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The Green Watchdog (Part II)- The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

Noel D'Cunha — Sun, 07 Jul 2019 09:50:00

Rupesh Sawant, Superlekha, Mumbai
We plant trees. We have planted 8,000 so far. We plant one tree every time we complete an order of Rs 5,000 at Superlekha. That way, we hope to take care of our carbon footprint from a product sale. What matters most is that we take care of these trees and make sure they will outlive all of us. We have allocated 100 acres of land for this initiative. The idea was born four years ago and, now, to take this as an individual project, we have stitched this idea with our top line revenue. Translating the idea into reality was a 10-year exercise. We started developing 25 acres of land in 2008 and completed the fencing and water pipeline facility in 2010. We built a tree farm and sourced water from the nearby river. The plants include silver oaks, Indian shishum and red sander — approximately 2,500 each. We have also appointed a consultant to plant trees, records of which are maintained by the local gram panchayat. We now have a perfect model for people to follow. For the local farmers, we have started black pepper plantation on trial, which will be an ideal replacement for cash crops like sugarcane. We have set up a local teaching model where the farmers get trained for the same. It's very rewarding for the print business, and we have made it a rule for all our clients to come to our land and plant trees. For society, the benefits are enormous. We have made available a model to follow along with a training facility. We also provide saplings to the farmers if needed. If we can change the crop planting model from sugarcane to black pepper and agro-forestry, we will be able to see a significant change in the income patterns of the locals. The best thing we see is a sense of fulfilment. We earned respect from our clients and local farmers. We are also witnessing a reverse migration pattern among the youth; a lot of youngsters are returning to their roots and starting small farms and planting trees. We have helped a lot of young people to start goat farming, where there is a good demand for good meat in the market. We first started with the 'integrated goat farm' project in our district, and now there are more than 200 applications every year for such projects. So I believe we have initiated a social movement of creating farm-based entrepreneurs and it is working well.

Rupesh Sawant, Superlekha, Mumbai

We plant trees. We have planted 8,000 so far.

We plant one tree every time we complete an order of Rs 5,000 at Superlekha. That way, we hope to take care of our carbon footprint from a product sale. What matters most is that we take care of these trees and make sure they will outlive all of us.

We have allocated 100 acres of land for this initiative. The idea was born four years ago and, now, to take this as an individual project, we have stitched this idea with our top line revenue.

Translating the idea into reality was a 10-year exercise. We started developing 25 acres of land in 2008 and completed the fencing and water pipeline facility in 2010. We built a tree farm and sourced water from the nearby river. The plants include silver oaks, Indian shishum and red sander — approximately 2,500 each. We have also appointed a consultant to plant trees, records of which are maintained by the local gram panchayat.

We now have a perfect model for people to follow. For the local farmers, we have started black pepper plantation on trial, which will be an ideal replacement for cash crops like sugarcane. We have set up a local teaching model where the farmers get trained for the same. It's very rewarding for the print business, and we have made it a rule for all our clients to come to our land and plant trees.

For society, the benefits are enormous. We have made available a model to follow along with a training facility. We also provide saplings to the farmers if needed. If we can change the crop planting model from sugarcane to black pepper and agro-forestry, we will be able to see a significant change in the income patterns of the locals.

The best thing we see is a sense of fulfilment. We earned respect from our clients and local farmers. We are also witnessing a reverse migration pattern among the youth; a lot of youngsters are returning to their roots and starting small farms and planting trees. We have helped a lot of young people to start goat farming, where there is a good demand for good meat in the market.

We first started with the 'integrated goat farm' project in our district, and now there are more than 200 applications every year for such projects. So I believe we have initiated a social movement of creating farm-based entrepreneurs and it is working well.

Iqbal Kherodawala, Printline Reproductions, Mumbai
We have taken three initiatives with regards to the green movement. Firstly, we have changed all our lamps to LED in our factory, which has resulted in lesser consumption of power. This has benefited us both economically and environmentally. Secondly, we have decided to reuse rainwater. Although we do not have a large terrace, we have channelled the water to six large tanks, which then fuel our underground water storage. We do not draw municipal water during monsoon. We are very strict on water wastage and ensure that drip irrigation is used to water plants. We also provide clean drinking water in every department. Lastly, we have convinced our customers to reduce film lamination on their products and convert to either water-based varnishes or UV instead. The ideas had to be commercially viable and profitable, as well as environment-friendly. Any small step, which helps us draw less from the environment, will ultimately pay us in the long run. We also looked at the profitability part of investing in these initiatives, and we see the returns. We feel that society benefits when our employees understand how small initiatives implemented in their own homes and their surrounding help in protecting Mother Nature. I think the best thing that came out of these initiatives is that we created awareness in our entire plant about what each one of us can do to protect the environment. We have focused on reducing wasteful expenditure. And lastly, by being firm on water wastage, we believe that each bucket saved is a bucket added to the groundwater.

Iqbal Kherodawala, Printline Reproductions, Mumbai

We have taken three initiatives with regards to the green movement. Firstly, we have changed all our lamps to LED in our factory, which has resulted in lesser consumption of power. This has benefited us both economically and environmentally.

Secondly, we have decided to reuse rainwater. Although we do not have a large terrace, we have channelled the water to six large tanks, which then fuel our underground water storage. We do not draw municipal water during monsoon. We are very strict on water wastage and ensure that drip irrigation is used to water plants. We also provide clean drinking water in every department.

Lastly, we have convinced our customers to reduce film lamination on their products and convert to either water-based varnishes or UV instead.

The ideas had to be commercially viable and profitable, as well as environment-friendly. Any small step, which helps us draw less from the environment, will ultimately pay us in the long run. We also looked at the profitability part of investing in these initiatives, and we see the returns. We feel that society benefits when our employees understand how small initiatives implemented in their own homes and their surrounding help in protecting Mother Nature.

I think the best thing that came out of these initiatives is that we created awareness in our entire plant about what each one of us can do to protect the environment. We have focused on reducing wasteful expenditure. And lastly, by being firm on water wastage, we believe that each bucket saved is a bucket added to the groundwater.

Milind Padhye, Flexi Templates, Mumbai
We have started a small green initiative where we offer a range of eco-friendly products on our website with the aim – reduce, reuse and recycle. The products include paper pens, recycled pen stands, and tea coasters. We aimed to reduce the carbon footprint of our office after looking at the facts and statistics about plastic and paper waste that people are generating every year. So we worked on simple recyclable office stationeries, which are usually thrown away after use. We’ve also put up a range of such products on our website. After we finalised the range of products, we started working on how to produce them cost-effectively, keeping the objectives of our initiative. We started collecting used newspapers, rolled them into straws and used them to make coasters and pen stands. We used water-based coating so that these products can last up to three to five years. The paper pens are hand-rolled craft papers with a refill inside, which encompasses plant seeds on the rear tip of the pen. Remove the used refill, plant the pen (which has seeds) into the earth. Water regularly. As the paper decomposes, a plant will emerge. So, in other terms, you are planting a tree with each pen. The adhesive used in these pens is water-based and natural. By introducing these products, we are trying to reduce our carbon footprint and inculcate a habit of reducing plastic or paper wastage from simple desk items used in our day to day life. With these initiatives, plastic footprint gets reduced, newspapers are reused, and trees are being planted. Also, after using these products, people are encouraging their families and social circles to adopt the same, which multiplies the small impact that we are trying to bring here.

Milind Padhye, Flexi Templates, Mumbai

We have started a small green initiative where we offer a range of eco-friendly products on our website with the aim – reduce, reuse and recycle. The products include paper pens, recycled pen stands, and tea coasters.

We aimed to reduce the carbon footprint of our office after looking at the facts and statistics about plastic and paper waste that people are generating every year. So we worked on simple recyclable office stationeries, which are usually thrown away after use. We’ve also put up a range of such products on our website.

After we finalised the range of products, we started working on how to produce them cost-effectively, keeping the objectives of our initiative. We started collecting used newspapers, rolled them into straws and used them to make coasters and pen stands. We used water-based coating so that these products can last up to three to five years.

The paper pens are hand-rolled craft papers with a refill inside, which encompasses plant seeds on the rear tip of the pen. Remove the used refill, plant the pen (which has seeds) into the earth. Water regularly. As the paper decomposes, a plant will emerge. So, in other terms, you are planting a tree with each pen. The adhesive used in these pens is water-based and natural.

By introducing these products, we are trying to reduce our carbon footprint and inculcate a habit of reducing plastic or paper wastage from simple desk items used in our day to day life.

With these initiatives, plastic footprint gets reduced, newspapers are reused, and trees are being planted. Also, after using these products, people are encouraging their families and social circles to adopt the same, which multiplies the small impact that we are trying to bring here.

Meeta Shah, A&M Enterprise, Ahmedabad
You don't necessarily need extra time or money or the powers of a superhero to do your part to look after the planet. Simple changes in your everyday life are all it takes to make your home a healthier, safer, greener place. But, human beings are creatures of habit, and change takes time. Begin with small steps. We have developed ready-to-be-planted mango saplings at our residence. My husband, Dr Ashish Kayastha (in pic), can provide around 50-70 one-feet tall mango saplings along with consultancy, free-of-cost. These are simple steps that anybody can follow. Just a few minutes from your daily schedule, and some awareness can help us make our society green and environmental-friendly. Our next generations will benefit from such activities. We also try to motivate people in and around the area where we reside to plant trees. After we finish our daily work, we start working in our residential garden. For my husband, gardening is an activity which keeps him fit and healthy; and serves his motive for green environment. We believe that not only humans but also birds and animals can benefit from such activities. Due to such plantations at our residence, several peacocks, monkeys and other birds enjoy the shades and fruits every season.

Meeta Shah, A&M Enterprise, Ahmedabad

You don't necessarily need extra time or money or the powers of a superhero to do your part to look after the planet. Simple changes in your everyday life are all it takes to make your home a healthier, safer, greener place. But, human beings are creatures of habit, and change takes time. Begin with small steps.

We have developed ready-to-be-planted mango saplings at our residence. My husband, Dr Ashish Kayastha (in pic), can provide around 50-70 one-feet tall mango saplings along with consultancy, free-of-cost.

