OCA Group announced today that it had acquired Melbourne firm Big Print Typo from prominent businessman Graham Smorgon and that the business had been renamed BPO Print. The deal is believed to have occurred in March.

The deal includes a Xerox iGen 150, the latest model in the iGen family of colour digital production presses, which hits 150 pages per minute.

OCA Group is based in Melbourne and provides print management, warehousing and logistics services through its BPO Intelligence division. Its clients include Monash University, University of Technology Sydney, University of Queensland and educational providers in the US, UK and New Zealand, according to its website.

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Director Mark Pettitt said in a statement that the acquisition reflected the group's confidence in print.

"People and businesses are consuming less printed materials like brochures and newspapers, often because these blanket forms of communication are not tailored to their individual preferences. It is little wonder then that traditional print companies are going out of business," said Pettitt.

"We see things a bit differently, because we view the purpose of printing in a different light. We believe developing printed or digital materials can only be effective if they get into the right people’s hands, with the right message at the right time.

"Printing’s future must, therefore, be tailored and individualised for each recipient. That’s why we think there is a tremendous opportunity for us and our clients."

Pettitt could not be reached for comment for details of the acquisition or OCA Group's plans for the former Big Print Typo.

A well-placed source told ProPrint that before the acquisition, OCA Group had outsourced all its educational work to overseas suppliers and local firms including Blue Star, Geon and Vega Press. The source said some of that work would now probably be brought in-house, although the big runs would be printed overseas.

Graham Smorgon, who was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia earlier this year, is thought to have bought Big Print Typo in 1981.

It is believed to have had 20 staff and aging machinery that included Shinohara presses.  

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