, production and support operations for these postpress products at a single site.  It will also allow for more efficient cooperation and the sharing of support resources (purchasing, human resources, storage, facilities management, etc.) with the Web Systems Solution Center.