LAC Group Acquires Kodak's PRO-TEK Film Preservation Subsidiary to Expand Information Curation and Stewardship Services

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The integration of LAC Group, a leader in information and knowledge management, and PRO-TEK Vaults, a state-of-the-art film preservation and archival storage company, promises to expand the range of information stewardship services available to companies and institutions, ranging from law firms and financial service providers, to manufacturers and government agencies.

LAC Group expects to use and build the PRO-TEK brand for its physical asset storage and archival solution offering. PRO-TEK also offers value-added archival services such as film and still image digitization, inspection, metadata creation and critical archival managed services that complement LAC's current offerings.

Announced in late September, the acquisition from Kodak of substantially all assets of its PRO-TEK subsidiary not only positions LAC Group to expand its services into the entertainment industry. The deal also provides new services to current and prospective customers in the markets traditionally served by LAC Group. Kodak and LAC Group anticipate the transaction will close before the end of October, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions. 

"By adding PRO-TEK to the LAC family, we address our corporate and institutional clients' expanding needs for film, video and still-image content preservation," said Deborah Schwarz, LAC's Chief Executive Officer.  "The importance of these services extends well beyond the entertainment industry, as the need for accessing and preserving visual media continues to grow in nearly every sector of our economy and society.  Our investment in PRO-TEK -- in addition to LAC's other physical storage solutions -- will enable better support for the whole value chain of information curation and preservation."

"Contrary to popular belief, the world's information resources haven't all migrated to 'the cloud'," Schwarz noted. "Organizations still maintain large archives of original documents -- contained in a variety of media -- that require management and preservation. Our acquisition of PRO-TEK helps ensure that LAC Group will continue providing leadership in information life-cycle stewardship."

Founded in 1986 as Library Associates, Inc., LAC Group serves a variety of markets including government agencies, law firms, university libraries and Fortune 500 companies. The company also manages a large archive of entertainment, broadcast, media and news libraries on both the east and west coasts, which positions LAC Group to extend the PRO-TEK brand and service offering into adjacent markets and territories.  

A leader in film-preservation and curation 
PRO-TEK, based in Burbank, Calif., manages one of the world's most extensive film-storage vaults, and is a leader in archival storage, film inspection and repair, and library services for high-value moving image and still photography content produced by the entertainment industry. Its work has included such varied assignments as restoring the iconic film, "The Godfather," to preserving historical Olympic Games footage for the International Olympic Committee.

PRO-TEK's vaults are considered the safest in the world when it comes to protecting moving image assets from fire and/or water damage.  Each vault has been specially constructed using 5-inch thick polyurethane foam sheathed on both sides with 26-gauge steel in order to maintain ANSI IT9.11's critical temperature and humidity specifications for the long term keeping of film. The environment is carefully monitored and maintained by specialized software. Temperature and humidity are strictly controlled at 45 degrees F +/- 5 degrees and 25% RH +/- 5%. 

"PRO-TEK is more than a well-recognized brand," Schwarz said. "It's a group of highly qualified professionals executing best-in-class preservation strategies and processes. The combination of PRO-TEK and LAC Group is great news for current and future customers of both organizations."

ABOUT LAC 
LAC Group has been helping its clients enact best practices and solve library, archival and curation challenges since 1986. From information sciences staffing, to metadata creation, to consulting, spend management and physical media storage, LAC has a complete suite of solutions designed to help maximize the utility of real-time and archival information. A certified woman-owned business, LAC continues to be the trusted choice of major studios, broadcasters, government agencies, Fortune 500 companies and universities seeking to manage the ever-increasing challenges of information and knowledge management.

Media Contacts:
John Fox, LAC Group, +1 323-852-1083, Email

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SOURCE LAC Group