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Daya’s film laminator machines at Upkar, Shree Balaji and Swapna Printing Works

Rahul Kumar — Mon, 08 Jan 2024 12:35:00

Agra-based Upkar Print House recently achieved a significant milestone with the installation of the Daya fully automatic film laminator model Jazz. This advanced technology showcases the commitment and excellence of both Sheth Printograph and Upkar Print House in delivering exceptional products. Upkar has already been using two thermal laminators for the past 15 years.

“The installation of the automatic lamination machine reaffirms Upkar’s commitment to automation, efficiency and dedication to delivering high-quality products to their customers. Upkar can now achieve efficiency and precision in its production processes. This advanced lamination machine optimises production timeline, reduces wastages, delivers precise jobs, ensures impeccable quality and sets new standards for excellence,” Sonal Sheth, director, Sheth Printograph, said.

The machine at Shree Balaji Printers

Bangalore-based Shree Balaji Printers invested in a Daya fully automatic film laminator machine model Jazz with sheet separator and stacker.

“Thanks to the advanced features, the machine is capable of laminating BOPP/ metPET, plain PET, matt, glossy, structured, or special effects films to printed/ non-printed sheets with exceptional high bond and peel strength. With precise overlap controlled with servo ensures accurate positioning of each sheet thereby reducing wastages and saving huge costs in paper, film and adhesive. The machine is designed with unparalleled precision and efficiency for post-press operations with a speed of up to 50-mpm,” Sheth said.

The machine at Swapna Printing Works

Kolkata-based Swapna Printing Works is one of the leading newspapers and book printing and publication presses in the Eastern part of the country. It has set a new standard with the adoption of the model Jazz with sheet separator and stacker.

According to Swapna Printing Works, the decision to invest only the best and the latest methods, technology and equipment are employed to deliver impeccable products capable of setting new standards in the world of quality printing.

Swapna’s journey began 30 years ago and ever since it has journeyed down the path of glory and success, guided by the spirit of curiosity, knowledge, self-analysis and improvement. This zealous endeavour has helped Swapna keep pace with the changing times and overcome the challenges in its path.

Pamex 2023: Alpna showcases its range of UV curing, coating products

Disha Chakraborty — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 13:33:00

Alpna’s range of products revolve around its core strength of UV technology.

Vijay Aggarwal of Alpna said, “Pamex has always proved to be an important event for Alpna, as it connects us to our existing as well as new clients.”

He added that Alpna has more than 3,000 installations in India, and the West of India contributes to 40% of Alpna’s sales.

The company recently shifted its factory from Okhla to Noida. Aggarwal said once fully functional, it will be a state-of-the-art plant and also the largest in this part of the world, dedicated to designing and manufacturing UV and offline coating solutions.

Dimple Packaging amps up capacity with its fourth Bobst kit

Rahul Kumar — Thu, 29 Dec 2022 22:12:00

The company has been adding to its production facility in Ludhiana for the past few years now, from upgrading existing equipment with the latest technology to adding new equipment.

Dimple Packaging was established by Shree Ram Ji Das back in 1960. He was later joined by his son, Jagdish Kalra. Today, the company is run by the third generation of Kalra brothers — Komal Kalra, the eldest, looks after the functioning of business activities; Kapil Kalra looks after marketing and Pankaj Kalra is responsible for production and deliveries.

The Kalra brothers visited the Bobst booth during PrintPack India in Delhi in May and finalised the Novafold in June.

From 2010, the company began adding folder-gluers and die-cutters. Its first machine from Bobst was a Novacut 106 die-cutter and an Ambition 106 A2 folder-gluer installed in 2012. After that the company invested in yet another Novacut 106 in 2015 followed by two window patching machines from Heiber & Shroder in 2017 and 2019 respectively.

In 2020, the company decided to go in for a machine from the far east. However, due to certain performance issues, the company took a call and invested in yet another Bobst machine this year in June.

“We evaluated a few other machines in the market, even used one of them for two years and then came to a conclusion where we felt the Bobst machine was the perfect fit for our requirements. Being an existing Bobst customer, it was easy for us to pick knowing the service we receive from the Bobst team and the machine quality as well. The versatility, make and speed of the machine was what convinced us to go in for the Bobst machine.” Pankaj Kalra of Dimple said.

The Novafold is expected to increase the company’s capacity and boost production. The folder-gluer, with four and six-corner as well as corrugation attachments, is capable of running straight line, lock-bottom jobs as well as various special design cartons at speeds of up to 350-metres/min. Easy to operate, the folder-gluer delivers consistent and superb end-product quality while being robust and reliable at the same time.

“We are growing steadily and look forward to doubling our production in the near future. Post-pandemic we saw a steady growth in the demand for packaging overall and this helped us take a decision to expand our set up,” said Kalra. “The company’s automation exercise will continue as manual operation doesn’t produce quality at fast speed. We have found that automation is the way to avoid labour problems and do quality production.”

