Heidelberger and Mitsubishi signed partnership agreements Wednesday with Shenzhen-based China South International Industrial Materials City (CSIIMC).

CSIIMC, located in Pinghu, comprises five markets for textiles and clothing, leather and accessories, paper products, printing and packaging, electronic accessories, metals, chemicals and plastics and is so far the largest of its kind in China. With one year's construction, CSIIMC will begin operation Dec. 6.

With a market share of over 45 percent for sheet-fed printing, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany, is the world's leading solution provider for commercial and industrial customers in the print media industry.

Almen Tam, general manager of Heidelberger's Shenzhen subsidiary, said CSIIMC was not only a trade platform but also a trade fair "whose curtain will never fall."

"It can help showcase Heidelberger's latest machines and state-of-the-art technology," he said.

Mitsubishi Lithographic Press is an arm of Mitsubishi Group. Its Hong Kong branch head Seiji Utsunomiya said the company had rented more than 300 square meters of space in CSIIMC "for exhibition, maintenance support and training."

"Actually this will be my company's first venture in Shenzhen," he added.

About a dozen printing companies signed agreements on the same day to join CSIIMC. CSIIMC's printing market had good prospects, Zhang Xiangyu, president of Guangdong Printing Companies Association, said.

He noted that printing had become one of Guangdong Province's five mainstay industries, with production output value accounting for one third of that of China.

"With the province's more than 15,000 printing companies located nearby, CSIIMC, a one-stop service provider, will have promising prospects," he said.

Editor: Catherine