Fujifilm has confirmed the closure of the it’s offset plate production line in Tilburg, The Netherlands.
The company says it is continually adapting its graphic communications business to ensure it can be sustained in a resilient and enduring way. This has required the company to find new ways of working to meet customer needs more effectively, and new ways of thinking about how it can continue to create value.
Fujifilm says that in the offset printing market, there has been a continuous decrease in the demand for its offset printing plates caused by the transition to other forms of communication, particularly digital media, and the diversification of printed output as a result of the growth in digital printing. This situation has been further compounded in Europe by raw material cost increases, the volatility of the energy market, and the impact of higher inflation.
As a result, Fujifilm has taken the difficult decision to close its remaining offset plate production line at the company’s Tilburg manufacturing facility. Production of plates currently made in Tilburg will be transferred to factories in Japan and China. After this transfer has taken place, the production of offset plates in Tilburg will stop, with the process anticipated to be complete in late 2023.
However, Fujifilm remains fully committed to keep supplying its best-in-class offset printing plates into the EMEA market and be a key driving force by increasing the adoption of its processless plates; the company says it will strive to serve EMEA customers in the best way under the new business set up and will continue to focus its efforts on ways it can contribute to the future of the offset printing market.
