Page 26 - PWM2026_FEBRUARY EBOOK

BETTER BUSINESS

UK

engineering

There’s a running joke among Printweek staff that
since this Best of British manufacturers series started
in late 2018, roughly a quarter of our UK-owned
subjects have subsequently been taken over by for-
eign buyers within a couple of years, by Simon Eccles

A folders, binders, multi-finishers, book-
re we due finders’ for sheetfed SRA3 and B2 formats:
fees, we wonder?
It’s heartening that
let makers, collators, cutting tables,
digital embellishment, guillotines and
all 46 of our previous
subjects are still in busi-
trimmers. It is also the UK distributor
for CP Bourg finishers and Bagel lami-
ness though, and of the
foreign acquisitions, all have retained nators and foilers.
their UK manufacturing bases except
for Kolbus Autobox, whose facilities New managers join
were moved to Germany last year. Duplo’s acquisition was for 100%
Anyway, this issue’s subject of BGM. The top senior managers are
jumped the gun a bit. We’ve had the Hideo Tanaka (president of Duplo),
label finishing machinery manufac- Bruno Picquet (CEO of Duplo
turer Bar Graphic Machinery on our International), Daljit Basi (financial
to-do list for a while now, but this director of Duplo International),
summer the 33-year-old Bradford Judy Thomson (HR director of Duplo
company was acquired by Duplo International) and Peter Jolly (CIO Jolly. “We wanted labels industry people continuing to run the BGM busi-
Corporation, headquartered in of Duplo International). Adam James ness – it is very different to commercial print as an industry – which is why
Japan. The deal completed on 31 July. as managing director is in charge of we chose Adam.
However, BGM is retaining its cur- the day-to-day running of BGM.
rent Bradford factory and its 15 Jolly has been a long-standing “Duplo’s value to BGM will be supporting its growth. Duplo has over 60
British staff. Peter Jolly, Duplo’s UK Duplo manager who left as MD in years worldwide experience of developing machines for the market it
chief information officer who was 2017 and returned to the company as serves and selling them through distribution networks across the globe.
appointed interim MD at BGM at the CIO last year after almost six years at More locally, Duplo International in the UK, has a fantastic finance, HR,
beginning of August, says the nar- HP as country manager for Indigo/ IT, purchasing, logistics, warehousing, marketing, administrational, build-
row-web finishing product line will PWP. His experience with labels at ing maintenance team. These can all be utilised by BGM to give structure,
remain distinct from Duplo’s HP has been valuable for working support and accelerate their growth.”
sheetfed commercial finishing lines. with BGM, he says. BGM’s founders, Bill and Annemarie Rhodes, sold the business because
So it still counts as an example of a James started in mid-September they wanted to retire. However, both are still involved, with Bill staying as
British manufacturer, we reckon. (taking over as the company exhib- technical consultant for two years and Annemarie as business consultant
UK readers will be most familiar ited at LabelExpo in Barcelona). He for six months after the acquisition. “We have longstanding staff members,
with Duplo International, which is has had a career in labels since 2000 as well as family members that will continue to work at BGM,” says Jolly.
the UK and EMEA sales and distribu- and joined BGM from CS Labels in
tion arm of Duplo Corp: it’s based in Wolverhampton, where he was oper- What does BGM make?
Addlestone, Surrey, where it has ations director and latterly co-MD. Bar Graphic Machinery specialises in the design and manufacture of
offices and a large showroom. It sells He runs BGM day-to-day and reports narrow web finishing kit, including label slitter rewinders, inspection slit-
into more than 60 countries and has to the Duplo directors. ter rewinders, rotary die cutting rewinders, digital label converting sys-
more than 100 local distributors. “Adam reported into the Asteria tems and flexible packaging finishing equipment, for the label and
The Duplo range concentrates on Group as Co-MD of CS Labels, so he packaging sectors.
commercial finishing systems, mainly is used to working in this way,” says Its mission statement says: “Producing high-quality machines to cus-

24 PrintWeek MENA February 2026 www.printweekmena.com