wifag//polytype is a technology specialist for printing, coating and converting with headquarters in Fribourg, Switzerland. It has now strengthened its expertise in research and development. Effective February 1, 2014, the former Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ilford Imaging Switzerland GmbH in Marly (Swiss Canton of Fribourg), Lars Sommerhäuser, and ten chemists, laboratory technicians and process engineers switched from Ilford to the wifag//polytype Group. That means wifag//polytype now also has extensive expertise for developing ink-jet inks and functional layers.

The photo paper manufacturer Ilford Imaging went bankrupt last year. In hiring the core team from research and development at Ilford, Jörgen Karlsson, CEO of Polytype Converting AG and WIFAG Maschinenfabrik AG, has taken yet another step in transforming the wifag//polytype Group. Today this Swiss corporate group stands for a holistic portfolio, far more than any other system supplier in printing, coating and converting. Plant construction, conventional printing and coating, automation and work flow, software solutions and digital printing are activities that complement each other perfectly. Now ink formulation and the development of functional layers are being added to the list. With this lineup, wifag//polytype stands out from all other competitors in its markets.

Besides being an attractive partner within its previous lines of business, wifag//polytype is now opening up entirely new segments outside of publishing and packaging. Lars Sommerhäuser has a doctorate in mechanical engineering and said the expertise of the former Ilford team ranged from functional foils for medicine and agriculture to coated substrates for battery and RFID chip production. With its extensive capabilities in coating technology and in conventional and digital printing, the wifag//polytype Group is now in a position to carry out even complex projects for customers with its own expertise and to provide complete innovative solutions.

The new team of chemists, lab technicians and process engineers headed up by Lars Sommerhäuser is expected to form another competence center within the wifag//polytype Group. This model has already been highly successful at wifag//polytype with the Digital Competence Center (DCC) run by Roger Ineichen and the Automation Competence Center (ACC) run by Rolf Mani. DCC and ACC also make their expertise available to outside companies that are developing custom printing, coating and automation solutions.