\Durst Group has announced that Vanguard Digital Printing Systems, a Lawrenceville, GA, USA-based company acquired last year, is establishing its European branch in Brixen, Italy.

With the formation of Vanguard Europe GmbH, Vanguard Digital Printing USA will now also offer its wide format portfolio in the European markets. Despite the acquisition by Durst Group, Vanguard remains an independent company under the leadership of founder and CEO David Cich.

The choice of the Brixen location, in a building adjacent to the Durst headquarters with more than 5,000 square meters of factory space, is intended to leverage technical and administrative synergies between the two companies. For customers, the close proximity offers the advantage that all current printing systems in Durst Group's overall portfolio can be seen and tested.

The official market launch of the Vanguard printing systems in Europe will take place in October at the Viscom 2021 trade show in Milan and FESPA 2021 in Amsterdam. In the Italian market, Durst Group AG's "Divisione Vendite Italia" will handle distribution and service, while in other countries distribution will be established and expanded over the coming months, depending on Vanguard's strategic decisions. For Poland, LFP Industrial Solutions has taken over the distribution.

"With the formation of the European branch, we are bringing the Vanguard printer portfolio, which has been extremely successful in the US, to the European markets and are opening up new customer segments," says Christoph Gamper, CEO and co-owner of Durst Group. "Despite the difficult pandemic period, this is a clear signal to the market for large format printing systems.”