Bermuda Press (Holdings) Ltd. ? the parent company of yesterday said an offer to buy commercial printing company Engravers Ltd. has been accepted and approved by that company's board of directors.

The proposed sale, which was revealed in a press statement yesterday, is still subject to approval by shareholders of the privately-held company. Terms were not disclosed.

It is understood that employees of both companies were told of developments at staff meetings yesterday afternoon.

Although redundancies may result from the merger of the two companies, both parties said they hoped to avoid job losses and were "committed to minimising any impact to the greatest extent possible".

If redundancies do prove necessary, the statement said employees made redundant would receive a full redundancy payment and the opportunity to receive assistance to find new employment.

Engravers Ltd. is understood to employ 28 staff.

In the statement yesterday, the presidents of both companies, Richard Pearman of Engravers and Roger Davidson of Bermuda Press, revealed that the sale will be recommended to Engravers' investors.

The Engravers' board said it had carefully considered the condition of the printing industry locally, the future of its staff, clients and shareholders and determined that the proposed sale and merger was in the best interest of stakeholders.

The statement added that clients of both companies stood to "benefit from the merged operations, from economies of scale and the unique combined services of both companies".

The parties acknowledged that a driving force behind the merger of two local printing operation was the severe foreign competition that local competitors have been forced to contend with in the last few years which they said has made it increasingly more difficult for the local printing industry to remain viable.

To that end, both Bermuda Press and Engravers said the sale would "ensure continuing support for the Island's economy and a better range of services and prices for clients supporting Bermuda's printing industry."

It is understood that Engravers, as well as its subsidiary company Chameleon, will retain their names and continue to carry on business as before, after the sale.

A Bermuda Press spokesman said further information on the sale would be made public by both parties at a later date.