These are simple steps that anybody can follow. Just a few minutes from your daily schedule, and some awareness can help us make our society green and environmental-friendly. Our next generations will benefit from such activities.

We also try to motivate people in and around the area where we reside to plant trees.

After we finish our daily work, we start working in our residential garden. For my husband, gardening is an activity which keeps him fit and healthy; and serves his motive for green environment.

We believe that not only humans but also birds and animals can benefit from such activities. Due to such plantations at our residence, several peacocks, monkeys and other birds enjoy the shades and fruits every season.

Animesh Kejriwal, Parksons Graphics, Mumbai
The most crucial aspect for any improvement is benchmarking. Using our power tracking systems, we can monitor exactly how much power each department is consuming daily. It enables us to invest in power-saving technologies and monitor improvement. As we understand the implications of our investments, we learn from our successes and failures and can continuously reduce our power consumption. Hence, this system forms a strong foundation for all our efforts. We continuously research and implement new technology to reduce our resource consumption. Variable Frequency Drive compressor system has been installed to match the supply of air with our variable demand in production. Using a more expensive aluminium piping loop for the compressed air has reduced leakages in the system, thereby further reducing the compressed air generation requirement. We use a sewage treatment plant to treat wastewater, and the output is used for gardening purposes, thereby reducing our water requirement. We have also installed an insulation layer in our printing room to reduce our air-conditioning load, thereby reducing our power consumption. We are an FSC Chain of Custody company. It gives us the capability of utilising FSC certified paper for the books we manufacture, knowing that they come from sustainable and well-managed forests.

Animesh Kejriwal, Parksons Graphics, Mumbai

The most crucial aspect for any improvement is benchmarking. Using our power tracking systems, we can monitor exactly how much power each department is consuming daily. It enables us to invest in power-saving technologies and monitor improvement. As we understand the implications of our investments, we learn from our successes and failures and can continuously reduce our power consumption. Hence, this system forms a strong foundation for all our efforts.

We continuously research and implement new technology to reduce our resource consumption. Variable Frequency Drive compressor system has been installed to match the supply of air with our variable demand in production. Using a more expensive aluminium piping loop for the compressed air has reduced leakages in the system, thereby further reducing the compressed air generation requirement.

We use a sewage treatment plant to treat wastewater, and the output is used for gardening purposes, thereby reducing our water requirement. We have also installed an insulation layer in our printing room to reduce our air-conditioning load, thereby reducing our power consumption.

We are an FSC Chain of Custody company. It gives us the capability of utilising FSC certified paper for the books we manufacture, knowing that they come from sustainable and well-managed forests.

Peter Anil Rego, Brilliant Printers, Bengaluru
Over a period of few years, we have undertaken many green initiatives such as rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharging, recycling of domestic and industrial wastewater, hazardous waste management and disposal, migration from fluorescent and metal halide lamps to energy efficient LED lamps, filter press for ETP sludge, and dry filtration system for colouring booth. All the ideas implemented were the result of our sustained focus and commitment towards the environment and society. Rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharging are complex projects. We hired an expert and conducted a detailed site survey to execute these projects. For recycling wastewater, we have set up effluent treatment plants and sewage treatment plants by closely working with industry experts. We have ensured that these plants cater to the required demands in terms of capacity and process quality. Hazardous waste management and disposal is a crucial initiative to ensure that hazardous waste is scientifically stored and disposed of with minimal impact on the environment. We have earmarked dedicated locations, devised compliant storage methodology to store different kinds of hazardous wastes. The waste is regularly disposed of after following the prescribed procedure laid down by the government authorised agencies and with all necessary documentation. We also decided to migrate from fluorescent and metal halide lamps to LED lamps considering energy efficiency and positive impact on the environment. We installed filter press for effluent treatment plants and dry filtration system for colouring booths after consulting with environmental consultants and filtration system experts respectively. With 3.3-lakh litre storage tank, harvested water is used for gardening and landscaping. We have designed a system where not a single drop of water flows out of the facility. We also ensure that water flowing in from the adjacent national highway into our plant is recharged to the ground. This initiative also renews the groundwater table in the five-kilometre radius around our plant, thereby ensuring good water availability in the surrounding areas. Recycling of wastewater also ensures lesser demand for freshwater drawn from the ground and secures long term sustainability of plant operations. Such an initiative ensures compliance with the statutory requirements, too. Scientific management and disposal of hazardous waste ensure non-pollution of land, water and air. Energy efficient LED lamps have a longer life compared to fluorescent and metal halide lamps. It ensures lesser e-waste generation, disposal, and reduced power consumption. Sludge from the effluent treatment plant was in semi-solid wet form during the initial process. By implementing a filter press, we ensured a more comfortable operation, no manual intervention, thus reducing the impact on human health. The sludge is compacted and dried, ensuring lesser amount of waste by weight and volume for landfill and thereby reducing the demand of creating more landfills. Meanwhile, dry filters ensure that the air coming out of the process will have particulate matter size of less than 50 microns, thereby ensuring an ambient atmosphere not being polluted. For business, it is a step closer towards statutory compliance. The best things that came out of these initiatives are fully compliant, safe and sustainable operations. It also reflects our concern for environment preservation for future generations.

Peter Anil Rego, Brilliant Printers, Bengaluru

Over a period of few years, we have undertaken many green initiatives such as rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharging, recycling of domestic and industrial wastewater, hazardous waste management and disposal, migration from fluorescent and metal halide lamps to energy efficient LED lamps, filter press for ETP sludge, and dry filtration system for colouring booth.

All the ideas implemented were the result of our sustained focus and commitment towards the environment and society.

Rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharging are complex projects. We hired an expert and conducted a detailed site survey to execute these projects. For recycling wastewater, we have set up effluent treatment plants and sewage treatment plants by closely working with industry experts. We have ensured that these plants cater to the required demands in terms of capacity and process quality.

Hazardous waste management and disposal is a crucial initiative to ensure that hazardous waste is scientifically stored and disposed of with minimal impact on the environment. We have earmarked dedicated locations, devised compliant storage methodology to store different kinds of hazardous wastes. The waste is regularly disposed of after following the prescribed procedure laid down by the government authorised agencies and with all necessary documentation.

We also decided to migrate from fluorescent and metal halide lamps to LED lamps considering energy efficiency and positive impact on the environment. We installed filter press for effluent treatment plants and dry filtration system for colouring booths after consulting with environmental consultants and filtration system experts respectively.

With 3.3-lakh litre storage tank, harvested water is used for gardening and landscaping. We have designed a system where not a single drop of water flows out of the facility. We also ensure that water flowing in from the adjacent national highway into our plant is recharged to the ground. This initiative also renews the groundwater table in the five-kilometre radius around our plant, thereby ensuring good water availability in the surrounding areas.

Recycling of wastewater also ensures lesser demand for freshwater drawn from the ground and secures long term sustainability of plant operations. Such an initiative ensures compliance with the statutory requirements, too.

Scientific management and disposal of hazardous waste ensure non-pollution of land, water and air. Energy efficient LED lamps have a longer life compared to fluorescent and metal halide lamps. It ensures lesser e-waste generation, disposal, and reduced power consumption.

Sludge from the effluent treatment plant was in semi-solid wet form during the initial process. By implementing a filter press, we ensured a more comfortable operation, no manual intervention, thus reducing the impact on human health. The sludge is compacted and dried, ensuring lesser amount of waste by weight and volume for landfill and thereby reducing the demand of creating more landfills.

Meanwhile, dry filters ensure that the air coming out of the process will have particulate matter size of less than 50 microns, thereby ensuring an ambient atmosphere not being polluted. For business, it is a step closer towards statutory compliance.

The best things that came out of these initiatives are fully compliant, safe and sustainable operations. It also reflects our concern for environment preservation for future generations.

Milap Shah, Printstop, Mumbai
Most of the initiatives are at a personal level, very few items at the company level. At Printstop we have installed water aerators across all taps. These water aerators reduce the speed of water flow from 15 lpm to 3 lpm (litres per minute). We offer recycled paper options to customers, and internal communication plastic envelops are replaced with paper envelopes. We try and persuade our customers against the use of lamination unless it is absolutely necessary. At a personal level, I have made it a practice to carry my own water bottle so that I minimise plastic bottle use. It’s been seven years now. As in the office, water aerators are installed on all taps at home. Besides, I push all my friends to install them. And yes, moved from a shower to a bucket bath.

Milap Shah, Printstop, Mumbai

Most of the initiatives are at a personal level, very few items at the company level.

At Printstop we have installed water aerators across all taps. These water aerators reduce the speed of water flow from 15 lpm to 3 lpm (litres per minute).

We offer recycled paper options to customers, and internal communication plastic envelops are replaced with paper envelopes. We try and persuade our customers against the use of lamination unless it is absolutely necessary.

At a personal level, I have made it a practice to carry my own water bottle so that I minimise plastic bottle use. It’s been seven years now. As in the office, water aerators are installed on all taps at home.

Besides, I push all my friends to install them. And yes, moved from a shower to a bucket bath.

The Green Watchdog - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

Noel D'Cunha — Sun, 30 Jun 2019 09:50:00

B Manoharan, Hitech Print Systems, Andhra Pradesh
We’ve commissioned a 160KWph solar plant with panels over the sheds at our second plant in Telengana, Hyderabad – 24,000 sq.ft. on Block 1 and 13,000 sq.ft. on Block 2 – for captive requirement, reducing the draw of power from state grid to almost nil. Frequent power failures resulted in several breakdowns, which also negatively affected the functioning of our machines. However, the area where our plant is located is very high on solar efficiency, which made us look into the solar project. The plant was installed with the help of our expert team. We’ve also planted over 300 trees, including mango saplings, along the internal roads and buildings. We’ve also incorporated interlocking tiles for the rainwater to reach the ground. The site where the plant is located was once a dry and rocky land. So, to improve the environment and air quality for those working in that premises, we planted 300 trees in two phases — 115 in the first phase and 185 on the occasion of Harithaharam, an initiative by Telengana State Government on August 7, 2018. We even sought help from a horticulture expert for finding out suitable trees that could grow in that area. Thereafter, we involved our entire workforce to plant the trees, which was tagged with names of each employee who would then take care of the tree every day. By using solar power, we managed to reduce power consumption from the grid, which relies mainly on coal to generate electricity. Meanwhile, the trees along the road until the plant provide shadow and fresh air, thus contributing to greenery and clean environment. With a strong commitment to improving the environment in and around the workplace, every manufacturing industry can contribute to a better environment and a better world.

