5 February 2008
ARTES GRAFICAS NEKAR JOINS COPAPHARM EUROPE
Leading Spanish pharmaceutical packaging specialist Artes Graficas Nekar SA has joined Europe-wide pharma packaging and service alliance Copapharm Europe SCRL.
Nekar has been acquired by Madrid-based investment group GED and EBN through their investment vehicle Cardboard Printing Holdings which also purchased current Copapharm Europe shareholder Icesa . Following the acquistions and merger Nekar and Icesa will retain their existing trading names, but will develop their businesses strategically as a joint company. Nekar with Icesa will significantly increase Copapharm Europe’s strength in Spain, both companies having substantial market share in Spain in Copapharm Europe’s core pharmaceutical and healthcare printing packaging supply sector. The other Copapharm Europe member in Spain is Pans based in Barcelona.
Icesa was established in 1965 in Madrid, and Nekar was established in 1967. Each has the capacity to produce more than 500 million carton units per year. Both produce packaging for high added value markets including pharmaceutical and healthcare, cosmetic, perfumery, personal care and specific market niches in the food industry. Copapharm Europe estimates that the combined pharmaceutical market share of the two Madrid based companies Spain is almost 15 per cent and all the Spanish Copapharm Europe companies will be able to increase their capabilities and overall production capacity as a result of this merger and acquisition.
The acquisition will bring other benefits to customers, including assurance of supply and response capacity, as speed of response combined with high quality, secure production is increasingly demanded in the pharmaceutical industry.
Copapharm Europe’s 10 shareholder companies are Faller (Germany), Packetis (formerly Packart and Rotanotice in France), Palladio and Zannini (Italy), Goldprint (Belgium), Storey Evans (Great Britain) and Icesa, Nekar, Pans and Cartonplex (Spain). They have a total of 20 manufacturing sites across Europe, in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Serbia Montenegro, Spain, the UK and Ireland.
For further information please contact Sylvia Wieloch on 0049 6732 936 352 or email swieloch@copapharm.com. The Copapharm Europe website is at www.copapharm.com.
ENDS
For further media information please contact Bridget Summers, Footprint, PO Box 4, Thorpe Park, Leeds LS15 8WX, UK. Tel: +44 (0)113 251 5697. Fax: +44 (0)113 251 5351. E-mail: bridget@fim.org.uk