Dimple converts more than 500 tonnes of paper, kraft paper and packaging board in its 150,000-sqft constructed facility. Around 23 printing units of the company consume 100 printing plates in round-the-clock operations. The total area of the facility is six acres and the company employs over 400 people.

Sri Maruti Packagings expands with Bobst Novacut

Rahul Kumar — Wed, 28 Dec 2022 12:56:00

Intipalli Sai Teja, managing director and partner of Sri Maruti Group, said, “We were interested in buying the Bobst automated punching machine, as it is useful in board punching and it increases the production as it is faster than a normal punching machine. It is also precise in the cuts, which make the packing of the product easy for the clients in their high-speed machines.”

The Bobst Novacut 106 3.0 die-cutter, running up to 8,000-sh/hr, ensures high-level of automation, better uptime. One of its key advantages is fast job changeover, thanks to many new improvements and automation in the new 3.0 version.

Sri Maruti Packagings was established in 1997. Prior to this, the company operated a corrugated box manufacturing unit for the past 25 years in Bahadurpally. Today, the company has three corrugation units, two in Hyderabad (with one auto-corrugation plant and two semi-auto plants) and one in Kakinada (with two semi-auto plants).

The company is also setting up a new plant at Rajamahendravaram, Andhra Pradesh with one auto-corrugation plant and two semi-auto plants. With an employee strength of 150 employees and a turnover of Rs 45-crore, the company currently converts 850+ tonnes per month. By the end of this financial year, it will be converting 1200+ tonnes per month.

Teja, a second-generation entrepreneur, took a keen interest in innovation and business, starting it small with minimum requirements, such as one corrugation, punching, pasting, creasing and two stitching machines respectively. Over the course of time, the company increased its machines as there was an increase in its clientele.

He said, “We had seen some similar machines but they were not as sophisticated as this one. It has been a year since we bought the machine and we are satisfied. The machine has helped us increase the turnaround time drastically, combined with ease of operation and precision in register accuracy. From the long-term view, we chose Bobst because of its reliability and technical support which we can count upon.”

The company’s previous manual machine used to punch 1500 sheets per hour, whereas now it can produce between 5,000-6,000 sheets per hour net output with no compromise in quality as the involvement of manual work is reduced.

“Our customers are also happy with the quality and precision. In the present market, there isn’t much difference in profit or loss, but we can rely on the end product and timely deliveries. Additionally, we also saved a lot on process wastage and reduced WIP. With the installation of this new Bobst machine, the production has gone up by 50% and manpower has reduced to one-third,” said Teja.

He added, “Bobst India is supportive to its clients, as it is just a mail or call away for any queries.”

Berlina invests in a Duplo

Pooja Mahesh — Mon, 05 Dec 2022 12:05:00

“The Duplo DDC-810 has got the best print quality. It can print finer lines and texts, incredibly well and perfect. Duplo’s consistent performance is helping us expand our work possibilities,” Bipin Mehndiratta of Berlina said.

The company chose to go with the Duplo, as they were impressed with the machine that they had purchased earlier from TechNova and the after-sales support.

“We are able to deliver a good quality spot UV print with DDC-810. As a high-performance device, the feeding performance is unfailing and unmatched. It can even print the smallest text required by our customers. The print quality is also excellent,” Siddharth Mehndiratta of Berlina said.

Berlina was founded in 2002 by Bipin Mehndiratta, Siddharth Mehndiratta and Raju Dawar. The company is into printing commercial products, such as brochures, catalogues, business cards, wedding cards and boxes, flex banners and display printing.

Besides the Duplo DDC810, the company’s shopfloor boasts a Konica Minolta C7100, two solvent machines, flex machines, flatbed UV devices and laser cutting devices.

The Duplo DDC-810 is a compact and affordable solution which offers printers the capability to enhance their images with a layer of texture and depth utilising inkjet technology. This works on piezoelectric DOD inkjet technology with 600x600-dpi resolution inkjet head from Kyocera, assisted by UV lamp curing technology. This device applies a layer of textures & depths on UV spots with high gloss varnish.

Comexi offers unique laminator solutions

Rahul Kumar — Mon, 31 Oct 2022 08:07:00

The new SL2 Evolution will become the next industry standard, as a result of its perfect combination of automation, reliability, and productivity. This machine is the leading performing option for solventless lamination for the following reasons — futuristic design; renovated interface; an exclusive applicator head design (consisting of full motorisation and metering sleeves usage); options to incorporate automatic change turrets; an extremely intuitive touch environment; and overall top-notch options.

