The owners of the 700 Shinohara presses in Australia can breathe easily after the Japanese company was bought by Chinese B3 press manufacturer Hans Gronhi.
Under the terms of the deal, Hans Gronhi has acquired all machinery, inventory and patent technology from Shinohara, which filed for bankruptcy protection at the beginning of the year.
Hans Gronhi will integrate Shinohara’s B1, B2 and B3 presses into its own range and transfer manufacturing capabilities from Japan to its own facility in Yingkou, China.
Currie Group managing director Bernie Robinson told ProPrint that his company had been the local agent for Shinohara since 1977 and supported more than 700 Shinohara units in Australia.
He said the Hans Gronhi takeover was good news for end users, who had been worried since learning of Shinohara financial difficulties.
“Knowing that we can get access to the spare parts is going to be a relief to the end users.”
He said Currie already had a relationship with Hans Gronhi as it had been speaking to the Chinese company about its product range since last November.
Shinohara’s first presence under its new ownership will be at next month’s Drupa when Hans Gronhi will showcase the first ‘S’ series Shinohara presses on its 400sqm stand.
Comprising the S-79-IVH B2+ four-colour press and the S-66-IVP SRA2 four-colour perfector, the machines will complement Hans Gronhi’s five-colour GH525 B3 presses at the show.
Shinohara endured a difficult start to 2012 after filing for the Civil Rehabilitation Act (CRA), the Japanese bankruptcy protection scheme similar to the US Chapter 11 in January.
Speaking at the time, Shinohara president Mikio Shinohara said the company was “deeply” sorry for the inconvenience and anxiety it caused customers and would continue to operate as normal while it was working through the bankruptcy protection.
This article originally appeared at printweek.com
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