B Manoharan, Hitech Print Systems, Andhra Pradesh

We’ve commissioned a 160KWph solar plant with panels over the sheds at our second plant in Telengana, Hyderabad – 24,000 sq.ft. on Block 1 and 13,000 sq.ft. on Block 2 – for captive requirement, reducing the draw of power from state grid to almost nil.

Frequent power failures resulted in several breakdowns, which also negatively affected the functioning of our machines. However, the area where our plant is located is very high on solar efficiency, which made us look into the solar project. The plant was installed with the help of our expert team.

We’ve also planted over 300 trees, including mango saplings, along the internal roads and buildings. We’ve also incorporated interlocking tiles for the rainwater to reach the ground. The site where the plant is located was once a dry and rocky land. So, to improve the environment and air quality for those working in that premises, we planted 300 trees in two phases — 115 in the first phase and 185 on the occasion of Harithaharam, an initiative by Telengana State Government on August 7, 2018.

We even sought help from a horticulture expert for finding out suitable trees that could grow in that area. Thereafter, we involved our entire workforce to plant the trees, which was tagged with names of each employee who would then take care of the tree every day.

By using solar power, we managed to reduce power consumption from the grid, which relies mainly on coal to generate electricity. Meanwhile, the trees along the road until the plant provide shadow and fresh air, thus contributing to greenery and clean environment.

With a strong commitment to improving the environment in and around the workplace, every manufacturing industry can contribute to a better environment and a better world.

K Selvakumar, Lovely Offset Printers, Sivakasi
We took several small steps to make our factory more environment-friendly. First was the reduction of waste in every possible way. We sourced materials in the right size to avoid trimming and reduced process waste through technology, training and constant monitoring. We also reduced power consumption, avoided air leaks and unnecessary usage of solvents and other hazardous chemicals in our factory. We have about 2000KW of wind power and 100KW of solar power generators to generate green energy. Our entire plant has been equipped only with LED lamps. We have created two Miyawaki forests with roughly 1,000 trees and are planning to plant another 6,000 trees depending on the climatic conditions. We also water the trees and plants within our factory with water recycled from our toilets. We also have an extensive rainwater harvesting system, which is very helpful in maintaining the groundwater level in this water-starved area. The idea was born out of necessity. It is the responsibility of every human being to reduce the carbon footprint. We started this journey several years ago. We translated this idea into reality through hard work and perseverance. The idea enabled a definite reduction of greenhouse gases and solid waste. This not only is environmentally friendly but also improves profitability in the long run. Apart from the satisfaction of doing something good, the awareness created among our employees is encouraging. I hope we will be able to go further.

K Selvakumar, Lovely Offset Printers, Sivakasi

We took several small steps to make our factory more environment-friendly. First was the reduction of waste in every possible way. We sourced materials in the right size to avoid trimming and reduced process waste through technology, training and constant monitoring. We also reduced power consumption, avoided air leaks and unnecessary usage of solvents and other hazardous chemicals in our factory.

We have about 2000KW of wind power and 100KW of solar power generators to generate green energy. Our entire plant has been equipped only with LED lamps. We have created two Miyawaki forests with roughly 1,000 trees and are planning to plant another 6,000 trees depending on the climatic conditions. We also water the trees and plants within our factory with water recycled from our toilets. We also have an extensive rainwater harvesting system, which is very helpful in maintaining the groundwater level in this water-starved area.

The idea was born out of necessity. It is the responsibility of every human being to reduce the carbon footprint. We started this journey several years ago. We translated this idea into reality through hard work and perseverance.

The idea enabled a definite reduction of greenhouse gases and solid waste. This not only is environmentally friendly but also improves profitability in the long run. Apart from the satisfaction of doing something good, the awareness created among our employees is encouraging. I hope we will be able to go further.

RC Gupta, Suraj Digital Offset, Bastar, Chhattisgarh
We have been recycling waste papers, aluminium sheets, electronic goods, and almost all the waste materials since the beginning of our business. The idea is to use everything to its fullest and waste less. We work as a family and have asked each and every staff to contribute their part towards the environment. We are doing our best to contribute towards environment-friendly ways of printing, keeping our environment and society green. There is a proverb: The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. We have taken our small steps hoping everyone will join us on this initiative.

RC Gupta, Suraj Digital Offset, Bastar, Chhattisgarh

We have been recycling waste papers, aluminium sheets, electronic goods, and almost all the waste materials since the beginning of our business. The idea is to use everything to its fullest and waste less.

We work as a family and have asked each and every staff to contribute their part towards the environment. We are doing our best to contribute towards environment-friendly ways of printing, keeping our environment and society green.

There is a proverb: The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. We have taken our small steps hoping everyone will join us on this initiative.

Pravin Savla, JP Printers, Mumbai
We use water-based inks in our digital machine and have selected an eco-friendly machine instead of other machines available in the market, keeping in mind the harmful effects of chemical inks. With this, we were able to reduce the toxic levels of chemicals that can increase the risk of cancer and other ailments caused due to the chemical inks. Our printed labels or pouches are fit for food contact packaging and do not harm the user.

Pravin Savla, JP Printers, Mumbai

We use water-based inks in our digital machine and have selected an eco-friendly machine instead of other machines available in the market, keeping in mind the harmful effects of chemical inks.

With this, we were able to reduce the toxic levels of chemicals that can increase the risk of cancer and other ailments caused due to the chemical inks. Our printed labels or pouches are fit for food contact packaging and do not harm the user.

Anuj Bhargava, Kumar Labels, New Delhi
We invented a technology called Single Release with Two Facestocks (SRTF). This reduces label material-related environmental pollution by 50% and it is growing and spreading each day. Soon this would be an industry standard. Release liners are not recyclable. When incinerated, it emits harmful gases. Liners are more expensive than face materials. While playing around with a label one day, we realised that the back side of the liner was unutilised, and then the story began. It was a long, painful journey of three years. From feasibility test to filing patents, to fighting perceptions and notions, we got the first installation done in 2016. It is 50% less polluting and 20% more economical. With this initiative, people have started believing that nothing is impossible.

Anuj Bhargava, Kumar Labels, New Delhi

We invented a technology called Single Release with Two Facestocks (SRTF). This reduces label material-related environmental pollution by 50% and it is growing and spreading each day. Soon this would be an industry standard.

Release liners are not recyclable. When incinerated, it emits harmful gases. Liners are more expensive than face materials. While playing around with a label one day, we realised that the back side of the liner was unutilised, and then the story began.

It was a long, painful journey of three years. From feasibility test to filing patents, to fighting perceptions and notions, we got the first installation done in 2016. It is 50% less polluting and 20% more economical.

With this initiative, people have started believing that nothing is impossible.

D Balaji, Trail Blazer, Bengaluru
Two years ago, we installed solar rooftop panels on our premises. We have installed 120 panels of 360W, generating a total of 43.5 kWA. These are bifacial panels, which take direct sun rays and also their reflection. The idea was born because we have been reading a lot about climate change. The initiative’s benefits to environment and society are immense because the panels generate as much as 5,000 to 7,000 units of electricity a month. They are the only answer to fight climate change. The best thing that came out of this initiative was only the ‘wow’ factor. We expected much more.

D Balaji, Trail Blazer, Bengaluru

Two years ago, we installed solar rooftop panels on our premises. We have installed 120 panels of 360W, generating a total of 43.5 kWA. These are bifacial panels, which take direct sun rays and also their reflection.

The idea was born because we have been reading a lot about climate change. The initiative’s benefits to environment and society are immense because the panels generate as much as 5,000 to 7,000 units of electricity a month. They are the only answer to fight climate change.

The best thing that came out of this initiative was only the ‘wow’ factor. We expected much more.

Apurv Mittal, Jauhari Printers, Varanasi
Air-conditioner, which has now become a necessity for everyday life, was invented for the printing industry. This marvellous invention produces water, which is generally drained. We re-use this water to wash the rollers. We noticed that the air-conditioner pours out a large amount of water, which, if utilised, could help reduce the water consumption on a daily basis. We installed a separate water tank for storing the water flowing out from the air-conditioner and then use that water to wash the rollers. By using the water excreted by air-conditioners, there is no extra burden put on the water sources. The business also gets an advantage, because electricity consumption is reduced as the water pump is used less. The society, as a whole, gets to use the water saved by us. This small initiative helps in the sustainable development of environment and would lead to a supply of water in water-stressed areas.

Apurv Mittal, Jauhari Printers, Varanasi

Air-conditioner, which has now become a necessity for everyday life, was invented for the printing industry. This marvellous invention produces water, which is generally drained. We re-use this water to wash the rollers.

We noticed that the air-conditioner pours out a large amount of water, which, if utilised, could help reduce the water consumption on a daily basis.

We installed a separate water tank for storing the water flowing out from the air-conditioner and then use that water to wash the rollers.

By using the water excreted by air-conditioners, there is no extra burden put on the water sources. The business also gets an advantage, because electricity consumption is reduced as the water pump is used less. The society, as a whole, gets to use the water saved by us.

This small initiative helps in the sustainable development of environment and would lead to a supply of water in water-stressed areas.

Malayala Manorama opens Asia’s first wind farm among newspapers - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

Noel D'Cunha — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 09:50:00

PrintWeek India (PWI): When and how was the wind energy project born?

George Jacob (GJ): In our newspaper columns, we have been encouraging the government and readers to use alternative energy as applicable. Some readers wrote to us asking whether we were practising what we preached. So, in 2015, we set up three rooftop solar systems at three of our print units totalling 310 kW. Encouraged by the results, we decided to set up a renewable energy project which would cater to the full energy needs of all the ten plants/offices.

PWI: How did you look at the economic and ecological benefits?

GJ: Over seven to ten years, we will recover the money spent. Wind was preferred over solar due to the cost of land required and higher plant load factor (PLF).

PWI: On which the land area did you implement the project?

