Under the new partnership, Friedheim will distribute Tecnau’s complete product portfolio, which covers finishing kit for sheetfed and continuous-feed inkjet presses including unwinders, rewinders, cutters and stackers, dynamic perforations and punching, as well as kit for high-speed book production.
The collaboration between Tecnau and Friedheim follows a prior successful partnership between the two companies that lasted between 1997 and 2011.
Following the acquisition of Lasermax Roll Systems from Tecnau in 2011, the distributorship transitioned to Intelligent Finishing Systems (IFS), which supported further growth in the region.
From January through June 2025, IFS will continue to represent Tecnau to ensure a seamless transition of sales and service activities to Friedheim while guaranteeing uninterrupted service and product availability for customers.
Beginning in July 2025, IFS will focus exclusively on supplying Tecnau equipment when connected with Horizon systems, such as stitching and folding kit, and Smyth systems, such as sewers, for which IFS remains the exclusive distributor in the region.
“We are excited to partner with Friedheim as we embark on this new phase of growth in the UK and Ireland,” said Stefano De Marco, CEO of Tecnau.
“This collaboration will enhance our market presence and provide even greater value to our customers through Friedheim’s strong industry expertise.”
IFS managing director Eric Keane also commented: “With Tecnau’s realignment of representation, we are delighted to continue our long partnership into the future by concentrating on the growing Tecnau integration opportunities with Horizon and Smyth.”
Darren Crane, managing director of Friedheim, added: “We are extremely excited about this new partnership with Tecnau, this marks a significant milestone in our 140-year history.
“Friedheim is the leading go-to partner for high-speed digital finishing customers thanks to the deeply rooted experience and trustable service in this field.
“With the Tecnau solutions we will continue to support customers and printer partners’ growth across all digital print applications, both for continuous-feed and sheet-feed.”
Friedheim International has for many years been the UK distributor for Hunkeler, which largely offers kit for the same markets and applications as Tecnau, but in December 2023 Muller Martini acquired Hunkeler.
In a statement released today (12 December), Muller Martini managing director for Western Europe Bernd Volken said: “In the months since the acquisition preparations have been ongoing, with changes being implemented at different levels within the organization of the two companies.
“In countries where Muller Martini had an owned sales and service organization, agreements have been reached with Hunkeler distributors to ensure an effective change towards the new setup.
“Specifically for the UK and Irish markets, Muller Martini Ltd will take over responsibility for the sale of new Hunkeler equipment from Friedheim International starting 5 January 2025. In addition, from 5 January 2025, you can come to us where you require spare parts or for your servicing needs.”
