Samir Patkar, president, Heidelberg India, significantly boosted the morale of students by stating that the print industry awaits fresh and innovative minds like theirs. “It is important to be future-ready with continuous skills-upgrade, to remain relevant in an evolving industry and capitalise on opportunities,” he said.
The event kicked off with the welcome note by Dr B Kumar, head of the printing technology department, performing brief introductions of speakers.
Ashokan Krishnamoorthy, general manager for Prinect and CTP shared information on how print establishments can get a maximum run for their money with a smart press on the shopfloor vs traditional OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) of just 25-35%; Lalitkumar Lamba, product manager, sheetfed solutions, shared his prowess on Heidelberg’s ‘Push to Stop’ technology, and the engineering behind it; Prabaharan Annamalaichami, DGM, post-press solutions, delivered an in-depth presentation on principles, drive mechanisms, automation and safety provisions deployed in cutting and folding machines to enhance productivity; Narendra Kulkarni, regional product manager – Gallus Asia, explained about the diverse technologies in flexo process and how inline printing presses deploying major printing processes can also convert in a single line; Upendra Rajadnya, territory manager - lifecycle operations, highlighted the role of Industry 4.0 in remote equipment servicing and predictive monitoring to enhance equipment effectiveness; Shankar Srinivaasan, head, human resources, provided pointers on confidence building and interview-handling.
A final year student speaking on the benefit of the webinar, said, “It was a complete package for any final year student. Discussions on present and upcoming technologies, academics-related topics, and life-skills helped tremendously. We look forward to more such sessions.”
According to a second-year student, this was the best thing to have happened during this lockdown. “Printing Industry 4.0 is exciting. Industry insights and technology updates were mind-blowing.”
A post-event evaluation saw the students give the webinar a nine-point rating on a scale of 10. “We are encouraged by the feedback, and plan to conduct more such knowledge-sharing sessions to other educational institutions as well,” said Kulkarni of Heidelberg India, who also coordinated the webinar with Anna University’s printing faculty JP Nirmala.