GJ: It's in the Palakkad gap area.

PWI: Right now, how many of MM's print production sites will deploy wind energy?

GJ: The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) will wheel the power to all our plants/offices. It will levy a wheeling charge and a percentage for losses. The energy generation is at Palakkad.

PWI: Who is your energy supplier for the project?

GJ: We have set up the project on our own. The equipment/project implementation was done by Siemens Gamesa India (the Indian subsidiary of the Spanish company).

PWI: How many wind turbines drive MM's manufacturing capability?

GJ: We have five, 2-MW wind turbines totalling to10-MW.

PWI: What kind of regulatory clearances are required?

GJ: Clearances are required from Agency for Non-conventional Energy and Rural Technology (ANERT) for site suitability and the KSEB. However, KSEB is not final but we are told a draft agreement is ready for discussion.

PWI: Will the wind energy project be able to fulfil the requirement of a newspaper print production plant? How are you planning to expand your wind energy generation in the future?

GJ: We estimate 100% of our energy consumption will be fulfilled by this project. We have three vacant sites available for expansion if needed (6-MW).

PWI: Will some of the wind power electricity be purchased from elsewhere?

GJ: Hopefully, we will not need to buy additional power from elsewhere.

PWI: Is there any difference between the quality and calibre of conventional power and wind power? Is it a reliable and capable source of power for a newspaper production site against conventional sources of energy? For example, voltage fluctuation?

GJ: Power is power; there will be no difference to the end user. Power produced from the wind energy is pumped into the KSEB grid at the point of generation, where it is not distinguishable. If the power is not of appropriate voltage or frequency, it will not be accepted into the grid. In any case, we will continue to receive power from the KSEB grid if the wind power is not available. This power may consist of either hydel, imported/thermal, wind, solar energy or a mix of all.

PWI: Did you hire experts from outside of your company to implement the project or the internal team was capable enough to manage it?

GJ: The project was implemented by our in-house team with inputs from all the competing vendors and final implementation by Siemens Gamesa India. Our team made visits to various wind farms and factories of all the vendors.

PWI: In 2014, India was fifth in terms of the total capacity of wind power generation (22,500-MW) after the US, China, Germany and Spain. India is the country with the highest growth in newspapers. How do you relate the equation?

GJ: There is no correlation between the growth or decline of newspapers and alternative energy. In the West, the newspaper industry declined while alternative energy production grew.

PWI: Wind resource is the backbone of any wind energy project. How do you calculate your wind resource? You have said, you will be 100% consuming solar energy out of your total spend in 2019 – 2020? How will this work?

GJ: Our project is located in the Palakkad Gap area – a mountain pass in the Western Ghats. It has been a perennial source of wind till date; many wind farms operate on the Tamil Nadu side of the ghat. Climate change permitting, we hope the same pattern will continue.

PWI: Two years ago, when PrintWeek India visited two of your factories, we realised there is a lot of thought given to energy-efficient lighting to reduce energy consumption. You had unified the lighting standards and replaced indoor lighting with energy efficient plus usage of exterior halogen lights. How has this helped?

GJ:

For years we have been conscious of our growing energy bills. The first issue to be tackled was power factor improvement; around 15-20 years ago, equipment was a significant power load. We also have voltage improvement systems for the grid supply. Next was an appropriate cable choice to reduce voltage drops. Lighting was next on the list – from incandescent lamps to tube lights to halogen and now LED's, the energy saving potential continues.

We use heat pumps to heat water up to 75 degrees using the ambient heat in the air before the water is converted into steam for cooking with electricity. We are looking at regenerative heating to utilise the waste heat in the exhaust of our heatset presses.

It’s simple math, a rupee saved is a rupee gained.

PWI: PrintWeek India was told about how MM monitors machinery for being overworked or requiring maintenance, or when a distribution wiring needs re-routing. Plus power usage and whether it was billed correctly. What is the system you follow?

GJ: Worn-out machinery increases power consumption. We did an audit of some of our plants using IFRA India services with a German consultant. This may become a yearly feature. Distribution wiring, switches have to be audited regularly as loose connections can cause arcing/sparking and are a fire hazard in addition to energy losses. Regular audits are a must.

IRS Q01- MALAYALA MANORAMA">

In the IRS Q1 2019 survey report, Malayala Manorama was at the fourth spot among the Top 20 Dailies on the basis of Average Issue Readership (AIR); and at the top in the regional segment with 97.58-lakh AIR

Gautham Pai: How I see things going forward ...

Noel D'Cunha — Sun, 09 Jun 2019 10:00:00

Excerpts from the speech
In India, it’s been a little challenging due to multiple factors. First, there was a demonetisation. Then, many issues crept up with the introduction of GST. And then, for the Kerala printers, the flood was a huge setback. But, I think barring this if you look at it from a macro perspective, India has been an exciting place for businesses compared to most places.

First, there is the population dividend – more than 50% of our population is below the age of 25. So I think it’s a new India, even though Indians have always been entrepreneurial. Regrettably, colonisation and the entire license raj destroyed entrepreneurship in India. It decimated our confidence.
During dinner, a print owner shared his story. When his father handed over the business to him, the dad said, “I’ll hand over the business to you, but you cannot take any loans.” When the son stepped out, he got a loan issued without informing his father that he was borrowing money from friends. That was the start of his journey.

That’s why I think entrepreneurship is one of the biggest and most exciting factors in India. And we are really going back to our glory days of the 1700s when India boasted 25% of the world’s GDP. Likewise, China. Today we are accelerating. In the next decade, we will be among the top three or third largest economies of the world. This is due to the entrepreneurial genes in our blood. I see a return with a new sense of confidence.
Whether it’s the entrepreneurs in India starting new businesses or people across the world who have been building global businesses, in the previous generation being an entrepreneur was the last choice. Everyone aspired to be a professional – a doctor or engineer. Today, being an entrepreneur is the first choice. And parents are supportive of it. Failure is accepted. It is not seen as a taboo.

The print economic
The per capita income in India has been growing over the last ten years. In 2009, it was USD 1,100. Last year, it was about USD 1900 - and is expected to be USD 2,700 in the next three years. Good news? Yes. But this is versus China’s per capita income of USD 8,000. So, India is ten years behind China. The significance of this is that when the per capita income goes beyond a tipping point, we have extra money to spend. Till then, the basic needs are taken care of. So, when that surplus money is spent, we start visiting restaurants and going to movies. Then, we purchase things and drive consumption in India.

The per capita consumption of paper in India is low. It’s about 11kg versus China’s 75kg annual consumption. From mobile phones to magazines, the consumption spend is on the rise. Now if the purchase is an online product, then that product has to be packaged. Nowadays, most homes have one or two boxes being delivered from Amazon or Flipkart. A lot of that product is packaged much differently than in the traditional store. It doesn’t require a lot of carton structure but a robust corrugated box. So we have to be aware of the consumer trends and understand where the customer is spending money, what their expectations are, and how we need to tweak our process. Sounds easy; but as they say, being prophetic about the future is easy, getting it right is tough.
How do we make the right prediction? When Henry Ford wanted to set up the automobile business and make cars, his banker advised the president of Michigan’s banks in 1903 that automobiles are a fad and horse carriages are here to stay.

Now, look at what is happening. Uber and Ola are disrupting the automobile business. But if you look at the underlying cause and effect, the need for transportation remains. The business model may change. But the need for transportation survives.

Print and Beyond: Pai (second left), with panelists Ramu Ramanathan, Prakash Shetty of Bizongo, and B Prasad of Printech Digital Imaging

Print diversity
So how do we look at our businesses? The point is, the print industry is not a single entity. It produces an array of specialised forms of products - commercial print products, labels, OOH etc.

It’s like a foreigner who arrives in India and says he wants to eat Indian food. But Indian cuisine is diverse; each state has its own gastronomical specialisation. In fact, within a state like Karnataka, there are four distinct types of food. There is the Shetty, Bunt, Konkani and Brahmin style of food preparation.

The print is as diverse. I think we need to examine each industry individually and study its dynamics of growth, technology, process, end customer, etc. Today, why are a lot of commercial printing companies diversifying into packaging? There is a notion that packaging will never disappear. Thus, to safeguard one’s business, they foray into the packaging. Thus, an offset sheetfed printer adds a folder-gluer and die cutting plus some fancy finishing kit, and they can build a packaging plant. Many companies are doing it. Ultimately it becomes so competitive that it doesn’t change the situation.

Investing in packaging is not bad, but we need to explore where there is hunger. And therefore, to use the restaurant metaphor, we need hungry people. Whether you serve a basic quality of food or you are a gourmet restaurant, not having hungry people does not help.
Whichever industry you are in, finding hungry people is of utmost importance.

Evolve to meet print needs
When the telecom boom transpired in 2006-2007, we were primarily into commercial print. Also, we had security print, which meant printing cheque books, share certificates, business forms such as couriers and labels. So when the telecom boom occurred, our research suggested India is going to be a prepaid market and we need to look at recharge telephone cards.

Most people didn’t agree with us. After all, what does a printing company know about manufacturing cards, it’s a different process. It’s a lot about die cutting, variable data, etc. But it turned out to be a great business. And in a short time, that business prospered from zero to Rs 80 crore.
During that time we had customers from Mumbai sitting at our plant, as they needed to run their business and they couldn’t do it without having recharge cards. Thus, instead of my team chasing customers, the telecom bigwigs were seated in Manipal and offering to pay extra to produce our cards first.
However, there’s a downside to this.

The entire business shifted into digital space. Today that card businesses is zero. Rs 80 crore to zero. It is the same as other businesses. For example, we produced food coupons where the Government distributes coupons and the citizens, instead of visiting the ration shop, could accrue direct benefits from the food coupons. Again, it used to be a Rs 50-crore business. Today it is zero. Likewise one of our biggest businesses of printing telephone directories is zero.
So there are segments which are growing, but there are segments which have disappeared and more will continue to disappear. Always keep that in mind.