Among these latter options, the closed loop system is of special interest, as it automatically adjusts and maintains the adhesive grammage without solvents throughout the production process. Undoubtedly, the SL2 Evolution is the most autonomous laminator on the market.

The Comexi ML2 Evolution laminator is a versatile machine that is operable with all types of adhesives and coatings: solvent-based, water-based, wax or solvent-less. Furthermore, the machine performs a wide range of in-register applications such as cold-seal, ink or varnishes. As a result, it has a series of easily interchangeable technological trolleys to satisfy every demand. Moreover, the ML2 Evolution laminator has a completely modular drying tunnel that substantially helps to perform a tremendous number of applications. The winding section can also be configured in accordance with various requirements.

The ergonomic design of the Comexi ML2 Evolution laminator allows for a simplistic and intuitive top speed performance of daily operations, thus subsequently maximising production and minimising downtime. In order to meet the highest standards, the Comexi ML2 Evolution has incorporated new state-of-the-art options that facilitate the conversion of flexible packaging. These options include the comexi closed loop, which automatically adjusts and maintains the adhesive grammage without solvents throughout production. Additionally, the automatic mark-to-mark registration adjustment system for cold-seal will become an industry milestone, as it does not require operator intervention during the settings, as well as considerably reduces material waste and the loss of adjustment time.

According to the company, the objective of the two systems is to facilitate the job set-up task and make machines more automatic, thus leading the industry towards full autonomous machinery. All of the aforementioned options, particularly in combination with a completely innovative new design, renders a spectacular appearance that has never been seen on the market, and will become the new standard for Comexi.

Prakash Industries adds capacity with DGM folder-gluer

Rahul Kumar — Mon, 24 Oct 2022 10:47:00

Sumit Sharma of Prakash Industries said, “Earlier, we were converting for in-house consumption. Now, we are open to printing for others too.”

Sharma said as the production of lock bottom and corrugated mono cartons increased, it started hampering the production of its straight line and lock bottom pasting cartons.

“We decided to invest in a DGM machine because the company has an aggressive approach. On time availability of the machine also made it easier for us to go for a DGM. We are easily able to produce six to seven lakh side pasting mono cartons in 12 hours with our DGM. Right now, we are producing 20 to 25 lakh mono cartons in 12 hours with all three machines,” he said.

He added, “We have chosen DGM as we have known Puneet Aggarwal for decades. The machine was selected purely based on its technical features and construction of the machine. Last but not the least, the company’s service response is fantastic. We have never seen such a beautiful combination of professional and personal flavour of service.”

Prakash Industries is known for its agarbatti brand Tiranga and playing cards brand No 222. Prakash produces 50,000 decks of playing cards per day and 12 lakh boxes of agarbatti packs per day. It converts 600 tonnes of board and duplex for both the operations.

A new fully automatic agarbatti manufacturing unit has been established in a 3,500-sqm area with minimum labour and maximum output.

Sharma added, “Duplex conversion will be around 850 tonnes per month after the new plant is operational. We dispatch around 12 lakh boxes of agarbatti daily to pack 12 tonnes of agarbatti per day.”

Prakash Industries has also established an in-house corrugation plant, which manufactures three, five and seven-ply corrugated boxes and E-, B- and A- flutes. The conversion of kraft is around 125 tonnes per month with Chinese and Taiwanese machines. “We have grown 20% after adding the corrugation plant,” Sharma said.

He added, “We cater to customers from FMCG, spices, footwear and other local industries. Playing cards is around 50% of our business; agarbatti is around 40% and the remaining 10% is shoes, FMCG and export. We have a clear vision to make Prakash Industries a professionally-managed company compared to a family-owned business. We have seen a boom in our playing cards business during the pandemic. We were investing according to our needs, but now we need to install machines according to customers’ requirements.”

He added that the target is to convert 1,000 tonnes of substrates and to achieve turnover of Rs 500-crore. “We are focusing on 100% capacity utilisation,” he said.

Kailash Paper strengthens its packaging business with Tiancen

Rahul Kumar — Fri, 02 Sep 2022 19:27:00

The machine was supplied and installed by Ample Graphics, the Indian representative of Shanghai Tiancen Machinery Manufacturer.

Mukesh Taneja of Kailash Paper Conversion said, “We were in books, commercial and stationery printing. However, a few years back, we diversified into packaging-printing with the installation of a five-colour RMGT press with an online coater. Now, we have purchased the lamination machine to serve our customers for their metPET and lamination requirements.”

Taneja said the machine was selected during PrintPack 2022 after evaluating other available options in the market. “We opted for the Tiancen because of its hot-knife technology; positive market feedback, especially for their good after-sales service; good quality and good speed of 100-mpm/11,000 sheets an hour and easy to use machine,” he added.

The machine was installed last month, and is running around six hours a day. “Right now, our operators are new and under training, and we are running the machine at the speed of 6000 sheets an hour. It is a future-ready machine. As our production increases, it will handle the demand” Taneja said.

