Seeking to become the leader in all types of flexible-packaging printing and slitting/rewinding, Spain's Comexi Group S.A. announced an alliance April 19 with ACOM (Advanced Converting Machinery) of Piacenza, Italy. Managers from both suppliers were on hand for an official press conference held at CMM Intl. 2005. The cooperation brings to the Comexi Group the new ACOM RG Platinum line of gravure printing presses. Strategic parts are manufactured in ACOM's own facilities.

Davis-Standard LLC is the new joint venture for polymer processing equipment formed April 29 by Middlebury, CT-based Crompton Corp. and private-equity firm Hamilton Robinson LLC, Stamford, CT. D-S LLC, headquartered in Pawcatuck, CT, combines Crompton's Davis-Standard business and Hamilton Robinson's Black Clawson Converting Machinery Co., Fulton, NY. The combined businesses have approximate annual revenues of $220 million with Crompton as the majority owner.

Germany's Jagenberg AG announced a new joint operating structure April 19, whereby it is linking Kampf GmbH & Co. KG Maschinenfabrik with WT Wickeltechnik GmbH and Pagendarm BTT GmbH under one, unified management. The new Jagenberg Gruppe includes Kampf's slitting and winding equipment and finishing technology, WT's range of slitting and winding equipment for paper, film and foil processing and Pagendarm's coating machinery for pressure-sensitive, water- and solvent-based adhesives.

Ipswich, UK-based Universal Converting Equipment, a leading manufacturer of slitter/rewinders, hot-melt adhesive coating and laminating machines, and ancillary equipment to the global converting industry, names Margot Machinery, Inc. (Scotia, New York), as its exclusive representative in North America. Margot, a used equipment dealer, has been involved in the converting industry for more than 11 years. It sells a complete line of used converting equipment in the US and Canada directly, and has a sales representative in Mexico.

To meet current and future needs of carton converters, Roseland, NJ-based Bobst Group USA, Inc., and Steuer GmbH, Leinfelden-Echterdingen, Germany, have partnered to create a broad range of machines available for foiling. With three foiling processes (round-round, round-flat and flat-flat), Bobst and Steuer offer complementary equipment for each production need (foiling very fine details or large blocks and producing short, medium or long runs, etc.)

Irwindale, CA-based web-process measurement systems provider NDC Infrared Engineering expands its operations in Asia by opening a new office in India. Pravin Kulkarni is named country manager for NDC India, based in Pune, near Bombay. Administrative support will be located in New Delhi.