MAN Group board chairman Hkan Samuelsson said: "We are working consistently on the weak points that still exist in the group...these include in particular the sheetfed printing press sector."

The 192m (281m) of the NI deal booked in the quarter contributed 22% of the increased orders for the whole MAN Group, alongside a 1bn order from the MoD for trucks. Orders for the group where up 48% to 3.68bn. Sales were up a more modest 11% to 2.16bn, pre-tax profits rose 46% to 55.4m.

MAN Roland repeated last year's loss of 10.9m on sales, which fell 2% to 204m. Order intake rose 76% to 457m, with most of the rise due to the NI deal.

Web sales rose 7% to 102m and profits rose 233% to 6.83m.
Sheetfed's lack of sales and price pressure led to sales falling 8% to 102m. Losses deepened by 36.7% to 17.8m. Moves to stem the losses include a collective wage agreement signed at its Mainhausen site to reduce wage costs and outsourcing sheet metal work to an external firm, which has agreed to implement "cost-reducing remuneration models". This is on top of the firm's previously announced plans to shut its Geisenheim site (pictured) and transfer production to Offenbach.

The firm was confident that operating profit for the year will exceed 2004's 2m, but it said that lasting turnaround in sheetfed depended on orders over the next few months and its implementation of its restructuring plans.

MAN Roland chief executive Gerd Finkbeiner said: "We are determined to steer the sheetfed presses into safer waters. And we are sticking to our forecast of achieving breakeven in the sheetfed sector by the end of the year, with overall earnings reaching a middling double-digit million figure."

Story by Barney Cox