How do you grow?
The big question is, how do you look at the industry going forward?
Our team thought about the end application. Say it is a food coupon, then what is it being used for? And is there something which we can do to disrupt the noise? Or has someone altered the market? Then we ask ourselves, can we create a leadership position? Let me illustrate. When I joined the company, it was called Manipal Power Press. Then it was called Manipal Press. Because at one point of time, Manipal Power Press was actually one of the top three in the country in commercial painting. This was in the mid-90s. Then it lost focus. No investment, so that business did not grow.

We got our first four colour machine in the early 2000s. When I joined the business, like every young adult, I wanted to grow it. But how do we do it? What are the various segments in print? How do we provide better solutions to the customers?
To answer these questions, we started developing more knowledge- and application-based solutions. Hence, our goal for the next five-seven years was to gain 30%-40% in revenue from our solutions and products.

This transformation started by renaming the company, Manipal Technologies, and it has been an interesting journey ever since.
An example of our transition was how we printed bank cheques. Back then, this banking instrument was used extensively, but because of India’s growth and development, the usage of cheques decreased. We needed to evolve. Therefore we tapped into a tiny market at that time: credit and debit cards. We understood the printing part of this project, but we had limited knowledge in plastic and the entire process of creating these cards. So to reduce our learning curve we partnered with a company who had more experience in the processing of the cards.
After working on this for 22 months, we had a 60% market share in the banking industry!

Change is constant
As technology develops, India evolves. Today, the country is migrating to mobile-based transactions, such as UPI (United Payment Interface) and Aadhar.
We had to change with the times. We set up a business in virtual cards. These are credit cards, but with security. Plus they can be accessed through your mobile phones.

This worked very well in urban India. However, in rural India, we needed to find another solution. So we set up an acquiring business where we enable merchants to make minimal digital payments.
We started acting on this plan eight months ago. And now we have about 75,000 merchants in rural India. We have built on this ecosystem, and have enabled the same merchants to do mobile recharging as well. While developing a solution, always look at the end application.
Another example was creating a solution to avoid situations such as standing in long queues and waiting for days just to open a new bank account. The answer to this was building a kiosk.

The State Bank of India started a new venture called In Touch branches. The customer can insert his fingerprint through his Aadhar card, and a new bank account will be created within minutes. The customer walks off with a personalised debit card and a cheque book, within five minutes. By providing the cards, cheque books and maintaining the machines, we were protecting our print business.
Another way to develop solutions is by answering the question: What capabilities do we have as an organisation – what additional capabilities /competence, we need to acquire to meet market demand?

As an individual company, we could print the credit cards. But we did not know how to proceed with the manufacturing process. So we found a partner to create a joint venture. Now we have a team that produces printed electronic products, like EL displays, printed heaters and other products. But, we don’t have a market connect to that industry, as of yet. Currently, we are trying to build it (competence has to be acquired or built).
We deployed our printing, screen printing, and laminating machines. Also, we hired people with materials science experience. This gave a lot of exposure to the current team in terms of printed electronics. We tied up with educational institutions such as IIT Kanpur. We hired two people who invested a lot of money in their own lab. Because we cut down on costs over there, we started a small lab at MIT (Manipal Institute of Technologies). This is an example of how we can tap into what we have and build a better and more connected market.

ITC has created an excellent distribution system with its cigarette business. They took advantage of their Peshawari cooks in their hotels and developed that into packaged food. This sells like hotcakes. They combined their strengths, acquired some land and built a packaging food business. This is a good example of how a business can grow.

Team KMPA with speakers during the annual Print and Beyond seminar in Kochi

Customer relationship is an asset
There are three parts of the business that can take place in today’s day. The first part, as I mentioned earlier, look at what the end application is. Ask yourself – is there space in that sector? How can I change that industry? Is the area that I want to work in right for me?
We underestimate the assets we have. The relationship with a client is an asset; understanding the local geography is also an asset. Today, it’s not merely the physical asset that is important. We need to pay attention to intangible assets which are sometimes ignored and taken for granted.
During the KMPA get-together, someone asked me about the number of printing equipment and kit we own. My answer to the question as I do not get involved in buying machines because they perform the same way. The only factor that I focus on is the people we hire because that is more valuable. This drives the business.
Finding a specialisation is important. To focus on one area is crucial because of the competitive nature of our industry. We have two options, create a niche or scale up and become more dominant. In between these two options is where the big problem lies. When we get into mid-sized businesses, we have a different cost structure (higher fixed cost ), We are neither here nor there. But if you’re niche we are small; we can still be extremely profitable. Or we have to really scale to a large size.

Always have clarity about your situation. At the end of the day, providing a five-star experience to the client is what matters the most. Once you stay in a five-star hotel multiple times, staying in a lodge becomes uncomfortable. That is the kind of experience that you need to provide to your client. It should be impossible for the client to go to another company. You need to make sure that they return to you. And if they shift to another company, it should feel like a downgrade for the client.

Amazon is a perfect example of excellent customer service. They have built their business entirely on customer experience; everything else is secondary.
As our economy is growing, the industry becomes competitive. All of us are competing at three levels, knowing or unknowingly. The first level is competing for ideas. The second level is competing at an operational level i.e. execution of the idea, and the third level is competing for resources. It can be resources from the bank or an investor. In order to build a scalable business, we have to win at all three levels.
Being open-minded and learning from others is most important. We should be open to ideas and should consider other people’s opinions. Arguing with one another is okay as long as we do it with the intent of learning rather than proving the other person, wrong.

Message to the print industry
Finally, my message is that print is in a truly exciting field. But, we have to rethink the terrain that we play in. And above all, work on giving the customer what is required.
Learning from one another and being open-minded is what we need. We have a fantastic opportunity to build this industry and take it to greater heights.
Thank you.

The paper conundrum - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

Noel D'Cunha — Fri, 07 Sep 2018 23:19:00

A storm of global events has resulted in long lead times for most of the paper grades – with mills resorting to an allocation for the first time in over a decade.

Printers and paper buyers have been warned to plan for the rest of the year.

The combination of factors affecting the supply of graphical papers, packaging boards, boards of disposables and tissue and hygiene products - increasing demand for pulp for other markets, which has pushed prices up to almost USD 1,200 a tonne. A year ago it was USD 700-750.

As well as pulp prices, other rising input costs for papermakers include chemicals and fillers as well as the exchange rates.

A total of 54 paper companies announced their Q1FY19 results posted a combined net profit of Rs 2.24-billion against net loss of Rs 3.46-billion in the year-ago quarter. Net sales of 54 companies increased 19% from Rs 56.62-billion to Rs 67.49-billion during the quarter.

International Paper APPM, Ruchira Papers, Nath Pulp & Papers, West Coast Paper, Emami Paper, Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Seshasayee Paper Boards have rallied in the range of 25% to 50% in the past one month.

PrintWeek India takeaway: Paper mills are producing at a mid-90% run rate, which is full.

Internationally, especially in Europe, the paper manufacturers have shut down paper machines in the face of declining demand, or converted lines to make other higher-value products, such as carton board.

Besides, there has been a surge in demand from China, where many small recycled paperboard mills have been closed down due to tighter environmental regulations. This has resulted in at least one European papermaker switching some of its tonnage that would have been sold in Europe to the Chinese market.

Some European paper is also currently being exported to North America due to fluctuations in capacity there, plus there is the extended downtime of various mills because of a conversion project.

The PrintWeek India team was talking to book publishers and newspaper CEOs. Most of them have switched to lighter paperweights to save costs. This resulted in a further knock-on squeeze, with web offset, gravure and newsprint papers in particularly short supply.

PrintWeek India takeaway: Everything from magazine papers down to newsprint grades is certainly tight. Previously we were looking at a four-to-five week lead time. Now it could be extended as far as three months.

In 2000 there were paper traders whom we can count on fingers and now in 2018, we have countless traders. It indicates the growth rate of the printing industry, as demand increased so have the suppliers.

PrintWeek India paper dealer survey
PrintWeek India conducted a small sample survey in which we asked the question: Do you think a paper trader has a role to play in your print business?

A resounding 97% said, YES, we think there is a big role for the paper trader to play.

We requested these 97% printers to describe who is a paper trader.

They said, the "paper trader” definition into two — commodity and specialty paper traders.

The commodity trader adds value by being our eyes and ears at the mill and ensuring that supplies are received in a timely manner and also maintaining a buffer to our stocks. Those who are not adding these services become very replaceable/ interchangeable with another trader. Also, they provide unsecured credit to the printing industry. This is acknowledged as one of their leading roles.

On the specialty front, the trader also plays a role of educating the end user/designer of the available choices and helping them make decisions. Since the options for specialty paper is quite high and customer choice is varied, we usually do not stock large volumes of these - so we depend on the traders to maintain the volumes required. They also assist printers to get certain grades as preferred by the brand owners.

In addition, there are many traders in the commodity and speciality side have added converting/sheeting units across the country, aiding the printing community in servicing odd sizes and with JIT deliveries.

Cost of paper / board
Paper or board, whichever is the substrate, comprises 69.5%-72.5% of the print cost. So any sudden rise in the price affects the profit as well as overall value.

Moreover, in the case of few clients, they float quotations every six months and once frozen the cost stays for the next six months. It is becoming extremely difficult to predict the price of paper.

In terms of raw material, the choice of material has increased tremendously. From a place where pretty much had only art paper and maplitho or multiple imported and domestic materials with not much differentiation, now there's a world of choice.

The number of specialty paper traders has increased. At the same time, those in the volume trade also have stepped up their service levels.

PrintWeek India takeaway: A paper trader has a very critical role to play between the mill and the printer. Good, mature, responsible dealers/traders provide valuable inputs on developments in the mill. They communicate problems faced by printers to the mill, coordinate after-sales complaints and service requirements, and can help support printers with their long-standing association with mills. A good paper trader is an advantage both to the mills and more so, to the printer.

PRINTWEEK SURVEY #1 with a premium printer: How do you source your paper – directly from the mills, the dealer or a mix of both?

Most mills have to bill through the channel - we maintain a good relation with mills and with the dealers. Generally, the billing is through a dealer.

While we did talk about the important role that paper traders play - there are still those whose main function is to provide credit facility. This is unhealthy for them as well as the industry. Instead, if they concentrate on better servicing, the entire industry will be helped.

