Agfa and Blue Rhine have recently signed an agreement for distribution of Agfa’s Synaps synthetic paper in the United Arab Emirates. The agreement covers the distribution of Synaps OM for offset printing and Synaps XM for xerographic or dry toner printing and also includes the pressure sensitive Synaps AP and Synaps AR, respectively with permanent and removable adhesion strength.

“After a market study with digital Xerography printers to show them the advantages of using Agfa’s Synaps on their existing machines, we concluded that SYNAPS would be a great addition to our product line,” says Joseph Anand, vice-president sales and product management at Blue Rhine. “The Middle East markets till now did not have the availability of a high quality synthetic product for xerography and offset. At Blue Rhine we are proud to fill this gap in the market by distributing Synaps and look forward to successful partnership with Agfa for years to come as we grow this business in our region.”

According to Agfa, Synaps consists of a polyester base with double side coating for either ink or toner printing; it is weatherproof and tear resistant.

Established in 1996 and headquartered in Dubai, Blue Rhine is the distributor for speciality media for large format printing and digital displays in the GCC region, and employs 150 people.

Ivo Thys, global sales Manager Synaps at Agfa, commented: “We are very pleased and excited to welcome Blue Rhine as our distribution partner for countries in the Gulf Region. With a portfolio of high quality speciality media products and a strong customer oriented service organization, Blue Rhine has earned a strong reputation built on more than 20 years of experience in the market. We are confident that Blue Rhine and Synaps will be a winning team.”

Agfa is headquartered in Mortsel, Belgium, having offices in 40 countries and has agents in another 100 countries around the globe. The Agfa-Gevaert Group achieved a turnover of 2,620 million euros in 2014.