UK developer Global Graphics - known for digital inkjet software used by customers including HP, Canon and Durst – has completed its acquisition of HYBRID Software Group from Congra Software – after shareholders voted in favour of the deal earlier this month.
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HYBRID Software is a group of software development and marketing companies producing enterprise software for the graphic arts industry, with a focus on labels and packaging. It becomes the fourth subsidiary company in the Global Graphics group and sits alongside Global Graphics Software - developer of the Harlequin RIP - Meteor Inkjet and Xitron.
The acquisition, announced last month, roughly doubles the size of the Global Graphics group of companies in terms of headcount, expanding the global workforce to around 250 people. It adds several more operating locations to the group through HYBRID Software’s offices in Luxembourg, Belgium, Germany, Italy, France and the USA.
Global Graphics says it typically invests about one third of its revenues into R&D each financial year and has a strong software development team, which is now expanded to more than 75 engineers with the addition of HYBRID Software.
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"Tremendous opportunities": Global
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“This acquisition is a great fit strategically,” says Guido Van der Schueren, chairman of Global Graphics. “As the packaging industry continues its migration to digital printing, there are tremendous opportunities for Global Graphics’ hardware and software solutions, so bringing HYBRID Software into the group will help us grow our share in labels and packaging. Exciting times lie ahead as we launch new initiatives in response to customer demands, ranging from innovative new products to subscription-based licensing models.”
Global Graphics’ CEO Mike Rottenborn says: “Customers are asking for more functionality and we are well placed to offer a broader solution starting with a powerful new digital front end for the labels and packaging segment. Expect to see new product development for the industrial inkjet market too, which, as it evolves and matures, requires a new generation of software and hardware capabilities. We’ll be able to take HYBRID Software’s expertise in file preparation and enterprise production workflow gained in the labels and packaging segments and expand this out across all the industry segments we serve.”
HYBRID Software has been an integrator of the Harlequin RIP for many years inside their CLOUDFLOW workflow product and in recent times has been working at a technical level with Global Graphics Software on the Fundamentals digital front end. Michigan-based Xitron, also a long-standing customer for the Harlequin RIP, is active in the commercial printing industry providing pre-press and digital solutions to OEMs. Its Navigator DFE supports drive electronics from sister company Meteor Inkjet, a leading developer of printhead driver solutions for industrial inkjet systems.
Consideration for the acquisition of HYBRID Software was EUR 80 million which was satisfied in full by issuing 21,074,030 Global Graphics shares to Congra.
For the year ended 31 December 2020, it's estimated that HYBRID Software’s revenue will be around EUR 17 million and EBITDA will be around EUR 5.5 million (subject to audit).