PrintWeek India takeaway: The premium printer expected his trader to be able to cut paper wastage by setting up a sheeting facility and maintaining a good percentage of his stocks in reels. He said, "They can command a higher cost per kg for this service, while the printer also saves and its good for the environment too as wastage is reduced."

Wastage is key. On wastage of paper, two important points came to the fore. One, as mills supply paper in roll form, the paper stock in the core is often wasted. Again, the system of paper handling remains primitive where hooks are used to unload the rolls. This adds to the wastage.

PRINTWEEK INDIA SURVEY #2 with a book printer: How do you source your paper – directly from the mills, the dealer or a mix of both?

Almost all of our paper is sourced directly from the mills in India and abroad. A tiny amount of paper is purchased from the open market but directly from dealers.

How have you seen paper trade business change over the years?

Normally, the customer is king. Buyers control the levers of power. However, in the print industry, the mills are much larger than most printers, in size. So, they enjoy a greater balance of power in the equation. Some mills are very professional, responsive to our problems and expectations. There are others, who do not care about customer feedback, or, are least interested in resolving issues. Equally, it is not necessary that large mills are more professional than smaller mills. It depends on the leadership in the mill and the culture developed by the CEO/Owner.

However, mills appear to be listening to us a lot better (if we demand service from them) and meeting our needs with providing FSC paper, synchro cut pallets, resolving our complaints, etc. Also, paper traders can add much more value to the print industry by importing much more variety of papers in the market as foreign trade policies are much more flexible these days.

Stora Enso is evaluating options to convert its entire one million-plus tonnes of Lumi coated woodfree paper production to packaging board instead. The book printer wanted to know what will be the implication for the Indian printers?

The paper and wood products group has announced a feasibility study for its Oulu Mill in Finland, which runs two paper machines and has an annual capacity of 1.08m tonnes, alongside a chemical softwood pulp plant with a capacity of 3,60,000 tonnes.

The mill currently makes various grades of fine paper, including LumiArt and Silk sheets, LumiForte reels and sheets, and the LumiPress Art and Silk range. It is Stora Enso’s only coated woodfree fine paper mill, so if the scheme goes ahead it would mean the group would exit that part of the market.

The book printer expects his paper dealer to provide market information.

PRINTWEEK INDIA SURVEY #3 with a Kolkata print firm: A printer from Kolkata with a double-digit healthy growth was asked how do you source your paper – directly from the mills, the dealer or a mix of both?

The printer said we source paper directly from the mill if the quantity is enough for them. Usually, in case of Maplitho, we source it directly from mills, for example, ITC (Bhadrachalam).

How have you seen paper trade business change over the years?

All types of businesses/trade have evolved over a period of time. We have seen definite improvement in this segment and dealers/ mills are ready to make special size paper, custom made for more cost-effective runs. However, we want the quality and inspection side to be much stronger than what it is currently. Grain direction is a big issue.

PRINTWEEK INDIA SURVEY #4: PRINT BUYER – BOOK PUBLISHING MAJOR

Creaky infrastructure: We need very simply TATs. And books need to hit third-day delivery anywhere in the country. Transportation is a huge issue

Government policy ignores publisher concerns: There is no effective government ‘lobbying’ and no understanding of publishers’ needs. The earlier copyright battle over the controversial 2m amendment and the recent 12% GST on royalties shows that.

Perceived corruption: More for the educational side where foreign firms are actually at a disadvantage for being honest.

Red tapism: the ridiculousness of bureaucracy is still there. For example, weights and measures (legal metrology) which will fine you almost a lakh for writing on the sticker of a pack (or box set) that it contains 20 copies or 20 nos instead of 20N. The fundamental logic of weights and measures is twofold — consumers should know the certified weight and should know expiry dates. Now we need reform that does away with weights and measures for non-perishable items like books.

Disregard for IPR: It is impossible to police this as the govt has no will whatsoever and that message emboldens pirates. For a country seeking investment abroad and constantly putting ourselves up against China as a better place to invest, this should be one of the USPs - that you can come here to an IPR protected regime.

Actual policing vigour: which can only happen if there are separate cells designated for IPR (like there are cyber cells today). Only then can we get prioritised action. In the 70 years since independence, it is telling that there is not one conviction for piracy.

RESPONSE FROM ALL 25 PRINTERS ABOUT THINGS PAPER TRADERS SHOULD BE WARY ABOUT

- Owners disconnected from the marketplace

- Protecting the position of the firm against dependence on key customers and suppliers

- Taking a nuanced view of finances

- Ignoring status of the business premises

- Potential non-compliance risks

PrintWeek India takes

PWI's take #1 – Elle cover experiment
The magazine has used recycled paper for the first time as part of a special edition devoted to encouraging sustainability in the fashion business.

The September issue of Elle UK went on sale (8 August), billed as ‘the sustainability issue’ on the cover. The autumn publications of glossy fashion titles are typically bumper issues and Elle said it was its biggest of the year. The Hearst title has an ABC-certified monthly circulation of 168,850.

Elle has switched its text pages from its usual UPM Star 75gsm to a 70gsm UltraSky grade from Leipa Paper for the special edition. Leipa uses waste paper as the main raw material at its two mills in Germany, and UltraSky is made from 100% post-consumer waste.

As part of the sustainability initiative Elle commissioned research among its core audience of young women, which revealed that 62% were unaware that the fashion industry is one of the world’s biggest polluters.

Education is vital and we should be teaching about the value of paper and its sustainable use. The world has been poisoned by the idea of deforestation, which is now long gone and nothing to do with the paper industry.

Tip: People do not know about sustainable practices around the world. For example, only 1% of trees in Scandinavia are harvested and only one-third of that is used for paper. The understanding that paper can be harvested and sustained unlike plastic would generate better responses in the market

PWI's take #2 – PUSH GREEN WITH BUYERS
Penguin Random House said the company had become the first trade publisher in India to move to FSC paper entirely. The company has taken the initiative to recycle the excess unsold inventory to make stationery products for internal use.

Two publishing majors explained how the company chose print partners across different geographies, closer to the company warehouse, to avoid logistics delays. He added that the ideal situation would be the one where the printers directly supply the books to the schools.

A word of caution: Both printers and the publishers agreed that often there is no consistency in the same category of paper supplied by the same mill. This invariably affects quality.

Tip: What we need is a concerted effort to maintain the momentum so that in time we can arrive upon a set of best practices guidelines which are acceptable to all stakeholders, from publishers to paper manufacturers to printers. In time, the scope can be widened to include others, such as distributors and sellers, both physical and online, and even the literature festivals, big and small.

PWI's take #3 – WHAT PAPER ARE THE BRANDS SPENDING ON
Companies spend the best part of their budget on their most valuable asset – brand. According to a market research company, brands account for 30% of the stock market value of the businesses. For some, brands inspire loyalty. For others, it becomes a marker of distinction where products are not very different.

Please have conversations with brands. Especially with the government regulations against plastic

In the Campaign India list of TOP 100 brands, Samsung has retained the number one position it held last year. There was much fanfare on 9 July when the Indian prime minister and South Korean president jointly inaugurated Samsung’s largest mobile factory in the world. This Noida unit will double the company’s output to 120 million units in the next few years. The company also regained the top market share in the Q2 with a 29% share against its closest rival Xiomi’s 28%.

Nestlé too retained its second spot. The FMCG major’s market cap crossed the Rs 1-lakh crore mark recently. However, the company failed to protect Kit Kat’s four-finger bar shape in a legal war it has been waging with US rival Mondelez.

Consumer electronics and durables dominated the conversation among Top 10 rankers in India with five out of the top 10 brands belonging to that space.

PWI's take #4 – MEDIA DARK STATES
Today Dainik Bhaskar is operating in all 38 districts of Bihar. The DB Group has invested Rs 200-crore in print centres and, editorial resources and in the launch process in the state. The newspaper has seen a 20% circulation growth.

If you look at Bihar there are four Hindi newspapers (Hindustan, Dainik Jagran, Prabhat Khabar and Dainik Bhaskar). Dainik Bhaskar is at number two position with an average issue readership (AIR) of 9.11 lakhs, while the legacy player leads with AIR of 9.98 lakhs. In the Patna edition, Dainik Bhaskar is at number one position with AIR of 5.07 lakh readers.

Now consider the stats.

DB Group has invested close to Rs 200-crore in Bihar. If you look at it from the publisher’s point of view, this market is bigger than Madhya Pradesh, or Rajasthan. It is also bigger than Gujarat. All these states have a population of around six-crore. Madhya Pradesh has a population of five- to six-crore. For Rajasthan and Gujarat, this figure stands at six and a half. The population of Bihar is 11-crore. So from the perspective of reach and penetration consumption, Bihar is a huge market.

But Adex for Bihar is not as high. It is low because the potential of Bihar from advertising and purchasing perspective is lesser as compared to other markets. But the market has to change. In terms of spending in advertising, Bihar and Jharkhand are a Rs 500-crore market with a population of 11-13-crore. To put this into perspective, Rajasthan is a Rs 800-crore market with a population of around six to seven-crore. So, Bihar should at least be Rs 1000-crore market.

Are YOU ready for this?

Tip: These are traditionally under-represented markets and in terms of readership, one important lesson that emerges is that these markets were earlier ignored by almost everybody under the pretext of looking only at the bigger markets, but now the reality is that these are the markets that offer growth.

PWI's take #5 –UV PACKAGING
The embellishment market is booming at the moment. From spot UV coating through to hot foiling, more and more printers and trade finishers are looking to invest in embellishment technology driven by growing demand from their customers for something different.

In only a few years, it has become one of the major growth areas within the printing market, and it will have a major impact in the commercial, packaging (labels, folding cartons, corrugated) and publishing market [in the future].

The driving forces in each one of those segments are different, but they are all working in the same direction: major growth in this market.

Have YOU created a system to address this, segment?

PWI's take #6 – EVERY DEALER IS AN AMAZON MINI CENTRE
Digital print is the future.

InfoTrends says 1.8 trillion colour pages digitally printed on an annual basis. Therefore, smaller lots and many more deliveries.

PrintWeek India has an Amazon mini centre below its office. It is our favourite lunch break activity. To watch how humans follow processes, algorithms make decisions.

