The acquisition, first announced in August, was approved by German regulators on 7 September.

Under the terms of the agreement Sun Chemical will take on all products, inventory and technology of Flint Group’s publication gravure ink business based in Frankfurt, Germany.

Sun Chemical chief marketing officer and board member Felipe Mellado said: “Now that the acquisition is complete, we are working with Flint Group to deliver a smooth and seamless transition of operations, so that customers remain fully supported with our high levels of quality and customer service.”

Sun Chemical does not intend to take on any of Flint Group's Frankfurt-based staff, although Mellado told PrintWeek that the company would assess the need, once it had taken full control of the business, with potential for a maximum of one or two technical people to be transferred to the new owners.

The company said the acquisition reflected its continued support of the gravure sector and all its publication businesses.

Meanwhile, Flint Group’s divestment of the gravure ink business is in line with its strategy to focus on its core web offset operations. In June the global Luxembourg-headquartered consumables and printing equipment manufacturer completed its acquisition of Siegwerk Druckfarben's Heatset and Newsink product line business. 

This was followed in July by the announcement of its acquisition of US-based American Inks and Coatings as it looks to benefit from growth in the packaging and converting markets. 

Sun Chemical is owned by Japan-headquartered DIC group and produces printing inks, coatings and supplies, pigments, polymers, liquid compounds, solid compounds and application materials. The group has annual sales of more than $7.5bn (£5.7bn) and over 20,000 employees worldwide.