Heidelberg acquires Belgian software specialist Cerm

Heidelberg has acquired Belgian software specialist Cerm. The company, headquartered in Oostkamp, is a developer of management information systems (MIS) for commercial and label printing and employs 26 staff. Effective immediately, Heidelberg plans to launch and sell Cerm's existing portfolio worldwide and integrate it into the Prinect production workflow. 

‘By acquiring Cerm, a well-known software specialist in western Europe, Heidelberg is expanding its portfolio of management information systems. We aim to present a fully integrated MIS solution with central data management in combination with our Prinect print shop workflow at drupa 2012 and start the worldwide roll-out step by step,’ said Marcel Kiessling. ‘Cerm is an excellent addition to our existing solutions thanks to the strengths of the company’s products and the customer segments it serves.’

Tom Musschoot, former owner and new managing director of Cerm, said: ‘We’ll continue to serve all our existing customers in all our markets. Additionally, as part of Heidelberg, we will be able to extend our business to a truly global level by making use of Heidelberg’s worldwide presence and international sales channels.’ 

Heidelberg plans to integrate the Cerm products step-by-step into the Prinect print shop workflow. The aim is to launch a fully integrated management and production workflow for controlling all commercial and production processes in a print shop, irrespective of the business model and size of the company. The new development will allow customers who initially opt for Cerm technology to switch to a comprehensive integration product at a later date. 

So far, Heidelberg has successfully connected around 50 third-party MIS to the Prinect print shop workflow. At last year's Ipex trade show, the company also established an MIS partner program with four leading suppliers, including Cerm. The aim is to enable users to boost their productivity by further improving interfaces between third-party MIS systems and the Prinect print shop workflow that have already been implemented successfully in customer projects. This program will continue to be an essential part of the company’s strategy. 

‘Heidelberg’s worldwide presence including Gallus will create a unique sales channel for our very specialized narrow web solution,’ said Musschoot. ‘We are already serving our first US customers, and will now be able to reduce the time-to-market considerably.’ 

Cerm’s existing partnerships will remain in place. 

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