Hohner Maschinenbau Gmbh, the Tuttlingen based German post-press machinery manufacturer and parent Company of the U.S. Company Hohner Stitching Products, Inc., acquired the bookletmaker division of Ernst Nagel GmbH Stuttgart on January, 15th 2014.

Hohner Maschinenbau GmbH, established in 1930, established its reputation in the first place by manufacturing small wire stitching machines and high precision stitching heads. Their enviable reputation still places them as a global market leader today. In the late nineties Hohner decided to enter the saddlestitching market with their own unique development and production methods and have become firmly established as a serious competitor in this market sector to Heidelberg and Müller Martini.

The acquisition of the bookletmaker division of Ernst Nagel GmbH heralds an important strategic step in Hohner's history and future development. Nagel has been a manufacturer of post-press equipment since 1920 and not only they are well known for their "Foldnak" product range within the traditional graphics industry but have also achieved a significant international market share in the digital post-press market.

For this reason the acquired product portfolio will complete the existing range of possibilities from Hohner Maschinenbau GmbH, enabling greater penetration into additional target markets. An ongoing development of Hohner stitching products has been focused in particular on the permanently growing digital finishing sector of the printing industry. The direction of production in today’s market means that printers need flexibility due to the influx of  small and diversified orders one day and longer runs the next. Hohner will not, however, proceed with the complete product range of  Ernst Nagel Bookletmakers. The plan will be to slightly reduce and adapt the original portfolio with regard to Hohner’s  desired market penetration and  existing business relationships.

Engineering, production and assembling will all be integrated within the headquarters of Hohner Maschinenbau GmbH GmbH in Tuttlingen with their 110 employees. This important factor guarantees continued German manufacturing precision - an essential detail to which Hohner pays much attention.

The first presentation of new Hohner Foldnak machines will take place at  Ipex 2014 from March, 24th - 29th in London. Hohner Maschinenbau GmbH is delighted to announce  this perfect complement to their range, enabling Hohner to offer the complete scope of stitching solutions to not only printers both large and small, but in both Litho and Digital sectors of the market. Hohner very much view this as the next step in their   story of success, epitomizing the saying "Hohner - perfection in postpress".