Chairman Guido Van der Schueren ringing the bell to open trading on the Euronext exchange in Brussels
Hybrid Software celebrates its change of name and corporate identity by ringing the bell to open trading at the Euronext Stock Exchange in Brussels. the company changed its name from Global Graphics following shareholder approval on 13 October 2021.
The new name underlines the Group’s position as a software company providing innovative technology for industrial print manufacturing processes at a time when the industry is accelerating towards mass customization, smart factories, and Industry 4.0. The Group’s solutions are hybrid because they meet the needs of analog and digital production processes and integrate both software and printhead drive electronics.
Rebranding Hybrid Software for better growth
The Group’s new strapline’ enterprise software for industrial print manufacturing’ represents all the solutions available from Hybrid Software Group’s global operating companies – Global Graphics Software, Hybrid Software, Meteor Inkjet, and Xitron. The individual branding of these operating companies is unchanged.
Speaking at the Bell ceremony, Chairman Guido Van der Schueren said, “For many years, the success of Hybrid Software has been built on a simple formula. Our future depends on advanced automation as embodied by Industry 4.0, multiplied by extreme customer care. We partner with our customers for the long term and act upon their input. I believe these concepts equally apply to the broader Hybrid Software Group and look forward to continuing to expand our support for all areas of industrial print manufacturing.”
Chief executive officer Mike Rottenborn added, “Our customers have long viewed Global Graphics as a collection of great companies – Global Graphics Software, Hybrid Software, Meteor Inkjet, and Xitron. But as an integrated group, we offer technology and products that go beyond what’s available from any individual company. It’s important that we communicate the proper brand message at the group level to our customers and investors. Rebranding as Hybrid Software Group brings this group strategy into focus and lays the foundations for the company’s continued growth.”
2023 promises an interesting ride for print in India
Indian Printer and Publisher founded in 1979 is the oldest B2B trade publication in the multi-platform and
multi-channel IPPGroup. While the print and packaging industries have been resilient in the past 33 months since the pandemic lockdown of 25 March 2020, the commercial printing and newspaper industries have yet to recover their pre-Covid trajectory.
The fragmented commercial printing industry faces substantial challenges as does the newspaper industry.
While digital short-run printing and the signage industry seem to be recovering a bit faster, ultimately
their growth will also be moderated by the progress of the overall economy. On the other hand book
printing exports are doing well but they too face several supply-chain and logistics challenges.
The price of publication papers including newsprint has been high in the past year while availability is diminished by several mills shutting down their publication paper and newsprint machines in the past four years. Indian paper mills are also exporting many types of paper and have raised prices for Indian printers. To some extent, this has helped in the recovery of the digital printing industry with its on-demand short-run and low-wastage paradigm.
Ultimately digital print and other digital channels will help print grow in a country where we are still far behind in our paper and print consumption and where digital is a leapfrog technology that will only increase the demand for print in the foreseeable future. For instance, there is no alternative to a rise in textbook consumption but this segment will only reach normality in the next financial year beginning on 1 April 2023.
Thus while the new normal is a moving target and many commercial printers look to diversification, we believe that our target audiences may shift and change. Like them, we will also have to adapt with agility to keep up with their business and technical information needs.
Our 2023 media kit is ready, and it is the right time to take stock and reconnect with your potential markets and customers. Print is the glue for the growth of liberal education, new industry, and an emerging economy. We seek your participation in what promises to be an interesting ride.
