Thuraiyur is the new destination for print

Located about six-kms from Thuraiyur in Perumalpalayam, the Forum has acquired 1.25-acres of land where construction of the facility is already underway.

A talk with R Tholkappian, one of the directors of Thuraiyur Print Forum:

Sai Deepthi (SD): What was the inspiration behind starting the forum?
R Tholkappian (RT): In 2019, there was an MSME awareness meeting, and a few of us from the printing industry attended it. That was our first step towards building this forum. The speech by Chandra Prabhu, the then assistant director of Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), was very inspiring and motivating for people like us. He showed us examples of similar forums started in Krishnagiri and explained how it is run very efficiently. After visiting the Krishnagiri Print Cluster, we decided to form one in Thuraiyur.

SD: Are you trying to replicate the Krishnagiri forum model?
RT: We are not exactly replicating it. We are building one that suits our specific business needs. We also needed external consultants, so we have reached out to industry leaders like the Karur-based Design Plus Plus and the Kochi-based ST Rediars Printers, and the Coimbatore-based Star Colour Park for advice on setting up this forum. They told us the future of printing lies in packaging. They advised us to establish a centre that caters to printing and packaging needs and guided us in choosing the right machinery.

SD: How many members are in the forum currently?
RT: Our forum is based out of Thuraiyur. Geographically, we are situated in the middle of five districts—Salem, Namakkal, Karur, Tiruchy, and Perambalur. Each of these is only about 30 km away and easily accessible by road. 20 of us started this initiative and committed to seeing it through. Currently, there are 70 investing members, and our services are open to all of them. There are also a few non-investing members, and others may join later.

The proposed factory which is set to be operational by September 2025

SD: 70 members is a massive number. Your project sounds quite ambitious. What machines will you be investing in?
RT: Our major focus will be on offset machines, a six-colour offset press capable of coating simultaneously. Currently, 90% of printers, including us, use technology that’s more than 20 years old. Now, we’re investing in advanced machines that are computerised and easy to operate. These machines offer quick turnaround times and allow for real-time corrections without stopping the machine, reducing dependence on highly skilled labour.

Due to a labour shortage, many small and micro-units struggle to find skilled workers for jobs like binding and finishing. We’re purchasing 30 machines for various small jobs—cutting and collating machines, binding machines, automatic glue binding machines, numbering machines, and variable data printing machines. This will be a boon for units struggling with finishing work.

We’re also investing in dry lamination machines for packaging. We’ll have the ability to laminate 40-inch boards easily, along with automatic die-punching and blanking machines. Our folder gluer machine will allow us to make various types of boxes and fulfill bulk orders quickly, up to one lakh boxes in a day. The final product enrichment process will also be fast. We’re also acquiring a rigid box machine to meet the rising demand in the packaging sector.

SD: Is there an operational head or a general manager for the unit as well?
RT: There will be five directors, Tholkappian, Sundarrajan, Selvakumar, Balamurugan, and Srinivasan from Thuraiyur, and we will select four additional directors on a rotational basis: one from the Tiruchy Printers Association, one from the Namakkal Printers Association, one from the director of Design Plus in Karur, and the director of Star Colour Park in Coimbatore. With their experience, they’ll guide us. We’ll need about 80 staff, and we plan to provide two months of training before the machines arrive. So whether from Thuraiyur or Tiruchy, it doesn’t matter.

SD: Do you think the location will ever be a constraint to you in the future since it is 30kms away from the nearest city?
RT: Many industries thrive in rural locations, and we believe our location will not hinder our success. The real driver of the forum’s success will be performance. Our success will majorly depend on the quality and turnaround time of our deliveries; everything else is secondary. In Thuraiyur alone, nearly INR six-crore worth of printing jobs go to Sivakasi, simply because we lack the required technology and labour. With this new unit, we will not only retain local jobs but also attract work from other towns. Our rigid box machine, for example, will enable us to deliver high-quality calendar finishes quickly.