This is the logic underpinning an Amazon Fulfilment Centre, the high-tech warehouses that are primed to ship parcels with zero error and lightning speed, to impatient customers all over the country. Amazon says it reaches all of the 20,500 pin codes in India.

Barcode Pairing
A principle at the heart of an FC is the pairing of an item and its container, using barcodes. All items and all containers, including carts used to move an item from one area to another, have unique barcodes. When an item is moved from, say, a cart to a shelf, a clerk scans the item and the shelf using a handheld device. This way, Amazon knows where an item is, at all times.

Sorting and Packaging
Containers are diverted into two kinds of packing bays — one for single-item orders and another for multiple-item orders. The single-item bays are relatively uncomplicated. Associates scan the barcode of the item and the system tells them which packaging to pick. At the bay where containers with multiple orders arrive, another level of sorting, also algorithm driven, is involved.

Tip: Amazon has created zero margins for errors even for small Rs 100- items. Have YOU?

PWI's take #7 – PAPER YATRA
In UK! A Paper Appreciation Course for designers and brand placement experts. This one-day event is ideal for gen-nex that have not had the chance to visit a fully working paper mill.

The course can take place in the morning ahead of a tour around the paper mill concluding the day in the afternoon. Invite 2-3 PrintWeek India Award winners to show the power of paper and packaging.

You can invite companies from a wide range of sectors. Also, have conversations within our industry and involve more voices alongside experts from academia and NGOs.

Tip: Engagement has to be very strong, and people are key if we are to respond to the challenges we face.

PWI's take #8 – R&D CENTRES
There are 25 technology and R&D centres in India. Do you collaborate with them?

Look at the presses/kit that are run; plus the products and prototypes that are showcased.

Technical sessions and demos: Customers visit the centre to see the kit being operated in action;

The cutting-edge applications which include design, graphics and finishing embellishments;

Your staff can get training or skill upgradation;

You can host a show or networking event at some of these centres;

Plan an outreach with print buyers and brand owners;

Access to handbooks/tech tutorials at these centres;

Tip: Start work with partners, now.

PWI's take #9 - A PAPER LAB
A lab-cum-testing centre which is part of a broader strategy to make your premises a centre for education to be used by members of the public, and especially young people, interested in the creative industries.

In UK, there was a paper merchant, DENMAUR, that offers PAPER HEALTH CHECK UP.

We will have a number of expert paper people on our stand to discuss specific areas of paper for print, there will be plenty of swatches to give out on the day, and we'll be inviting visitors to take us up on free paper health checks.”

IT INCLUDES PRICING!

The firm said this service sees its consultants “proactively find alternatives and solutions for our customers to keep them ahead of the market”.

PWI's take #10 – REAL DIGITAL
I visited Real Digital in Croydon near London. We were really excited about what we saw on the shop-floor of the PrintWeek UK Company of the Year.

The firm was formed in 2005 with 12 persons. They were among the first to do full-colour transpromo for direct mailers. Now it’s a two location plant with 130 persons who are on a profit-sharing scheme; and a healthy growth.

This is thanks to an ambitious plan, huge upfront investment in kit, impressive turnaround and solid IT backbone which extends the company’s print scope. This includes lots of very nifty work on the database. At one time, Real Digital was the world's largest Xmpie investment with 10 data processing servers.

Real Digital have a fleet of iGen4s and i Gen3s (a total tally of nine), backed by Xerox monochrome devices. The highpoint is the two: one ratio of post-press to press kit. This range from Stahl folders to Buhrs inserters to Hunkelers for paper finishing.

The interesting investment has been two custom-built Agfa Dotrix web-press (630mm x 1500 mm); fully variable four colour duplex kit.

The entire ops works on a strong IT backed system.

Tip: This is the future! Are YOU ready?

TCPL targets Rs 1,000-cr but focus is on doing it the right way - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

Noel D'Cunha — Fri, 31 Aug 2018 15:39:00

PrintWeek India (PWI): We start off with the numbers. TCPL Packaging has posted net sales of Rs 182.94 crores and the net profit of Rs 4.98 crores for Q1 FY 2018-19. The numbers are definitely better than last year. What are the attributing factors considering that it’s been a rough 18 months?
Saket Kanoria (SK): Last year, the first quarter was badly affected by the GST. So, there’s the low base effect. Therefore the growth in percentage is quite high.

Secondly, if you see the quarter versus quarter result, that is, March versus June, then the growth isn’t that much. But it is unfair to compare that because March quarter is generally a good quarter and the June quarter is not the greatest of the quarters because April is always a poor month. So I think we are quite satisfied with the top-line growth and we feel that from May there is certainly an increase in offtakes.

PW: What about your customer growth?
SK: Most customers are very positive about their numbers and all are witnessing growth. There is no customer that is complaining that the business is not growing. So that’s a good sign. We have also installed sufficient new capacity earlier for which we are getting the dividend now, and therefore, we are able to cater to the demand.

PW: What’s the conversation among print buyers?
SK: The customer sentiment is quite good. Unfortunately, the government embarked on the GST reforms on the wrong foot. The tax rates were kept high, and the procedures were very cumbersome. Eventually, in November last year, they did a shake-up where they reduced a lot of items from 28% to 18%, 18% to 12% and even the filing procedures became a little simpler.

PW: The GST Council did tweak the system, recently …
SK: Finally, they have realised that a lot of things needed to be changed, most of which they have now done. So, the overall sentiments with respect to GST have at least turned positive. But there’s still room for improvement.

PWI: So much of tinkering, is that good?
SK: I just can’t understand how this government got the GST so wrong. In the sense, multiple GST rates at high levels, then their expectations that once collections are high they will reduce the rate. But usually, collections will go up only if you reduce the tax rates.

PWI: What is your take?
SK: My take is: when you start with a new system, start it simple and then tweak it if needed. They did the exact reverse, hurting the economy in the process.

PWI: That said, if you see the net change in the profit, from 3.09 to 4.9, that’s 61.17%?
SK: I don’t know if it’s the right way to look but you need to look at the EBITDA margin, which has gone down in percentage terms, besides the interest on the depreciation has gone up because of the expansion. So, overall on a higher base, obviously the profit is higher but the margin has gone down which is a matter of great concern for us, as well as I guess for all in the industry. This is a problem I am sure all our competitors face and is a matter of really big concern.

PWI: Why is that?
SK: My view is that until the demonetisation, the economy was doing quite alright and margins were better. However, after the demonetisation, there were a few quarters of negative or poor growth which led to falling margins as a consequence of lower demand. As you know TCPL is a listed company and we have to declare results on a quarterly basis. If you see our history, we never had a sales de-growth for any quarter in the last 20 years but last year March quarter, we de-grew. That happened after demonetisation. The following June quarter too there was a de-growth due to GST. It was the only two quarters of de-growth in our history, so you can imagine how severe the matter was.

PWI: So the ill-effect of demonetisation has faded, so to say?
SK: Post-demonetisation, companies reduced their production dramatically because no one had any cash flow, and it was not a good time for our customers' overall sales and distribution. It led to shrinking demand growth at least for a quarter, and probably that led to margin pressure.

PWI: Are you saying today the industry has become a far more competitive space than it was two years ago?
SK: Yes, and on top of that, the oil prices have gone up, which has led to most input costs such as inks, solvents, PET films etc going up. Further, internationally pulp prices have gone up leading to an increase in board prices. So there has been a series of constant input pricing change. Just when we are talking to customers for one increase, there’s a second increase announced and now recently a third increase. This causes a huge lag effect in getting our costs passed on which is really putting a lot of pressure on us to maintain margins

PWI: Despite that, we see print companies investing in machinery?
Akshay Kanoria (AK): I think in some cases it’s irrational. If you see our Capex, we did not expand last year. But this year, we are expanding. Given the size at which we operate, our expansion is quite reasonable. So we are putting one line in Goa on our base of 15 lines. So that is quite responsible.

While investing, people are not thinking it through. All they want to achieve is to hit a certain number. I agree that there should be growth, but not at the expense of margins.

PWI: Margins are being severely squeezed.
SK: Once you agree to margin reduction, then it’s very tough to get back to the earlier levels.

PWI: So how do you tackle this downturn?
AK: We have diversified our customer base as far as we can and that’s why we are strengthening our marketing team. So we are constantly reaching out to new clients. We have put a lot of focus on innovation with a dedicated cell which only does new product developments for customers.

PWI: Like?
AK: Offering new effects or gift boxes and the like, which actually help you get better margins and helps you to impress those customers who value our effort. The industry is what it is, we have to live with it.

PWI: So it’s customer base diversification in the B-size and C-size?
AK: Yes. Because those are the people who would be able to give you more money in terms of margin and they will also value new developments. For example, a large retailer, who came to us to develop a packaging for some gift boxes, which we were very successful in executing.

PWI: Akshay, we saw you tweeting about the truck strike. Was that significant because we saw very little coverage in the mainstream media?
AK: I honestly feel the strike was justified. I think the transport industry is facing a lot of hardship, perhaps, manifold worse than our industry.

SK: I think that’s true. The government has promised to do certain things in six months to resolve the matter. Basically, it’s about how they collect the toll, my sense is that it could have been resolved by the government in the first place. Why should they wait for the transporters to strike? The basic point is that even for such simple things, the people have to protest, which is sad.

PWI: In 2016, TCPL ventured into flexible packaging with a Bobst rotogravure printing machine and Nordmeccanica laminator. How has that project taken off? Update on this front…
SK: We started in October 2016 and then came the demonetisation, so in a sense, it was a tough time to start. Honestly, we did not expect this business to be as tough as we find it to be. It has been a huge learning. I think we have come out quite well though and now are operating at a decent capacity utilisation and beginning to make money.

PWI: Tougher than carton making?
SK: If you think carton making is a tough business, this business is at another level.

PWI: How so?
SK: One, it is far more competitive; and number two, since the business involves primary packaging where the product is in direct contact, the customers are far more discerning. They are far more demanding about the criticality of the functional properties involved in the production – adhesives, inks, and the seal strength among others. It is unending. If you go wrong then you really lose your shirt. But of course, it’s a much larger business, so ultimately if you get it right it will be worth it

But we are still new to the game and have to broaden our offering. We have done some new things which I think no one else in India has done in flexible packaging.

