CDC Printers strengthens facility and processes to raise quality and productivity

14 Aug 2012 | Noel D'cunha | Comment Now

Every business wants to save time, money, and improve quality. For CDC Printers, one way to help meet these goals was by strengthening existing facility and practices.

"This meant updating existing equipment, inducting an entirely new technology to the set-up and making the process more efficient," says Manu Choudhury, director at CDC Printers.

CDC Printers has installed a raft of machinery in the last 12 months, which include a new Heidelberg SM 102 four-colour press; a Kodak Trendsetter 800 Quantum platesetter; a Horizon Cross folder, AFC 746 with round pile feeder; a Polar 78 cutting machine; and a Konica Minolta Bizhub C6000 digital printing press.

"According to Choudhury, with demand for quality jobs on the rise, printing had become a major bottleneck in the CDC facility. “The existing two machines were not sufficient to meet the growing demand and with a reputation of being a fastest delivery possible in Kolkata, we needed to expand in a big way,” he said."

The basic press operation have always been more or less the same but the machines have become more and more automated, thereby reducing turnaround times. "With CIP3/CIP4/JDF connectivity, the chances of a mismatch in colours have been reduced drastically. It gives the operators a good starting point."

A commercial printer, CDC is now venturing into book printing and hopes to cater to the growing book printing market in Eastern India. The company's new 45,000 sq/ft plant at Panchla, a site on the outskirts of Kolkata, where construction is in full-swing for housing an Orient coldset web offset plant (of two different cut offs), a perfect binding line from Wohlenberg and a Welbound Trident offline three-knife trimmer, is expected to be become functional in the next couple of months.

"Book printing has a big market in India, as school text books are being printed in huge volumes every year and the volumes are increasing. It was for this reason that we choose book printing instead of packaging," said Choudhury.

But packaging is an area which Choudhury does not want to discount. "It's an area that is projected to be a growing market and an opportunity for us in future," he concluded.

This News article appeared in the 7 September 2012, Vol V Issue 5 issue of PrintWeek India Magazine