He added that in the near future, the company will invest in additional post-press equipment. The company is also planning to acquire a corrugation plant in Ranchi. “Packaging business is growing at 15% per annum, which is good in the present scenario. Being a commercial and books printer, packaging has been helpful for us to sustain our existing setup,” he added.

Sachin Kala, director, Ample Graphics, said, “We are happy to serve Kailash Paper Conversion for their metPET and lamination requirements. More than 55 converters are using our Tiancen fully automatic lamination machine for their various packaging requirements. We always try to help converters with machinery equipped with the latest technology, and at an affordable price. PrintPack was a good show for us and we have started delivery of our deals.”

Kailash Paper Conversion is equipped with an RMGT five-colour press, a Komori four-colour press, an HP Indigo press, Heidelberg cutting and folding machines, a Kolbus case-maker, casing in and three knife trimmers. The company employs around 150 people.

Morgana to launch new bookletmaker

PrintWeek Team — Wed, 31 Aug 2022 11:57:00

The BM4000 series — available worldwide from September, and priced at around £24,000 — offers an expanded range of booklet formats and edge or corner staple as standard.

Ray Hillhouse, VP sales and marketing at Morgana’s parent company Plockmatic Group’s Offline Business Unit, said the machine was designed to appeal to a wide range of printers. “Overall, the BM4000 is the most versatile machine that we have launched,” he said.

Morgana’s new machine can staple and fold booklets of up to 35 or 50 sheets (that is, 140 or 200 pages) depending on model, and can make booklets from A6 to A4 landscape or 297x297-mm.

According to Morgana, it is designed to work with low- to mid-volume digital production printers, and supports printed sheets of up to 660- or 620-mm long — the latter being the maximum with the optional creasing and side trimming (CST) module attached, which allows for a square back finish.

Hillhouse added: “Incorporating two tasks in one unit makes for easier configuration, and more effective production.”

(Courtesy: PrintWeek.com)

Assam’s Krishna Board invests in Bobst FFG

Rahul Kumar — Fri, 08 Jul 2022 12:13:00

He added, “It is definitely a huge investment, and one needs to calculate the financials cleverly before investing. Our reason for investing in Bobst was for the quality and speed that we can achieve in this machine.”

Krishna Board & Containers was established in 1983 in Dhubri, Assam. Gradually, the company grew from manual Ingle facets of 20-mpm to 300-mpm to fully automatic board lines, from screen printing of boxes to multi-colour printing facility. The company currently has two manual plants, two semi-automatic units and one fully automatic plant having a cumulative capacity of 7500-mt/ month.

Regarding the current trends in the corrugation industry, Agarwal said that the industry is going through a second revolution. “We saw the first revolution we saw around 2008 when people started upgrading from manual to semi-automatic plants. Right now, companies are upgrading the technology and speed from semi-automatic to fully-automatic plants. We are definitely seeing better technologies and better equipment in India,” he said.

He also believes that optimum utilisation of resources never shrinks a market, rather it opens up more opportunities and more windows. “High-end machines and optimum utilisation of paper will create the entry barrier between semi-automatic and fully-automatic plants in the coming years,” he added.

Krishna Board & Containers has been running the second fastest board line in India with 300-m/min since 1 November 2021. “The biggest challenge is the mindset, not the equipment. One needs to be mentally prepared that the dynamics of a 150-mpm machine and 300-mpm machine is going to be different. You need to adapt to the situation, and you will be able to control your machine,” he said.

He said the existing model of corrugators targeting a capacity of 1,000-1,500-mt is sustainable in the current scenario, but going forward, with the new technology being introduced, and better high-speed equipment being installed, performance of boxes will become a vital subject, in which the high-capacity plants will have the better edge over the low-capacity plants.

Regarding fluctuating kraft paper prices, Agarwal said, “Many of our corrugator friends call us, seeking advice regarding costs. It is then we realised that most of them do not have the basics right regarding costing. The only science behind operating cost is, minimise wastage and labour, increase the productivity of equipment. With high-speed plants coming to India, this will be the new revolution in regards to operating cost.”

Agarwal said corrugators have now started working on conversion models on higher scales for MNCs, where the paper sourcing is no longer the role of the corrugator. Going forward, the criteria for agreements between the two will be based on costing, along with dependability and better performing boxes with optimum utilisation of paper.

He added that digital printing is a new technology in the corrugation industry, and it will take some time to be absorbed in the market, considering the higher printing cost, lower production speed, and limited equipment available currently. “But going forward, this will be the new technology in the market. Digital printing is the future,” he added.

