Future of Newspaper Production: Smarter, Leaner, Greener
Thomas Schultz-Homberg is CEO of Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger Medien. The trained journalist has been working with digital business models for 25 years. Together with his team, he has developed Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger Medien into an innovation leader in the newspaper industry. Artificial intelligence and automation processes are integrated into everyday working life and are widely used in editorial and publishing. Before his time in Cologne, Thomas Schultz-Homberg was Chief Digital Officer at Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
Sally Pirri brings extensive publishing experience to the role of Managing Director, Print Production at The Globe and Mail. Since joining The Globe and Mail, Pirri has held various operational roles in both Circulation and Advertising before moving into production management for newspapers and magazines. In 2002, Pirri was promoted to Director, Production, responsible for all Globe and Mail printed products…
Dick Ranzijn is the CEO and owner of Rodi Groep, a Dutch media company founded by his father in 1978. The company encompasses a publishing house, printing facility, and distribution network, operating throughout the Netherlands. At 39 years old, Dick has been leading the company for several years .
Under his leadership, Rodi Groep has embraced technological advancements in the printing industry. Notably, Rodi Druek, the group’s printing division, has implemented automation solutions to enhance production efficiency and reduce errors.
Jennifer Ellinger is Managing Director of VRM Druck, a Rüsselsheim-based printing company.
As a trained media designer and graduate engineer in printing and media technology, Jennifer Ellinger has gained extensive professional and management experience in the printing industry over the past 20 years. This includes managing newspaper production, sales service, and production control at the Frankfurter Societäts-Druckerei in Mörfelden-Walldorf, formerly the printing site of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. In this role, she supported other well-known German newspaper brands as customers of the printing company. Most recently, Ms. Ellinger served as Technical Operations Manager at MDV GmbH & Co. KG in Giessen, where she was overall responsible for production and maintenance. In her various roles, she was also responsible for the implementation of various major projects in the areas of technology, organization, and process optimization.
After two professional apprenticeships, Michael studied physics at the University of Regensburg. There he was awarded a doctorate for his work in the field of biophysics and spent the first part of his career at Fogra doing industrial research. In the course of this work, he founded the predecessor organization of the International Color Consortium (ICC), of which he was the first technical secretary.
Daniel Schöningh is CEO and co-shareholder of the Ippen Media Group, which includes Münchner Merkur, tz, Westfälischer Anzeiger, Frankfurter Rundschau, and Frankfurter Neue Presse, as well as numerous web portals. Following the 75th shareholders’ meeting of dpa in June 2024, Daniel Schöningh (Ippen Media Group, Munich) was elected as the new chairman of the supervisory board of Germany’s largest news agency.
Fleming is a seasoned executive in the newspaper and printing industry, with a strong focus on production, automation and operational efficiency. He is currently production director and Chief Operating Officer at Erritsø Tryk, part of JP/Politikens Hus. His career spans more than two decades and includes senior leadership roles at Dansk AvisTryk, where he served as IT manager, COO and, eventually, CEO. He is also a board member of NOPA, the Nordic Printing Association.
Dr Manfred Heim is the Managing Director of R&D, Technology and Operations at Papierfabrik Louisenthal GmbH and is responsible for innovation within the G&D banknote division. He studied physics, completing his PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry with structural analysis of micro- and nanostructures. In 1998, he joined Louisenthal R&D as a project manager. He was a founding member of the foil production facility, which opened in 2003. From 2008 until 2012, he led the industrialisation project for a significant new banknote series. In 2012, he took responsibility for the technology department as deputy plant manager, and in 2015 he took responsibility for all R&D and technology departments in optical features. In 2025, he became a board member.
Andreas studied Printing and Media Technology at Munich University of Applied Sciences, Germany. After graduation, he joined Frankfurter Societäts-Druckerei GmbH 1997 as a trainee and later promoted as an Associate in 1999. In 2001, Andreas moved to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung GmbH and performed various management tasks within the production department. Andreas currently serves as the Chair of the World Printers Forum.
Gundula Ullah has been leading the Procurement function at FUNKE Mediengruppe, one of Germany’s largest media companies, since April 2019. She is steadily driving forward the transformation of the entire purchasing organization, which covers the needs of all business units (newspaper, magazines, digital, radio). Gundula currently serves as the Vice-Chair of the World Printers Forum.
Details coming soon.
