January 2003 is the projected date for the opening of Akzo Nobel Ink's new 22,000-sq-ft UV-manufacturing facility in Plymouth, MN. The fully automated, state-of-the-art plant will tie the manufacture of both water-based and UV-curable products more closely to Akzo Nobel's R&D Center for Technical Excellence.

Carol Stream, IL-based Novaflex Inc. and Robinette Machinery, Bristol, TN, joins forces to manufacture, install and service converting machinery formerly built by Preferred Systems Inc. The new line of Novaflex/PSI equipment will be manufactured in Bristol and includes coaters, laminators, inline coater/laminators, dryers, unwinds, rewinds and retrofit systems. Flexographic printing presses, both CI and stack, will also be built under the Novaflex brand name.

Flint Ink Corp., Ann Arbor, MI, and German ink manufacturer Gebrüder Schmidt GmbH complete their merger July 1. Flint Ink's European operations and Gebr. Schmidt are now combined to form Flint-Schmidt GmbH & Co. KG, one of the largest ink companies in Europe. Headquartered in Frankfurt/Main, the new organization employs a combined workforce of approximately 1,400 and has revenues of approximately US$455 million. As part of the agreement, Gebr. Schmidt's operations in Canada were acquired and will immediately become part of Flint Ink North America.