Tally Genicom has applied to the Ulm Local Court for the opening of insolvency proceedings. Both the European holding company and the German sales and service company are affected. It is not bad business in Germany that is to blame, but the US parent company, which has filed for protection from creditors under Chapter 11.
According to CEO Dan Adragna, "the economic recession in the USA and the global downturn" are the reasons for the printer manufacturer's crisis, for which rescue is only in sight in its American home country. Printronix is to buy the US assets as the so-called "lead bidder", while the European companies will now have to file for insolvency one after the other.
According to press reports, Tally's high pension obligations, particularly in Germany, are the main reason why Printronix does not want to take over the European shares. According to these reports, Tally Genicom is profitable in Germany. However, because the US parent company is said to have stopped supplying goods as a result of the Printronix deal, the 70 jobs in Ulm are in acute danger.
In fact, no deliveries are currently arriving from the USA, the provisional insolvency administrator Michael Wahl confirmed to IT-BUSINESS. Tally Genicom already stopped deliveries to customers in Germany a few days ago. At the same time, however, Wahl aims to restore delivery capability as quickly as possible. Initially, an inventory of the stock is necessary, but the first printers are to be delivered again from Monday. "We have full stocks" and "we have orders", says Wahl. These are now to be processed one by one.
US supplier sought
However, it is still unclear what will happen when the warehouses are empty. The US parent company is still the distribution partner for the deliveries. It can take up to 45 days before Printronix or other interested parties have even submitted a bid for the US assets. This means that the German branch does not yet even know from whom it will order its goods in future.
Wahl cannot yet say what a possible solution for warranties for Tally Genicom printers that have already been sold will look like. The only thing that is certain is that the provisional insolvency administrator has set himself the goal of continuing the German branch "in some form".
History of Tally Genicom
In 2003, the Ulm-based printer manufacturer Tally passed into American hands through the merger with Genicom. Since then, the company has operated under the Tally Genicom brand and offers line, dot matrix and thermal printers in addition to laser printers.
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