In a statement, the US-headquartered company said that Goss International France had regrettably "become financially untenable and unsustainable" despite "Goss's significant historical support and investment" in the business.

The web offset press manufacturer, which also has manufacturing operations in the US and China (where its shareholder Shanghai Electric is based), said that its intention was to create an organisational structure based around regional parts, service and support centres and as part of this to create a "unified, pan-continental sales and service organization" in Europe.

Goss International Corporation and its subsidiaries outside France are not affected by the insolvency proceedings, the company confirmed, and will continue to operate as normal. "Strong support has been put in place for customer orders alredy in motion in France," Goss added.

Rick Nichols, president and chief executive of Goss International, said: "Today, customers tell us they need a focus on simple, easy to use and cost effective technology supported by world class aftermarket services. Goss continues to manufacture the highest quality print machinery, but I believe that where and how quickly customers can access service and support is now more important than where products are manufactured.

"We also recognize that our environment for doing business has fundamentally changed. The markets to drive our future growth and profitability are shifting. We have decades of offset printing expertise. That gives us a significant advantage not just in our core newspaper and commercial printing sectors, but in other industries like packaging and emerging printing industries as well. Together, these are the reasons why we are transforming as a company."

Goss also plans to continue the diversification of its product portfolio into neighbouring markets, such as packaging.

"Packaging is an attractive industry where Goss’ technology gives it a competitive advantage," continued Rick Nichols. "I'm pleased that we've already made inroads into this market with our Vpak products, but we will be expanding more aggressively in this sector as well as researching and entering other new markets where we hold a competitive advantage.

"This transformation of the company and refocus on growth is critical for the future of our business. Goss has been through a decade of change, but I am confident we are near the end of that period. We have had to take some very difficult decisions but these were absolutely necessary in light of the facts. Goss has a bright future ahead of it and I look forward to continuing to lead the company toward sustainable growth."