Italian polywrapping and inserting equipment maker Sitma has signed a pre-DRUPA business cooperation deal with Müller Martini which will extend the offering to customers and allow rationalisation.

And unlike the one the Swiss mailroom and bindery systems developer signed last year with Rima, the Sitma agreement covers Australasia.

The company’s Roman Beeler says Müller Martini Australia will take over the agency on March 1, selling inline and offline inserting and film-wrapping systems except for enveloping and inline newspaper mailroom systems.

The Onyx inserting machine, Rubin film wrapper and Integro 160 are to be be discontinued, but the Integro 300 inserter will still be offered for Tempo E220, Supra and Corona high-performance lines. “Service and spare parts support will also be through Müller Martini Australia,” Beeler says.

A statement by Felix Stirnimann of Muller Martini corporate management and president of Sitma Machinery Aris Ballestrazzi says the cooperation extends the companies’ our range of flexible production systems equipped with intelligent automation: “Our customers will have a higher level of investment security and will thus be able to significantly optimize the use of their machines.”

Müller Martini is a family-owned business operating in seven business segments –digital solutions, size-variable web offset printing, press delivery systems, stitching, softcover and hardcover production and newspaper mailroom.

Sitma, which has its headquarters in Spilamberto, Northern Italy, has more than 8000 installations in print finishing of newspapers, magazines, books and direct mail.

Under the agreement with RIMA-System, Müller Martini sells RIMA equipment in worldwide markets except Australia and New Zealand, covered by Graph-Pak and Green Graphics.

Pictured: Lamberto Tassi (president of Sitma S.p.A.), Ballestrazzi, Stirnimann, and managing director of Müller Martini Marketing Alois Hochstrasser sign the agreement.