Dr. Gerold Linzbach

Mr. Dr. Gerold Linzbach, Chairman of the Management Board, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AGspoke on the subject of "Adapting a traditional product to the future".

Heidelberger Druckmaschinen Aktiengesellschaft (Heidelberg) has been an important supplier and partner for the global printing industry for many decades. The company develops, produces and sells technologies for advertising and packaging printing. With its own sales offices or via partners, it reaches customers in around 170 countries worldwide. In the 2012/2013 reporting year, Group sales amounted to around EUR 2.7 billion. Around 60 percent of sales are generated in the new machine business; in addition to printing presses for sheetfed offset, digital and flexo printing, this also includes machines for prepress and postpress as well as our Prinect software for integrating all processes in a print shop. External contract manufacturing is also gaining in importance. Heidelberg generates around 40 percent of its sales with services, consumables and spare parts. The company also supports its customers with financing concepts for investment projects. Heidelberg cooperates with strong partners in all business areas.

Dr. Gerold Linzbach worked as head of a research group at the DECHEMA Institute Frankfurt in 1985 following his doctorate in chemical engineering at the University of Dortmund. From 1988, he worked as a project manager mainly in the process industry at McKinsey Inc. in Germany. In 1991, Dr. Linzbach became Head of Corporate Planning at Hoechst AG before taking over the position of Global CEO of a business unit in the fibers division of Hoechst AG (Trevira GmbH) in 1995. In 1999 he became global CEO and President of the Celanese Acetate Group (Technical Fibers) based in the USA and in 2003 Dr. Linzbach took over the position of President Polyester Textile Division INVISTA (Koch Ind. Group company) in Wichita, USA. From 2005, he was Chairman of the Executive Board of Symrise AG, Holzminden. In 2009, he became Chairman of the Executive Board and Managing Director of D+S Europe, Hamburg. Dr. Gerold Linzbach has been Chairman of the Management Board of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG since September 2012.

Status: Beginning of 2014