MORTSEL | Belgium – November 2024 – Agfa has announced a plan to adjust the cost base of its traditional film activities to the reality in the market. The company has the intention to thoroughly reorganize all aspects of the film-related activities, with the goal of achieving savings of €50 million euro by the end of 2027.

On November 14th, the intention to reorganize the film-related business was presented to the social partners in Belgium at an Extraordinary Works Council meeting.

Redundancy Consultation with Works Council

If the intended plan would be executed, this would impact up to 530 employees in Belgium. Blue-collar employees, white-collar employees as well as management positions would be affected. Its implementation would run over a three-year period. Agfa intends to avoid as many forced redundancies as possible by using the natural outflow of staff and also by encouraging mutations and re-employment.

Pascal Juéry, CEO of the Agfa-Gevaert Group says: “While we are convinced that the proposed measures are necessary for the future of our company, we are also very aware that this message might cause anxiety and uncertainty among our employees. We will do our utmost to maintain a constructive social dialogue with the social partners involved and keep the period of uncertainty as short as possible.”

Commentary by Andy McCourt

Agfa was one of the ‘Great Five’ in photo-chemical films during its heyday – Agfa, Kodak, Fujifilm, Konishiroku (Konica) and Ilford. All had graphic arts films plus photographic and radiographic (X-Ray) sensitised films. Agfa’s consumer photo business was sold in 2004 with the establishment of Agfa Photo – which still continues with both film and digital cameras. Private equity company Aurelius, through ECO3 took on Agfa’s plate and prepress business in 2022, enabling Agfa corporate to focus mainly on inkjet and digital, sparked by its acquisition of Gandi Innovations in 2010 and later, in 2022, the UK’s Inca Digital.

Agfa was established in Germany in 1867, as a manufacturer of colour dyes. It prospered, was acquired by chemical giant IG Farben in 1925, acquired by Bayer in 1952 following the post-war breaking-up of IG Farben by the Allies, and merged with L. Gevaert in 1964, making Agfa-Gevaert. Mortsel, Belgium became its main film manufacturing base.

Today, most Agfa graphic arts film is made in Belgium but converted and packed in China as ‘Agfa Alliance.’ ECO3 re-badges and sells Agfa graphic arts film. Agfa’s X-Ray film is made in China. As with all photo-chemical sensitized material markets, X-Ray film is being superceded by Computer-aided Radiography but some sectors in the healthcare market still prefer film X-Rays over monitor-viewing, or print-outs.

The announced re-alignment of Agfa’s film businesses is an inevitable step in the ‘long tail’ decline in photo-sensitive material use. While digital methods can already do most of what film/contact exposing does, many users in Screen process, Letterpress and Flexography still prefer film as the image master. Agfa is storming ahead with inkjet technologies and this is where the margins and profits are in today’s imaging world – especially with increased use of inkjet inks.

Just as most ‘Films’ screened in Cinemas are now projected from streamed digital files or on hard drives, not celluloid, we are seeing the erosion of about 150 years of photo-chemical film. As with other twilight technologies, there are revivalists, niche applications, diehard enthusiasts, artists and hobbyist who cling to the old ways. Witness the vinyl revival in music recording.

But, the ‘reality’ Agfa refers to in its announcement can not be ignored commercially. Agfa has stuck with film for longer than most and is looking for ways to save €50 million by 2027. Inkjet and other digital will be the winners – and maybe a few specialists who continue to support on-going demand for photosensitized films.

www.agfa.com

Note: Andy is a good friend of World Imaging News and has four decades experience in the graphic arts, as a technology supplier, researcher, trade publisher and writer, with www.wideformatonline.com located in Brighton, Australia.