Under new CEO Stanley Freimuth, Presstek Inc. reeled off more red ink in the first quarter, though narrowing its losses to $1.2 million, a slight improvement from a year ago thanks in part to recent layoffs.
Greenwich-based Presstek sells digital offset presses. Sales totaled $27 million in the first quarter, down from $31.9 million in the first quarter of 2011 when it lost $1.5 million.
Freimuth replaced former CEO Jeff Jacobson, who left Presstek in February to take a job leading Norwalk-based Xerox Corp.”™s graphics communications division.
“We are still in the early stages of the recovery as spending remained cautious in the first quarter; however, the number and quality of opportunities in our pipeline has definitely strengthened,” Freimuth said, in a prepared statement. “We believe (the 75DI) press, due to its unique operating advantages, is an ideal solution for the shorter run lengths and increased versioning which are becoming more prevalent particularly in the folding carton sector of the packaging industry.”
Both Presstek and Xerox had a presence at the Drupa printing convention earlier this month in Germany, with Jacobson on hand representing Xerox.
“This is an industry where the uptick tends to be a little slow, because people don’t want to be pioneers and this is a very difficult economy to be a pioneer in,” Jacobson said at the show.
At Drupa, Presstek showcased its new 75DI digital offset press after winning an order from an unidentified packaging printer in North America.
