Prograde Acquires Business Forms Unlimited
Cincinnati-based distributorship Prograde Inc. signed a definitive agreement last month to acquire Business Forms Unlimited Inc., also a Cincinnati distributorship. Business Forms Unlimited employees now are part of Prograde. Other terms weren't disclosed.
The acquisition combines Prograde's e-procurement and commercial printing expertise and Business Forms Unlimited's industry knowledge and strong client base in the financial, insurance and manufacturing industries. "Business Forms Unlimited has done a fantastic job of building a solid and successful operation," said Dan Schroer, Prograde's president and CEO. "Prograde and Business Forms Unlimited share a strong customer focus, and the combination of the companies' strengths will help deliver a more comprehensive product offering to our clients."
Prograde has additional offices in Indianapolis; Fort Wayne, Ind.; Lima, Ohio; and Blue Ash, Ohio.
Formax Technologies Acquires Division of Tab Products
Formax Technologies Inc., a division of Dover, N.H.-based equipment provider Formax®, acquired Tab Products' FHE Division in Turlock, Calif.
FHE designs, engineers and manufactures paper-processing equipment for companies nationwide, including Formax. The acquisition provides Formax with an equity stake in its main product supplier. Formax specializes in AutoSeal® folders/sealers for pressure sensitive self-mailers, folder/ inserters, document signers, bursters and decollators.
Revenues Dip at Standard Register
Dayton, Ohio-based manufacturer Standard Register (SR) generated third-quarter revenue of $252.7 million, down 9.2 percent from the same period last year. The figure includes acquisitions of $9.1 million. For the first nine months of 2002, SR's consolidated revenues decreased 15.4 percent to $770.3 million. The company said the decline in 2002 primarily was volume-driven, the result of eliminating approximately $250 million (annualized) of low-margin business. The firm's third-quarter gross margin rose slightly to 39.1 percent.
SR's ongoing efforts to improve productivity and execution included the closing of 25 plants and print centers last year. The company relocated some production capacity, and reduced overall capacity by approximately 30 percent. SR also closed or consolidated 29 warehouses to spark future profitability.
IBSA Gets State Grant Approval
International Business Solutions Alliance (IBSA), a group of document industry companies headquartered in Bowling Green, Ky., received preliminary approval for a grant through the Kentucky Job Development Act (KJDA). The grant would provide up to $996,000 in tax incentives for hiring and development of the organization. IBSA plans to hire 17 people within the next two years and add 75 new jobs in the Bowling Green area during the next few years.
To be eligible for KJDA benefits, IBSA must be a service- or technology-related firm or a non-manufacturing, non-retail "white collar" company; provide more than 75 percent of its services to people located outside the state; and hire Kentucky residents for at least 15 full-time positions at its site in Bowling Green.
IBSA was launched last April to give distributors a new business model to help them reduce costs, compete against the majors and grow.
FMDS Breaks Sales Record
In November 2002, Forms Management Data Systems Inc. (FMDS), a management software and e-commerce supplier in Reno, Nev., achieved record monthly sales of its Quantum 2000 and Quantum Net systems. FMDS' sales increased approximately 9 percent over its previous monthly record, set in March 2002, and were up 46 percent compared with November 2001 sales.
Ross Barker, president of FMDS and DMIA's 1989-90 president, said the company "felt a real lift in customer interest following the DMIA Print Solutions Conference & Expo show," held Oct. 15-17 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Ill. He also attributes FMDS' sales spike to the industry's increasing reliance on e-commerce.
