From 1 September, the Japanese-headquartered manufacturer will be increasing the price of offset printing plates by up to 10%, with the actual increase being passed on to printers dependent on the local market situation. 

In a statement, Fujifilm said that the last 12 months had seen an increase of more than 20% in the euro-based cost of raw aluminium, the primary material for its plates, and that while it had been working tirelessly to improve internal efficiencies to try and absorb the impact, the process improvements had not been sufficient to avoid the action.

Fujifilm Europe senior vice president Takashi Yanagawa said: "Our customers have come to expect products of the very highest quality from Fujifilm, with service and support to match, so our focus is to safeguard our ability to provide that very high level of service.  These price increases are a necessary step to help us achieve that.” 

Fujifilm is not the only manufacturer feeling the effect of increased raw materials costs. In its Q2 results announcement earlier this month, Kodak put a decline in sales in its Print Systems Division down to “increased pricing pressure and the higher costs of aluminium”, while in Agfa’s half-year results released earlier this week it cited “overall competitive pressure in offset plates”.