In a deal due to be finalised over the next few weeks, Heidelberg is set to further cement its long-standing relationship with post-press manufacturer Polar Group by acquiring Polar Mohr’s intellectual property, patents and brand rights.
Polar Group employs just under 250 at its Hofheim site
Heidelberg is already responsible for sales and service of Polar Mohr products in many major markets worldwide, with the manufacturers having a partnership that dates back to the 1950s. Under the new model, Heidelberg will have exclusive worldwide sales, service and marketing rights for Polar’s post-press products, giving the company direct access to packaging markets in the growth regions of Asia, South America and the Middle East.
Heidelberg CEO Jürgen Otto says: “This acquisition underscores our credentials as a full-range supplier for our customers in the packaging and label industry, including service, and gives us exclusivity in a growing market.”
“As a systems integrator, we cover the entire value chain of a packaging print shop – on a fully integrated and networked basis – to ensure production is highly productive. Polar Mohr systems play a key role in this context.”
As well as the cutting systems that are Polar’s best-known products, the firm also makes pile turners, jogging systems, and post-press systems for the label industry.
This includes the LabelSystem DC-12 Rapid, an automated system for unmanned production of bundled die-cut and cut labels. Mohr also has a range of nearline solutions targeted at the digital market and cutting on demand, sold via a dealer network, which Heidelberg will now sell through its own distribution network.
The Polar Group of companies has been owned by SOL Capital Management since February 2023, when SOL acquired Polar out of bankruptcy protection, after the business was hit by supply chain delays for critical components in 2022. Dr Paul Niederkofler, managing partner at SOL Capital Management, said the acquisition by Heidelberg is ‘the next logical step’ in consolidating the relationship, adding: “This transaction leaves Polar Mohr to focus entirely on its core competences as a developer and manufacturer.”
Polar Group employs just under 250 at its Hofheim site. It also has a Chinese manufacturing plant in Shanghai, making cutting machines and other equipment specifically for the Chinese and neighbouring markets. These sites will now partner with Heidelberg on the future development, production and assembly of Polar Mohr systems.