He believes the most emerging sectors in the corrugation industry right now are fruits and vegetables as this sector is completely raw and untapped. “The use of corrugated boxes is very low in India compared to other countries. Along with the fruits and vegetables other emerging segments are eCommerce, and FMCG,” he said.

Regarding the usage of paper, Agarwal said, “We make sure that we strategically align our paper requirements in advance. And most importantly, invest in technology to reduce waste generation at our plant. We have also invested in one of the best water-handling systems. This keeps the shopfloor clean. Plus, proper waste handling and bundling adds value to the waste buyers,” he said.

He added that the waste doesn’t necessarily occur due to the poor quality of paper. “The quality of paper has increased considerably in India over the past decade. The major reason for higher wastage is the lack of management and supervision at the production shopfloor, and also due to the low-cost equipment corrugators use. High-end machines help us save wastage at every stage,” he said.

He said what most corrugators do not target is the losses they incur in kraft paper. “One needs to strictly monitor the gsm variations, moisture content in paper and open joints in one reel. This is one of the most potential areas in a plant for losses. Other areas for losses incurred are during job change overs, poor storage facilities, and poor training to manpower,” he added.

Regarding manpower, Agarwal said, “We believe in training freshers into operators. It is like a pottery job. You have fresh clay in your hand, and you can mould the clay the way you want. Yes, we do incur higher wastages during the initial period, but constant training is required, and once they are trained, wastage is reduced and it is easy to retain trained operators for a longer period.”

Regarding the challenge of paper cracking, he said, “This was an issue a few years ago when the corrugators were not aware of the use of starch in the paper. This issue still prevails in the B-grade paper mills. We have shortlisted a few A-grade paper mills in the north and east of India. These mills use just the required quantity of starch, and we do not face the cracking issue. We make sure that we buy paper from A-grade paper mills only.”

Robus bags 13 deals at PrintPack

Rahul Kumar — Fri, 08 Jul 2022 12:09:00

Dera Bassi-based Riddhi Siddhi Enterprises opted for an automatic folder-gluer. “Riddhi Siddhi purchased our first 100% Make in India performance series automatic folder-gluer, RI-INSTAFOLD-850PC,” Prem Vishwakarma, director, Robus India, said.

Bahadurgarh-based Mehamia Shoe Packaging opted for an automatic die-cutting machine. “Mehamia has been using our die-cutting and folder-glueing kit for the last one-and-a-half years. It is a sign of the company’s satisfaction with the machine performance and our services that it purchased its third machine from us, our confidence series model MHC-1100E,” Vishwakarma said.

Ghaziabad-based Prem Industries opted for an automatic die-cutting machine with stripping. “Prem has been using two automatic die-cutting machines and one folder-gluer from Robus for the last four years. The company is happy with the makeready time and the stripping section of the die-cutting machine. Therefore, the company ordered its fourth Robus equipment from our performance series automatic die-cutting machine with stripping, the MHK-1050CE,” Vishwakarma said.

Haridwar-based Veronica Printers opted for an automatic five-play flute laminator and automatic folder-gluer. “Veronica has been using our automatic die-cutting machine with Tiptronic feeder, which is capable to run duplex, three-play corrugated and five-ply corrugated jobs, for the last three years. Seeing the machine performance and production output, the company has ordered two more Robus equipment — an automatic five-ply flute laminator and our 100% Make in India performance series automatic folder-gluer model RI-INSTAFOLD-1100PC,” Vishwakarma said.

Noida-based Cliffton Packaging opted for an automatic die-cutter. “Cliffton has been using our folder-gluer for the last three-and-a-half years. During PrintPack, the company ordered its second Robus equipment, an automatic Tiptronic feeder die-Cutter model MHC-1100E,” Vishwakarma said.

Pune-based Dolly Printer opted for the confidence series automatic die-cutter model RI-MHC-1300E.

Delhi-based NR Packaging opted for an automatic folder-gluer. “The RI-FLASHFOLD-1100PC folder-gluer has a unique auto removal lower centre conveyor which helps save more than two hours downtime compared to available models in the market. Apart from this, the machine is less with motorised inner conveyors, which is helpful for faster makeready and able to retrofit 4/6-corner attachment and inline Braille embossing unit in future,” Vishwakarma said.

Palwal-based Progressive Fibre Containerz opted for an automatic folder-gluer model RI-FLASHFOLD-1100PC.

Nashik-based Shweta Print Pack opted for an automatic folder-gluer. “This is Shweta’s 8th machine from Robus. This time Shweta opted for an automatic folder-gluer for eCommerce jobs, the RI-JHX-3200 with memory system,” Vishwakarma said.

Delhi-based Shreeram Enterprises opted for an automatic film lamination machine model RI-ZFM-1080B. “Shreeram, a commercial printer, recently diversified into packaging, and now, it is going for automation with the automatic film lamination machine with flying knife,” Vishwakarma said.

