Sales in 2008 fell 11 per cent to A$3.5bn and the company booked 21 per cent fewer orders than in the previous year, order intake declined to €1.3bn compared with €1.7bn in 2007. The company has started the current fiscal year with an order backlog of €701m compared with €1bn the year before.

Gerd Finkbeiner, chairman of the executive board of manroland says, “2008 was a difficult year for manroland and the entire industry. However, the crucial challenges are yet to come. The package of measures we implemented in January 2009 to safeguard our future as well as our marketing campaign will make a big contribution to us coming out of the crisis stronger than before.”

The package of measures includes cutting 625 jobs from its 8650-strong workforce by mid 2010. In addition, the company’s Mainhausen factory will be closed and the presses assembled there will be integrated into the main sheetfed press factory in Offenbach.

In Australia 2009 will see manroland part ways with long time distriibutor and one time sister company MAN Ferrostaal and establish its own direct sales and service business here, in line with its strategy in the US, Japan, UK and much of Euriope.

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