The deal, which will see Kyocera take over 100% ownership of Nixka, is effective from 1 April. 

Xerox acquired Aubagne, France-based Impika in 2013 and it became the manufacturer’s global inkjet innovation centre shortly afterwards. 

However, at the end of 2019 Xerox shut the facility down and focused inkjet development in the US. 

Subsequently, in 2020 a band of ex-Impika employees including founder Paul Morgavi set up the Nixka business. 

Nixka is focused on developing sustainable integrated inkjet solutions for a number of markets including packaging, mailing and addressing, commercial printing, publishing, industrial printing such as textiles and ceramics, and also specialist material jetting. 

The firm uses Kyocera heads and describes itself as “a team of experts offering global customers the most relevant production inkjet solutions”.

In a statement, Kyocera said: “In acquiring Nixka, Kyocera will expand its business into new markets, including print engines, systems and integrated services.”

It said it aimed to maximise the benefits and synergies by combining the expertise of both companies, “and by promoting the widespread use of inkjet printing technologies by developing new products and applications, contributing to the printing industry as well as the further growth and development of the Kyocera Group”.

Nixka employs 13 including CEO Morgavi, and will be known as Kyocera Nixka in future. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. 

Kyocera’s printhead know-how dates back to the 1950s. 

Four years ago the manufacturer launched the first of its own-brand production inkjet digital presses, the sheetfed TASKalfa Pro 15000c.

At the time of the Impika closure Kyocera and EFI were both tipped as possible purchasers of the business.