Noida based Global Offset opted for an automatic die-cutter. This is Global’s third machine from Robus.

Faridabad based Europack opted for a five-ply flute laminator and a semi-automatic die-cutting machine.

Baddi’s Sun Industries opts for four DGM kit

Rahul Kumar — Wed, 22 Jun 2022 10:51:00

One set of die-cutters and folder-gluers was delivered and installed after PrintPack. The other set of machines will be delivered next month.

Jitender Saharan, director, sales and marketing, Sun Industries, said, “We have been associated with Puneet Agarwal from our days in Edelmann. We are confident about his offerings and commitment. As the market is full of options, we checked all the options available and found that DGM was appropriate for our needs.”

Sun Industries is a partnership between Parveen Kaushal and Jitender Saharan. The former colleagues worked together at Edelmann India (formerly Janus Packaging). Kaushal is responsible for supply chain and logistics and Saharan is responsible for sales and marketing.

The company was established in October 2021 on leased premises in Baddi, and the machine installation took place in March 2022. The company started its commercial production in April this year.

“Being a new entity, it was a big decision to invest in two sets of die-cutters and folder-gluers in one go, especially in the present scenario. It shows our belief in DGM and in our growth and business,” Saharan said.

He added, “Both the machines are up and running within a week after the end of the PrintPack show. We appreciate the professionalism displayed by Puneet and his team.”

The newly-established packaging-printing company is equipped with two multicolour Heidelberg printing presses with coater, especially for metPET jobs. The pre-press is equipped with Esko software. The company will also install a Kongsberg cutting table and a Kodak CTP soon.

Along with mono cartons, Sun Industries also produces B- and E-flute corrugated cartons. Kaushal said, “We have a complete setup for corrugation. Around 40% of our total business is corrugated cartons and the remaining 60% is printed mono cartons.”

Saharan added, “We are converting around 100 tonnes of board and kraft in a 100,000-sqft area. By July, we will be converting around 1,000 tonnes per month.”

Rajshree Offset installs two DGM kit

Rahul Kumar — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 12:01:00

Krishnamurthy G, managing director, Rajshree Offset, said, “After we planned our investment, we did extensive research on the machines available in the market. We found that DGM’s Technocut 105 and Technofold 1100 PC are the best suitable models for our operations”

Krishnamurthy also considered the total cost of ownership (TCO) during the lifetime of the machine. “The DGM machinery always has the least TCO, which is important for us, as higher TCO will eat into our profits,” he said. “We are more than happy with the training and services provided by the DGM India.”

He added that DGM engineers were friendly and competent to train the shopfloor operators to run the equipment at efficient levels. “We had good support from DGM during our installation process and also during the commercial production,” he said.

The company is using the Technofold 1100 PC for three-ply cartons, mono cartons, which are straight line, lock-bottom, double wall, conical cartons, CD covers, RSC boxes, and others.

Krishnamurthy said after the installation, the company’s production capacity has increased, along with improved quality output. “Our customers are happy because we are now able to service our customers in a short time. Now, we confidently accept all kinds of complicated jobs, as we are able to produce such jobs on our Technofold,” he said.

Mr. Krishnamurthy started Rajshree Offset as a screen printer in 1990. From then on, the company has grown substantially and now operates under a 45,000-sq ft built up area. It has also grown from screen printing to supplier of high quality three-ply corrugated boxes and mono cartons.

The company supplies these cartons to readymade food, FMCG, pharma and engineering goods segments. Krishnamurthy said the company has been seeing a rise in demand for packaging in engineering goods, pharma, food and FMCG.

Krishnamurthy and his wife are the managing directors of the company and their son Gaurav looks after the organisation and production. Around 250 people work in various middle and entry level positions.

Besides the new investments, the company’s shopfloor houses a Mitsubishi six-colour press, an automatic die-cutter from Ijima, and other kit such as fluting machines, flute laminator, window patching machines, etc.

Krishnamurthy said the current challenge for the company is the unprecedented increase in the raw material prices.

He added that with the new investment, the company is expecting a growth of around 10-12%. “We made the investment to increase our capacity as well as our capabilities. Our ROI is easily achievable because the DGM machines are reasonably priced and they have met our production requirement,” he said.

He added, “We believe we are prepared for the growing market with our latest investments. We have also trained our people for the changing requirements of our customers.

PrintPack 2022: Bobst signs two more deals on day three

Noel D'Cunha — Sun, 29 May 2022 15:30:00

Speaking to PrintWeek, Lokesh Agrawal, director-sales and marketing, Miracle Group, said, “We are converting around 25-lakh sheets per month, and the existing die-cutting machine, aren’t able to meet the requirement, though one of them is the Bobst and the rest Chinese-make. While the Bobst machine, our first buy, was in 2016, we followed it up with three Chinese machines, which could not go beyond producing 16- to 17-lakh sheets on them. As a result, there was a bottleneck created. We want to remove that bottleneck with this new installation.”