SD: You have been working on this project for the last five years. What are some of the challenges that you faced, and how has the government helped you?
RT: While laying the groundwork for this centre, the general manager of the District Industries Centre (DIC) interacted with us and took us to the Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meet 2024. That visit helped us secure an MoU with the Tamil Nadu government, which greatly streamlined bureaucratic processes like approvals, preparing a techno-feasibility report, and getting a INR two-crore loan sanctioned by Indian Overseas Bank (IOB). DIC played a huge role—Ramalingam, the current general manager, personally introduced us to many key people and supported us through and through. Even we were surprised at how cooperative the government was.

SD: Why Thuraiyur? Because we usually see the printing and packaging units concentrated in places like Trichy and Sivakasi
RT: Sivakasi’s printing boom was driven by the firecracker industry, but today, only a handful of units offer quality. The rest are price-driven. However, consumers today demand quality, even for simple items like visiting cards or wedding invites. They expect UV finishes, lamination, embossing, and more at reasonable prices. In larger cities, land prices are inflated, making it impractical to set up such clusters. Many have already invested in units and aren’t motivated to form clusters. We had the need, so we initiated this project. Regardless of where the unit is located, consignments are dispatched via trucks.

SD: What are the timelines that you are operating at currently?
RT: Global tenders will be floated right after the project nears completion. We expect the building to be 90% complete in the next two months. After that, tenders will be floated, and a committee comprising both government officers and our members will be formed. We expect the first machines to arrive by August. Our major offset machine will take about nine months to arrive. However, the smaller machines will be delivered within two months, and we will be able to get them up and running days after delivery.

SD: Printing forum is understandable, but what made you expand into packaging?
RT: The director of Design Plus Plus in Karur is one of our stakeholders. He was the first to suggest incorporating packaging. He explained that printing jobs from five years ago no longer hold the same value, and that there’s a boom in small-scale industries in India, many of which require packaging. The government estimates a 20% growth in this sector. Printing remains evergreen, and our services can cater to a broad range of clients. During one of our core committee meetings, we all felt the same, especially with many food processing units emerging that currently rely on sticker labels due to a lack of viable packaging partners. We aim to support such businesses by fulfilling even small orders, including those as low as 100 units. Most bakeries today use generic, readymade boxes; we can elevate their packaging by printing their names. This applies to other production industries as well. We are open to orders from across states, be it Kerala or Karnataka, as long as the work comes through our forum members. We will prioritise their orders.

SD: That’s great to hear. We also read that the plant will be fully solar-powered. How did that decision come about?
RT: Our entire unit requires only 200–300 kilowatts. Since our operations mostly happen during the day, solar power will significantly cut costs. Our total consumption will be around 250 kW, so we are installing solar panels. Lower electricity costs will benefit our members. Plus, operating in a rural area means frequent power cuts, but with solar, production won’t be interrupted.

SD: Do you plan on having a training facility in the future?
RT: Yes, we have space for it. Within the industrial premises, we’ve allocated 4,000 sq. ft. for general body meetings and training. Many people want to learn design, which is currently outsourced. We’ve reached out to Adobe on behalf of our print cooperative — they’re on board because we want our members to use licensed software. Talks are still ongoing. We aim to train staff and members in designing to support marketing, as we won’t accept direct orders, only those that come through our members.

SD: How has the state government helped you so far?
RT: We got easy clearances and didn’t face any major hurdles. I believe projects like ours are being directly monitored by the Chief Secretary, which ensures quick resolution and prevents bottlenecks. The initiative’s mention in the Tamil Nadu Assembly is a reflection of the state’s commitment to enabling small businesses. When we point out flaws in the system, it’s only fair that we also appreciate it when things are done right. The Central and Tamil Nadu state government has been very supportive, and we are grateful for that. I deeply appreciate Sivagnanam, a retired development commissioner, MSME, who has played a pivotal role in guiding the forum through all aspects of project development, from proposal preparation to execution.

SD: What’s your vision for the future?
RT: We hope the Print Forum grows to unimaginable heights. What sets us apart is the unity among our members and we maintain complete transparency. Ask any member, and they’ll share the same details. In three years, we hope even clients from Chennai and Sivakasi will turn to us.

Cluster awareness meetings are regularly held to promote transparency in the print forum