Barcelona-based Iberica is currently owned by Italian group Cerutti. It marks another deal between the two companies as KBA also acquired Flexotecnica from Cerutti in 2013.

KBA president Claus Bolza-Schünemann said 70% of KBA’s presses were now being installed in the packaging market. “With this in mind, adding flatbed die-cutters to our portfolio for the same customer group makes perfect sense,” he said.

“We are confident that we will soon come to an agreement with the Cerutti Group given our longstanding solid company relationship.”

The press manufacturer expects to complete the deal by the end of June.

Dr Giancarlo Cerutti, chairman of Officine Meccaniche Cerutti described the sheetfed Iberica business as “no longer strategic” for Cerutti’s current product portfolio, which is focused on web-based packaging solutions.

Cerutti acquired Iberica in the 1990s.

Iberica employs around 60 staff at its factory in Barcelona. Its product range includes the entry-level Optima 106 and high-end I-Press 106 and 144 range of automatic platen presses, which run at speeds of between 7,500sph and 9,000sph.

KBA plans to take over 100% of the business and said that Iberica’s integration into KBA’s global sales and service network “would greatly improve Iberica’s growth prospects”.