Lokesh Agrawal (c) with the Bobst team

Besides, Lokesh informed that his Group will be expanding its operations, adding another printing line to the existing two machines. “We had to add capacity in the converting section too.”

Why Bobst die-cutter, after having invested in Chinese machines? Lokesh said, “First is the speed, and the second is the maintenance. Since the installation of the machine, we don’t remember having any downtime. Our weekly maintenance is all we do.

The reasons for Aggarwal Pack Product’s investment in the Novafold 110 A2 folder-gluer weren’t different. “It’s all about efficiency and savings,” said Vinay Aggarwal of Aggarwal Pack Products, speaking to PrintWeek at the Bobst stand.

The company had, in March 2021, installed a brand new Bobst Novacut 106 E 3.0 automatic flatbed die-cutting machine. The facility is equipped with TechNova CTP, Heidelberg printing press, and Polar paper-cutting machines, among others, besides the Bobst die-cutters.

Aggarwal (second from left) and his son with the Bobst team

The Bobst Novafold 110 A2 can produce a wide variety of box styles across a range of substrates, at speeds of up to 350-m/min. “We will be producing four- and six-corner boxes, though it can also produce double-wall as well as tubelight and conical type boxes in an open blank size of 1100-mm. But what this machine will bring to the table is the saving of paperboard. Presently we tuck the paper within the box. With the box folded and glued, we will be saving around 20% of the paperboard, which in itself is a big saving considering the present paper prices crisis,” said Aggarwal.

PrintPack 2022: Boxtech Bangalore bags two machine orders

Rahul Kumar — Sat, 28 May 2022 14:51:00

Ajay A Nayak of Boxtech Banaglore said, “The exhibition so far has been good for us. We closed two deals in the first two days.”

Among the buyers, Gondals Press is a new account for the company while Changodar-based Cosmos Print Pack is an existing customer.

Gondals has booked a Velocity Plus 780 folder-gluer. The machine can do side-pasting, crash-lock bottom, and E, F & G-flute cartons.

Cosmos has booked a Velocity Plus 1000. The machine can do lock-bottom, E, F & G-flute corrugated cartons and mono cartons.

Boxtech Bangalore has sold more than 90 Velocity Plus folder-gluers and more than 600 folder-gluers in total.

At the show, Boxtech also had live demonstrations of the Velocity Plus folder-gluer, with a line speed of 250-m/min with crash-lock bottom.

PrintPack 2022: DGM inks multiple deals

Rahul Kumar — Sat, 28 May 2022 09:57:00

Among the deals, Pune-based Zaware Creative Enterprises picked up a Technocut 1050 die-cutter and a Smartfold 1100 SL folder-gluer, and Noida-based Lynx Designers & Creators signed for a Technofoil 1050FC foil stamping machine and a Smartfold 1100 SL folder-gluer.

Raahhul S Zawarre, executive director, Zaware Creative Enterprises, said, “We are a commercial printer who diversified into packaging in 2016-17. At the show, we got the die-cutter and the folder-gluer to complete our packaging setup. With these two finishing machines, we will be able to provide complete packaging solutions under one roof.

He added that the company opted for the DGM machines because of its acceptance in the Indian market. “The DGM equipment have filled the gap between capabilities and capacity at right price and local support. I visited multiple DGM and other options users to understand their experiences before finalising the machine because user experience is the key in a capital equipment purchase. Both the machines are future-ready, and upgradation can be made as per the job and future requirement,” he said.

Puneet Agarwal, director, DGM Automation India, said, “We have installed more than 100 machines in the last three-four years with some existing users already. This shows the acceptance of our products in the industry with local factory, demo centre, warehouse and local support. We are happy that a commercial printer like Zaware believes in our products.”

The Lynx Designers team with Puneet Agarwal of DGM at the show

While Zaware is a new account for DGM, Lynx already has a DGM die-cutter on its shopfloor running for the last nine months. After experiencing the performance and support from DGM, the company decided to go for the same partner for its next purchase of hot-foil stamping and folder-gluer kit.

PrintPack 2022: Bobst announces sale of two more Novafold folder-gluers

Noel D'Cunha — Fri, 27 May 2022 19:03:00

BK Aggarwal and Praveen Aggarwal, directors at Incite Home Care Products, informed PrintWeek that they were looking for a versatile machine which can do complex jobs. “After doing all detailed research work with various options available in the market we zeroed down on to go with Bobst kit due to its merits,” said Pravin Aggarwal.

The Bharat Box team with the Bobst team at the show

“Bobst machines are like swiss watches which we would like to pass on as a gift to next generations and it never loses its accuracy and consistency and is kept as a jewel.”

