Top 20 print reads of 2014

1. Going green: Dainik Bhaskar, ABP Publication and Amar Ujala - 1,255 hits

The possibility of waste is a very real scenario in a newspaper production. There are so many different cogs to the wheel of newspaper printing, from newsprint to ink to colour registration to glues to plates to the machines themselves, that at every stage there occurs possibility of losses. To top it, there are the issues of the environment, from deforestation due to newsprint to dangers of pollution from hazardous chemicals used in inks. Within this complex scenario, what are the newspaper houses doing to reduce waste and do their bits for mother nature? Rahul Kumar asks the questions and three newspapers, Dainik Bhaskar, ABP Publication and Amar Ujala, answer.

2. A brief history of the Indian rupee - 1,222

The Indian Rupee is in the news. There are three reasons for this. One: The currency volatility which will see it touch $63. Two: The RBI ruling about withdrawing the pre-2005 currency notes and the panic it has caused. Three: Ajay Agarwal, CEO, Insight Communication and Print Solutions, making a presentation at the BMPA-Ricoh Print Summit 2014; and stating that almost all the Rupee notes are printed and produced on a Komori press.

3. Giants of the Indian packaging industry – I - 1,169 hits

The Indian packaging industry is estimated to be worth Rs 1,17,000-crore and India is the sixth biggest packaging market in the world. The top 22 packaging firms in India recorded a total combined revenue of Rs 30,536.60-crore. PrintWeek India looks at titans of the Indian packaging industry in this two part series.

4. Rise in paper prices, shrink the profits - 916 hits

With Indian paper mills feigning helplessness at the soaring paper prices, print firms across the country are contemplating ways to limit their shrinking bottomline, finds Anand Srinivasan.

5. Giants of the Indian packaging industry – II - 758 hits

The Indian packaging industry is estimated to be worth Rs 1,17,000-crore and India is the sixth biggest packaging market in the world. The top 22 packaging firms in India recorded a total combined revenue of Rs 30,536.60-crore. PrintWeek India looks at titans of the Indian packaging industry in this two part series.

6.  Ten Guy Gecht mantras to attain one-billion in 2016 - The Noel D'cunha Sunday Column - 609 hits

In a 90-minute session, Gecht, EFI's chief executive officer, sipped his triple shot coffee, and talked about notching a billion-dollar revenue by 2016. Plus he shared his firsthand experience with customers in various countries, deals, and the industry.

7.  Whales of the Indian pharmaceutical industry - 513 hits

The Indian pharmaceutical industry is accounted for Rs 84350 crore and is the third largest in the world in terms of volume. The top 10 drug manufacturers (by market value) account for 80 per cent of the industry’s market capitalisation, much higher than their revenue share of 58 per cent in 2013.

8.  Packaging in India: Ready for take-off - 481 hits

At the recently concluded Indpack conference N C Saha, director, Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP), said, “We are living in a packaging essential era. Packaging helps in distribution of food and other essentials to the user. Hence demand for better and innovative packaging is increasing and will continue to grow.”

9.  "Our dream to cross the Rs 1000-cr mark is realistic" - 475 hits

PrintWeek India visits the Parksons Packaging office at the Indiabulls One Centre in the heart of Mumbai. Siddharth Kejriwal, the newly designated managing director, shares his aspirations of achieving 50% growth and his future plans of scaling up and reaching out to customers in terms of efficiency and proximity.

10.  Print industry pays homage to P B Kulkarni - 471 hits

Prof Dr Padmakar Bhagwant Kulkarni, known as Dr Pa Bha Kulkarni, passed away on Friday 24 October 2014. PaBha was an iconic print personality, who boosted the cause of education in the print industry. Born and brought up in Pune; his career was studded with scholarships and PhDs and MScs from Germany and England.

11.  “Our newest plant in India has the best of technologies,” says Steve Kenny of H B Fuller - 445 hits

Ramu Ramanathan (RR) speaks to Steve Kenny (SK), senior vice president, EIMEA (Europe, India, Middle East, Africa), about the developments at H B Fuller plus future plans.

