Pompey, France 05/03/2007 07:45:00 AM
GLOBAL GRAPHICS SA (Euronext: GLOG) has announced that Jim Freidah, the company’s chief operating officer since July 1999, has been appointed chief executive officer. He takes over from Johan Volckaerts who will remain as chairman of the company’s board of directors following his reappointment as a director at the company’s annual general meeting on 27 April 2007.
Mr. Freidah first joined Global Graphics in September 1998 as director of business development and was appointed a director of the company in June 2000. During his early period as chief operating officer he steered the company through a series of strategic acquisitions to strengthen the company’s technology portfolio, most notably in the areas of digital print and PDF document technologies that would be key to its future.
Mr. Freidah has been a driving force in developing the company’s strategy to expand the business beyond its origins in the graphic arts market into the growth markets of digital print and electronic document technology. This included the opening in 2003 and subsequent expansion of an office in Tokyo, Japan, a strategic location from which the company has strengthened its market position with digital printer manufacturers in Asia, and, in March 2006, as part of an internal development strategy, establishing a subsidiary company in Pune, India to accelerate the company’s quality assurance and development capacity.
Jim Freidah, said, “ The company has reached a very exciting point in its evolution. Over the last five years it has been transformed from being primarily a provider of technology to the graphic arts market to being a major player in three market sectors. Beyond graphic arts, we have gained a strong market presence and are currently active in all segments of the digital print market. Furthermore, we have successfully positioned ourselves as a provider of next generation electronic document conversion and manipulation technology to a broad group of software application developers and software service providers. This three-pronged strategy has given us a strong foundation for growth and will continue to drive the company during the coming years.”
Johan Volckaerts, Global Graphics’ chairman commented, “There has been a smooth handover that we have been planning for some time to ensure continuity to business operations. Jim’s drive and enthusiasm combined with his all round skills mark him out as an exceptional business leader and I am sure that shareholders will join me in congratulating him on this appointment.”
Editor's Notes
About Global Graphics
Global Graphics (http://www.globalgraphics.com) is a leading developer of technology for open document and print solutions. It provides sophisticated high performance software components to the graphic arts/commercial print and digital print markets and for electronic document applications. The Company supplies its RIPs, document conversion and manipulation technology, workflow and color solutions mostly to a customer base of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), system integrators, software developers and resellers. These partners include the world's leading vendors of digital pre-press systems, large-format color printers, color proofing systems, digital copiers and printers for the corporate and SOHO (Small Office / Home Office) markets, and a wide variety of market leading software applications
Contacts
CFO Alain Pronost/Global Graphics
+33 3 83 49 45 08
Jill Taylor/Global Graphics
+44 1954 283074
Jill.Taylor@globalgraphics.com