Heidelberg Druck's US Label Order Lands as Gallus Gets a New Interim Chief

Gallus secures a second Labelmaster 440 order from NextGen Label Group as Heidelberg pushes packaging partnerships and software adoption.

Heidelberg Druckmaschinen AG has booked fresh business in North America, with its Swiss subsidiary Gallus securing a second Labelmaster 440 order from US print service provider NextGen Label Group. The eight-colour press, ordered on 30 September, is slated for installation at the Cohoes site in early 2027, where it will take over from an older Gallus EM 280.

The replacement is part of NextGen's push to modernise its existing production, upgrading its self-adhesive label capacity to current technical standards. For Gallus and its parent, the order underscores continued demand in North America, a region that carries real weight for specialised narrow-web printing systems.

Leadership Reshuffle at Gallus

Alongside the machine order, the subsidiary's management is being reworked. Michael Bsirske will take over as interim CEO of Gallus on 1 November. Dario Urbinati moves to the supervisory board and is set to assume its chairmanship from 1 January 2027. Uwe Boerner took charge of global sales on 1 October, while Thomas Schweizer is leaving the company.

Packaging Partnerships and Software Wins

Beyond labels, Heidelberg is leaning harder into partnerships for industrial packaging printing. Roughly a week ago — and dated 30 September in company communications — the group agreed a cooperation with the pfenning Group. The joint effort is aimed at end-to-end solutions for pharmaceutical packaging production, tying printing, packaging and logistics more tightly together. No concrete first projects or financial terms were disclosed.

Progress is also being reported on the software front. In Turkey, packaging and label printer Sade Ofset has adopted Prinect Production as its central workflow platform. An installed Speedmaster CX 104 replaced two older presses at the Istanbul-based operation, part of a broader modernisation drive to integrate prepress and pressroom processes more closely. The company plans to link the setup into its overarching management system.

Digital printing and services are expanding in parallel. Gallus Group announced on 22 September that it will take part in the LOUPE India trade fair. The high-margin service and maintenance business is gaining importance for industrial equipment makers in tougher economic phases, as recurring service revenue steadies cash flow and reduces reliance on cyclical machine orders.

Integration and Hybrid Production on Show

The integration of manroland sheetfed's service business, reported around two weeks ago, is proceeding according to plan, with the key steps to be completed within 18 months. At the in-house SHIFT trade fair on 7 October, demonstrations of hybrid production are on the agenda.

Market Still Wary

These strategic moves in labels and packaging are meeting a subdued industry mood. Customers in the printing sector remain cautious about larger investment decisions, which has weighed on the machinery maker's share price in recent months. The stock closed yesterday at 1.41 euros, bringing its year-to-date decline to 30%. At that valuation, Heidelberg Druckmaschinen carries a market capitalisation of 434.57 million euros.

The muted sentiment reflects market scepticism about the ongoing structural transformation. How quickly the new partnerships and software offerings translate into measurably stronger profitability will be decisive for a sustained recovery in the shares.