Half-yearly evaluation of the industry in PrintWeek June issue

The exclusive nationwide PrintWeek survey reveals that while industry status is the topmost priority, rising from the Covid slump, the industry is doing exceedingly well, especially the packaging segment. Even commercial printing is picking up. 

The numbers certainly look good, as the survey zooms into the key areas within the industry, such as pain points, strategy, capacity, soft power, growth segment, growth trends, industry priority, industry driver, and so on.

Keeping up with the growth story, the Print Sector section highlights how Bengaluru has bounded back in the post-Covid era, featuring edited excerpts from the confabulations which saw six CEOs share their factory updates, plus how they coped with the pandemic during a closed-door roundtable forum organised in March, as part of the silver jubilee celebrations of the Karnataka Offset Printers Association (KOPA). 

In the Sustainability section, Karthik Narayan Ravi, director of Multivista Global Print Solutions, shares the book print firm’s journey thus far, and explains why being sustainable is not only good business practice but is increasingly a crucial requirement for many customers.

In the Profile section, Noel D’cunha finds out how Amba Multiprint is not just surviving but thriving, despite rising cost, falling margins, and dwindling runs.

Tact Print has had to cope with five tough years. So, what transpired in five years? Suresh Ramakrishnan of Tact Print says, “Quite simple. Print has considerable promise. We have seen order quantities for individual titles rise over the last

two years. We managed to double turnover from where we were in 2021.” Ramu Ramanathan finds in the Case-Study section. 

The Digital Print section features Louis Francis, known as the HP Indigo King of Kerala because the company Photo Park owns eight Indigos. He is diversifying into label manufacturing with Xpress Labels and invested in an HP Indigo 6900 and a Nilpeter FB430 Servo as well as a raft of GM DC 330 finishing machines. Louis Francis who is president of Kerala Master Printers Association (KMPA) takes time out of his busy schedule and talks to Ramu Ramanathan about all things print.

The cover story of the June issue of WhatPackaging? which comes with PrintWeek features SIG, which, with a CAGR of 14-15%, is set to produce 18 billion aseptic packs annually. In phase one, the Swiss company will invest Rs 525-crore to set up its new aseptic carton unit in Ahmedabad. SIG’s Vandana Tandan, head of markets for India and Bangladesh, shares the highlights with Aditya Ghosalkar.

“In the food industry, packaging helps preserve food and prevent waste. It is estimated that 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions are related to food waste,” Dhananjay Salunkhe, managing director, Huhtamaki tells Rahul Kumar in the Sustainability section. 

The 31st IAPRI members conference witnessed 62 international participants from 13 countries and 52 from India. Ramu Ramanathan spoke to Dr Jay Singh, professor of the packaging programme of the Orfalea College of Business of Cal Poly State University, on the sidelines of the conference at the Four Points Sheraton in Navi Mumbai.

In Inks section, Prashant Atre, MD at Toyo Inks Arets and director of Toyo Ink India, talks about how LED-UV inks are green-friendly. Atre talks about the chemistry that drives the new range of LED-UV systems and inks and explains how LED-UV inks are much-more acceptable, now.

TCPL’s Vidur Kanoria spoke to Disha Chakraborty about his first-ever experience at Interpack. Plus, the MDO PE investment by TCPL and the new investments in KBA offset line, and a two-colour inline hot foil stamping operation on one of the gravure lines.

These and more, plus the regular features in the June issue of PrintWeek and WhatPackaging?