The party was attended by over 130 people, with managing director Ian Johns (pictured, left) saying he was “delighted by the turnout”.

“We have weathered many storms during our company’s history, and we are most fortunate during years of industry change and turbulence to have maintained our alignment with market expectations and experienced a reasonable level of stability throughout the company,” said Johns.

Johns also paid tribute to outgoing MD David Rands (pictured, right) in his address.

“David has played a vital role in the history of both DIC Australia and DIC New Zealand,” said Johns. “Throughout his time with DIC, David has always had an open door policy.  For many, David has been a mentor – and a strong contributor to the industry through activities with GAMAA.”

Originally established as Coates Brothers Australia in 1949, the company’s original buildings in Melbourne and Sydney are still in use today as ink-blending and manufacturing facilities.

Coates Brothers was acquired by French oil company Total in 1981, before being acquired by Sun Chemicals in 1999.

Coates changed its name to DIC Graphics Australia in 2005 and then to DIC Australia a year later, integrating DIC International and DIC Colorton, the company’s trading and sheetfed divisions respectively.

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