12.  Emboldened by Labelexpo:10 breathtaking highlights - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column - 426 hits

176 exhibitors smarten their act at the boutique show in Delhi. Machine demos and smart substrates, plus pleasing designs and rule-breaking applications indicate the Indian label industry is ready to make the transition from imitation to innovation.

13.  Time for a flexo revolution - The Noel D'cunha Sunday Column - 421 hits
 

One of the major economies of the world, India has been enjoying huge and regular FDI from diverse investors of all around the world for the last few decades, since 1991. However, the joint ventures (JVs) are the most popular and preferred forms of making investment in Indian industry, with printing industry, packaging and label a business sector, benefitting. 2013 witnessed mergers and acquisition deals like ITW and Wintek, Manipal Technologies and Utility Printpack, Paper Products (Huthamaki) and Webtech, Interlabels and Skanem Group.

The corrugated packaging industry in India is steadily growing at 10% per annum. Kirit Modi, who is president of Indian Corrugated Case Manufacturers Association (ICCMA) says, "The corrugated packaging industry would grow between 12‐15% p.a. in the next five years. The e‐commerce, automotive sector, export‐oriented units, fresh farm produce etc are the major user industries which would contribute maximum growth impetus."

15.  “Digital is good for journalism and for IE” - 410 hits

The Express Group founder Ramnath Goenka’s grandson Anant Goenka recently joined the newspaper group as director and head of new media, to revive the new media business. In this conversation with Rahul Kumar and Anand Srinivasan, he discusses the print journey so far and the group’s strategy ahead.

 

16.  What do 19% of award-winning brochures have in common? Cordenons - The Noel D'cunha Sunday Column - 384 hits

Hemant Randive, the general manager (production services) of FCB Ulka Advertising, says, "Printing has become an art and piece of science, from hit and miss." He adds, "Today, print will make money only if you create something that will 'wow' your client." His advice to print firms: create a niche market and become a super specialist.

 

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17.  Top 10 showstoppers at PrintPack 2015 - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column - 375 hits

The 2015 edition of the PrintPack, which will be hosted at the India Expo Centre in Greater Noida, will take place from 11-15 February. With 75 days to go, my hunch is, it will be 30% bigger than the 2013 event in terms of floor space and number of exhibitors.

18.  12 Commandments at the Mercedes-Benz plant - The Noel D'cunha Sunday Column - 368 hits

As in the movie, an enthusiastic band of 44 print CEOs (four travelled in a car) from BMPA set out on a bus ride on 7 August, 2014. The plot was: to witness the best practices at the Mercedes-Benz (MBIL) plant in Chakan (near Pune).

19.  Happy birthday, digital print: you are 21 years old - The Noel D'cunha Sunday Column - 357 hits

Jo Francis, contributing editor of PrintWeek says, "Twenty-one years ago, Indigo launched its E-Print 1000 with the sort of razzmatazz we’ve come expect from founder Benny Landa. And, in a more low-key corner of the show, Xeikon’s DCP-1 was shown under the Chromapress 32i banner by Agfa, one of the original investors in Xeikon."

That was then.

And today, the numbers for India: 3,894 colour digital presses (Xerox - 1,800, Konica Minolta - 1,500, HP – 134, Canon – 250, Kodak – 75, Ricoh - 100, MGI 33-35)

20.  Big interview: Amit Chopra of Punjab Kesari -  352 hits

Navodaya Times, the Hindi-language daily launched a year ago in Delhi may be a new player in the market, but Punjab Kesari, Jalandhar, the Rs 550-crore group behind it, is a leader in the field, with 1.2 million copies in circulation and with territories covering much of North India. This despite a split in 2005. Amit Chopra, joint managing director, and one of the owners, shares his experiences with Rahul Kumar of PrintWeek India.