Dario De Cian graduated in 1990 with a degree in Electronic Engineering from Politecnico di Milano. From 1991 to 1996, he worked as a Project Manager for a company within the Mannesmann group, a supplier of control systems for power and desalination plants.
In 1997, he entered the newspaper industry as Sales Manager for the Italian market at Müller Martini. Since September 2000, he has been with Centro Stampa Quotidiani, initially serving as Product Development Manager. In September 2001, while maintaining his commercial responsibilities, he was also appointed Technical Director. Since July 2009, he has been serving as General Manager of the company.
Lars Ole Eichelberg has led the strategic purchasing of all direct materials at FUNKE since July 2020, with a focus on paper and printing services. With 24 years of national and international experience in the illustration printing and media industry, he combines deep expertise in both sales and procurement—skills that are particularly valuable when negotiating in markets dominated by monopolies and oligopolies.
Marcel Binder, Sales Director has been with Ferag AG Switzerland for more than 30 years.
Marcel holds an EMBA in General Management as has a strong technical background with comprehensive knowledge in the printing industry over his many years of service.
His journey with Ferag lead him through a variety of roles, including site management, system design engineering, project management and sales.
Robert Scheuffelhut has been with Presse-Druck- und Verlags GmbH in Augsburg for 32 years and currently serves as Deputy Technical Director. He is a state-certified Electrical Engineer specializing in Data Processing and Power Engineering, as well as a certified Technical Business Administrator (IHK). Over the course of his career at Presse-Druck- und Verlags GmbH in Augsburg, he has held a range of positions, including responsibility for the maintenance and servicing of the entire printing facility, leadership roles in postpress operations, and ultimately Technical Management.
Christian Frick, Sales Manager System Graphic, has worked at FERAG Deutschland GmbH for 25 years. Christian is a state-certified printing technician and therefore has extensive expertise in the graphic arts industry. During his apprenticeship as a printer and his many years of working on state-of-the-art web offset presses, he gained practical experience. Before joining FERAG Deutschland GmbH, he had already achieved success in the printing industry as a sales representative. Christian is an authorized signatory at FERAG Deutschland GmbH and is responsible for the Southern Germany sales region.
Alexander Karl has been Head of Sales Aftermarket Europe at manroland Goss web systems GmbH since January 2025. In this role, he leads the European aftermarket sales team and drives the strategic development of markets and customers.
Previously, he held senior sales positions at Intertek, Busch Vacuum Solutions, and TÜV SÜD, gaining extensive experience in business and customer development, project management, and sales strategy execution.
Sylvain Lepinay is Vice President Engineered Solutions at manroland Goss web systems in Augsburg.
Starting in the Newspaper presses engineering in 2004 and since 2019, he has been leading the development of innovative and sustainable solutions to enhance printing presses considering hardware discontinuation, manufacturing constraints, and timing of project execution.
Vincent Peyrègne is Chief Executive Officer of WAN-IFRA from 2012 to 2026. He managed the association’s activities and its various divisions in Paris, Frankfurt, and regional branches in Singapore, Chennai and Latin America, developing its member services (publications, research, training, consulting) and professional events, which are attended each year by 10,000 media professionals from more than 120 countries. During his tenure, the association significantly consolidated its membership base, culminating in the integration of FIPP, the International Federation of the Periodical Press, in 2025. Before joining WAN-IFRA, he was head of development at Edipresse in French-speaking Switzerland (now Tamedia), where he was Head of Development, responsible for editorial marketing and product development, before joining the French Ministry of Culture and Communication, where he coordinated the États généraux de la presse écrite (National Conference on the Print Media) until 2012 as Senior Counsellor in the Minister’s office. Familiar with the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, he founded the South-West Europe branch of Ifra in 1997, then in charge of French- and Spanish-speaking regions, which he headed for seven years. He began his career in the national and regional press in the 1990s in various commercial and advisory roles at Libération, Sud-Ouest and La Tribune. Vincent Peyrègne is a Commander of the French Order of Arts and Literature.
Ingi studied Newspaper Operations management at RIT in Rochester and later did an MBA in Edinburgh, Scotland. His contact with WAN-IFRA started in 1997 already when he was still a student measuring samples for the Color Quality Club. Ingi is a native of Iceland. He started his career as the ad-production director for Morgunbladid Newspaper in Iceland. In recent years he chaired the continuing education of graphic media employees in Iceland. In Ingi´s tenure at WAN-IFRA the new Printers Summits have been devoloped and established.
