NUR to Acquire Remaining Shares of Pro Engineering, Consolidates Manufacturing
Press release from the issuing company
LOD, Israel; May 20, 2003- NUR Macroprinters Ltd., a leading manufacturer of wide-format inkjet production printing systems and consumables for the out-of-home advertising market, today announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire the remaining 50% shares of NUR Pro Engineering Ltd. from Ogen Dialogix Ltd., an Israeli private company, and plans to consolidate its machinery manufacturing facilities in Rosh Ha`Ayin, Israel.
Under the terms of the agreement, the transfer of the shares will be effective as of March 31, 2004. NUR Macroprinters will acquire Ogen Dialogix`s shares in NUR Pro for $850,000. Upon completion of the transaction, NUR Pro Engineering will become a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company.
Effective immediately, the Company will begin consolidating its global machinery manufacturing operations of Salsa Digital Printers Ltd. (also known as NUR Engineering USA) in San Antonio, Texas with those of NUR Pro Engineering, into a single large manufacturing facility in Rosh Ha`Ayin. NUR currently manufactures and assembles the NUR Fresco printers through NUR Pro Engineering and the Salsa line of printers through NUR Engineering USA.
David Amir, President and Chief Executive Officer of NUR Macroprinters Ltd, commented on the NUR Pro Engineering deal, “ We believe that the NUR Pro Engineering transaction and the subsequent consolidation will generate savings by removing the administrative redundancies of two centers, reducing overhead costs, and allowing us greater real-time production flexibility. We are excited by the prospects for improving our efficiencies and margins by taking this step.”
The Company also announced a realignment of certain key management positions. Nachum Korman, Managing Director of NUR Europe, will become President of NUR America, and Marco Baio will be appointed Managing Director of NUR Europe. Prior to joining NUR Macroprinters, Mr. Baio served in senior management positions with Scitex, including: Managing Director of Scitex Italy and Managing Director of Scitex Germany. Most recently, Mr. Baio served as President of Objet Geometries Europe. As a result, the executive positions of Vice President of Sales, held by Alon Avnon, and Vice President of Marketing, held by Ron Michael, will be phased out.
Mr. Amir continued, “The executive management realignment represents a strategic shift toward greater decentralization. Nachman Korman has been an outstanding Managing Director at NUR Europe and we believe he will provide strong leadership and direction to NUR America. Marco Baio, has gained proven experience in business development in his position as president of Objet Geometries Europe and we expect him to maintain and build on Nachman Korman`s strong performance in Europe. We want to thank Alon Avnon and Ron Michael for their important contributions to NUR. They each played major roles in the Company`s success and in its stabilization in the face of tough challenges.”