Praveen Kommareddy, managing director at Hyper Pack, told PrintWeek that it was his dream to own a machine from Bobst but was always distracted by other available options due to its price. “When I discussed in detail with the Bobst team about its versatility, added value and new design, I got fully convinced that I was making the right decision. I am happy today for being a part of the Bobst family and achieving this milestone.”

The Hyper Pack team with the Bobst team at the show

Arvind Dhand, national sales manager for the Indian Subcontinent, BUPC folding carton at Bobst India, said, the latest Novafold is designed to boost capacity and end-product quality. “It offers a powerful blend of reliability, precision and versatility. The machines can produce a wide variety of box styles across a range of substrates, at speeds of up to 350-m/min. It is one of the most diverse and high performing portfolios available to today’s packaging printers and converters.”

PrintPack 2022: Hitech unveils three machines

Aultrin Vijay — Thu, 26 May 2022 17:20:00

The digital label printing machine is capable of short- as well as long-run jobs for label printing. “It can print 1-1,000-metres of labels with the press of a button,” Parag Shah, CEO, Hitech Systems, said. “It’s a Japanese engine by Oki with Korean operating system and software. The machine is reliable.”

Another digital printer is capable of printing on a variety of substrates, including stand-up paper pouches, recycled paper and can produce spot UV effects with better whites.

“The newly-launched die-cutting machine can do half-cut, full-cut, V-groove, crease and perforation on kappa board (up to 4-mm), sun board (up to 5-mm) and foam (up to 10-mm),” Shah said. “It also comes with a three-year warranty, which is not offered by anyone.”

Additionally, Hitech also showcased its bestselling creasing and perforating machine – the Pitstop DGline 8000 – at the show with updated features. According to Shah, the creasing and perforating machine from Italy can save up to Rs 1,00,000 worth of paper every month for an offset printer who does 20 jobs a day.

Hall 9A | Stall E20

Prime Papyrus Products opts for Vijaya folder-gluer

Rahul Kumar — Wed, 27 Apr 2022 14:26:00

Rajesh Tiwari, production and plant head, Prime Papyrus Products, said, “We have installed the machine for our side-pasting jobs. The folder-gluer is future-ready and with a few attachments, we can do four- and six-corners and lock-bottom boxes on it.”

Tiwari said the machine is functioning well, and the company is producing up to 10-inches of carton size (tube light cartons) at the speed of 38-40,000 boxes per hour.

He added that the company opted for the machine, as it wanted to reduce dependency on manpower along with fast production and accuracy.

“Earlier, 10 people were producing 350,000 boxes with two machines. But, with the Vijaya folder-gluer, five people can achieve the same number,” he said.

The company shifted from Okhla Industrial Area to Noida in January 2018. This also saw the company diversify into packaging from commercial print production. “We produce mono cartons, boxes for mobile accessories and rigid boxes on semi-automatic machines. Mono cartons are 90% of our total production,” Tiwari said. “We convert five tonnes of board and 70 tonnes of duplex boards per month. We don’t produce anything from paper.”

Baumer HHS’s new lighting system to shorten setup time

Rahul Kumar — Wed, 27 Apr 2022 11:16:00

The overall design of the new linear lighting system with high-power LEDs is geared to optimum illumination. “Monitoring glue application with line scan cameras requires uniform, very bright lighting so the cameras can reliably verify quality even at high machine speeds. Our new solution guarantees this level of lighting, even at distances of up to 250-mm, meaning customers can install it above the belt guides in their folder-gluers. In other words, our new linear lighting system does not need to be readjusted or reconfigured during job changeovers. The setup time otherwise required for this task can be eliminated,” said Thomas Walther, head of business development at Baumer HHS.

The new lighting is an also a substitute for the mercury-containing UV tubes still used by many folding carton manufacturers to inspect quality in adhesive application. “These controversial lamps currently are exempt under the RoHS Directive, but the exemption probably won’t be renewed due to occupational safety concerns. Folding carton manufacturers who still work with UV tubes for quality inspection are going to need a suitable alternative. And we can provide it with our new linear lighting system,” Walther said.

With the new lighting, machine operators need not reconfigure the lighting during job changeovers, which rules out the risk of damage.

The lighting module is contained in an aluminium housing equipped with heat sinks. It protects the high-power LEDs, provides for optimum heat dissipation and allows for safe installation in folder-gluers.

The new linear lighting unit can connect to the Baumer HHS controller for a safe 24V power supply, but on customer request can also run on an external 24V power source.

“The risk associated with UV tubes of shattered glass or mercury leaks in the folding/glueing process is what prompted Baumer HHS early on to concentrate on LED lighting. Exploiting the latest LED technology is yet another way we are helping customers to optimise their quality assurance processes,” said Walther.