PWI: Could you leverage your carton knowledge?
SK: We brought our carton knowledge into this business from day one – things like haptic effect, etc. For example, the new Emami Fair and Handsome packaging, which was re-launched with different effects in various pack sizes.

AK: Emami re-designed and replaced the tube with a pouch. So we created a haptic effect and also the tactile effect. I don’t think anyone else has done such a thing as of now. We are also into the tobacco business for pan masala. If you see the new Tulsi pack, you will see a new tactile effect.

SK: We are getting traction. We have worked with 4-5 brands and offered value addition. We are also settling down to a normal manufacturing cycle, into export, and it promises to increase considerably.

PWI: There are a number of tweaks transpiring, new notifications which will impact the flexible space?
SK: I think there was a lot of confusion until very recently. So nothing much has changed. There is a drive to get out of multi-layer, mono-layer, etc. Let’s see we are watching but it is a long way to go I think.

PWI: There’s talk of making ink production toluene-free?
SK: It’s very nice if it happens because we hardly use it. But that’s just a recommendation. It has a while to go.

PWI: Will that also have implications on other things like non-contaminant inks, non-contaminant solvents across the spectrum?
SK: But my only worry is that the government may legislate, but how will they implement. For example, if toluene is banned in food then what about shampoo, where it may not be banned? There’s a chance of misuse. So if you are banning toluene, then the ban should be across the board.

PWI: There’s conversation about water-based ink?
SK: Water-based inks in gravure printing are quite difficult given that we live in a hot country. At the end of the day, India cannot become over-priced. We have to make sure we are aligned with the world standard. If we start doing new things then it would be very difficult.

PWI: Manufacturers of multi-layer flexible packaging have been given an ultimatum of three months to switch to eco-friendly alternatives. How do you approach this? What are the challenges?
SK: It has been postponed now. What you are talking about is single use kind of things like cutlery and straws. We are not in that spectrum. In industrial packaging, multi-layer is not being banned. I think there is a two-year extension. They say as long as you can burn it and recover energy it is fine.

I think what goes in plastic’s favour is the low cost. We need to bring in a whole new eco-system – collection and disposal.

There is not enough awareness about plastic. If you ask a layman about plastic, he will say it’s horrible, but can you live without it?

PWI: There are varying voices within the industry. The question is: has the paperboard packaging benefitted?
SK: The paperboard packaging has certainly benefited. But even within the paperboard is the film laminated board, which is in the realm of the plastic ban.

In the western world, the rule in Europe is that if a packaging has paperboard content of more than 50% of the weight, then it’s still classified as recyclable even though there is a film typically 12 microns, or 15-20 gsm. Here we consider paperboard to be 300gsm. The paper mills in Europe put that base into the recycler, pulping it. Because of the difference in density, the film separates from the paper and the film gets collected separately and then it can go for recycling. So there is no problem.

PWI: What happens to MetPET? Does it come under the ambit of the ban?
SK: Right now there is no problem. It has been deferred for two-three years. I don’t know what they’ll do, but this is not happening, elsewhere.

PWI: Who do you think are the advisors who are drafting these rules and regulations?
SK: I don’t know who the advisors are. I know that in India when new legislation takes place, it gets to the extreme. Even in tobacco packs when you see the health warning, our health warning covers about 85% of the pack. Very few countries are worse than us. Even the developed ones don’t have it, so why did we need to do that?

PWI: TCPL has production plants located in four locations − Haridwar, Silvassa, Goa and Guwahati. It’s a fairly good geographical spread. Any more?
SK: For the time being there’s no fifth location plan. The Goa location is a new one and an expansion in Goa in October. It is a beautiful site which has a lot of potentials to expand, but if the growth continues as we are witnessing now, then we will be at a high level of capacity utilisation across our plants and hence we may need to add a location as our current locations will not be able to handle this growth after a few years.

I would say generally we are very bullish about packaging. We have the leadership position in this industry and will maintain it.

PWI: You mentioned exports a while ago...
SK: Exports have a big potential in flexible and we are working very actively towards it. We have some immediate success. In cartons also we are exporting but there is very limited potential as the freight is very high.

PWI: What are the markets for exports?
SK: We are moving a lot of tobacco packaging export. There’s a lot of food packaging export to Western Europe and to Africa.

PWI: Why are exports targeted towards Africa and Europe? What about the neighbouring countries?
SK: There are too many barriers - duty, transit, etc. There are some government-level talks, but nothing is happening.

AK: Right now a ship going to Bangladesh has to go via Colombo. Then if you have to export from Assam to Bangladesh, you have to go via Bengal. The reason is that there is no full-fledged check-post on the Assam-Bangladesh border or the Meghalaya-Bangladesh border or in Mizoram, even today after 70 years of independence. So even if the export takes through Bengal, you have to offload and on-load material on trucks on either side of the border. The same truck can’t reach the customers.

PWI: Coming back to your customers, the changing need of customers. What are their demands?
AK: Their quality requirements are growing more stringent by the day. Even if they have one spot on the carton, your whole lot gets rejected. Now we have to move to 100% perfect quality. So we are putting these lots of digital equipment because human-eye will fail once in a while.

SK: Quality is one thing and the market dynamics are also changing so their planning cycle is also being shorter. That’s a very big challenge.

PWI: Who are the leadership voices in sustainability and green initiatives?
SK: The point is: is the customer willing to pay a higher cost when he demands replacing MetPET with foil or silver? That’s the bottom-line. Some customers are willing to pay but that’s just the case with certain brands.

PWI: Some 8-10 years ago when you set up the plants, GMPs were in place and those GMPS became the benchmark in this part of the world. Is there a need to re-invent the wheel or it sustains itself in terms of factory or handling the materials and efficiencies on the shopfloor?
SK: Yes there is a need. Now we are planning how to differentiate from others. For example, a folder-gluer, over the years the technology has improved, so we can think of replacing two gluers and replacing it with a new one. I mean a faster one, more productive one. There’s no change in the basic GMP, but we now have more efficient lighting system, more efficient air-conditioning, composting of all our waste, disposing of the canteen waste. We don’t throw or burn anything; we are composting it in all our centres. Then all plate chemical go through effluent treatment. There was not so much awareness previously. We have ISO 14, 18, 22, so we are even with the environment standard. Safety too – there are fire safety measures which were not there in the previous years. Now all our factories are fitted with fire sprinklers.

AK: Even the ingress and exit points to the factory down to pest control. Now if you come to our Goa plant once its ready you will see a 100% controlled environment. It’s almost like a pharma factory. There is no direct entry either for material or people into the factory.

PWI: This is an awkward question. How is the next generation handling the business? Akshay was a project captain for Guwahati.
SK: It’s not just Akshay, Vidur my other son is also involved with the business.

PWI: As a mentor, how do you rate his performance?
SK: Akshay has been in the business for three to four years now. He is fully entrenched in the business and is working very hard. They both bring in a lot of energy so it’s very good for the business. It feels good to have the younger generation together. They also get along with their colleagues besides customers and constantly give me feedback which is really valuable.

PWI: What about Vidur?
SK: Vidur, my youngest son, focuses on the flexible side of the business. He is also doing quite well. It’s important that they enjoy working. And if they enjoy working, they’ll do a good job. If you work because you have to work, then your heart is not in the business and then you are not successful.

PWI: What’s the update on the collaboration with AR packaging in Sweden? Any other collaborations?
SK: We are not very active with the AR collaboration. The organisation has gone through some acquisitions in Europe and in Asia, so they have been really busy themselves and they haven’t been very active on the India front. But as a company, they are doing very well and at the top level we are very close to them, but its sparingly used. AR has a very similar customer profile as we do so it’s a good thing.

PWI: TCPL crossed Rs 100-cr in 2007, Rs500-cr in 15-16. What is the target now?
SK: I think the first immediate target is to get to Rs 1,000-cr. Now we count net sale after GST so I think we will cross the target very soon.

PWI: That’s great news for TCPL.
SK: To be honest I don’t really fancy targets. What difference would it make if I tell you a number right now? At the end of the day what we should do is do our job well and it should be sustainable financially over a period of time and you know you should feel good about what you do and everything will fall into place. We are growing and we will continue to grow but not at the cost of creating problems for everyone.

PWI: One final question. You are an avid cricketing fan, whose leadership style do you prefer?
SK: Sourav Ganguly, because he is a Bengali and I connect very well with the Bengalis, since I was brought up in Kolkata. He is emotional, passionate and took his own decisions. You cannot consult ten people before making a decision, and that’s not how I function too. I think Ganguly is like that.

PWI: Explain.
SK: The other quality is his belief that if you put your might behind achieving a goal, it can be attained. Ganguly’s biggest achievement has been instilling that confidence in his players that as a team they can win abroad. He did it. I don’t think as a team we believed we could win an overseas series, so we never won.

Working-women percentage at the lowest. A grave concern - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

PrintWeek India — Thu, 16 Aug 2018 16:33:00

Lack of women participation in key roles can be highlighted by the failure of our house of democracy, “Parliament”. The Women’s Reservation Bill to reserve 33% of all seats in Parliament for women was introduced in 1996. It has been 22 years since, and the bill has not seen the light of day to become a law. This begs the question, are we a society that believes in lip service even as we hurtle towards a gender disparity of an unprecedented kind.

According to Print Monthly, a global B2B industry magazine, only one in ten workers in the print industry is a woman.

Reet Arora, director of Bir Hoirzons, Noida, agrees. She says “It must be understood that women power is the ‘half power’ of our nation and combining their power with ‘men’ power can make the country more powerful, and no other country would be stronger than India. Let us give equal opportunity to women.”

Stats say women contribute one-sixth of economic output, among the lowest shares in the world and half the global average. The female employment rate in India including formal as well as informal, has reached 26% from 35% in 2005. An incredible stat is, 25 million women have exited the Indian labour force in the past 10 years. India rate of female labour-force participation in South Asia is the lowest, with the exception of Pakistan. Globally the rate of women participating in the labour force is rising whereas in India it is plummeting.

As per a World Bank report, 90% of Indian women are engaged in household work. If the men spend at least two hours a week in house activities, this would give a boost to women clout in the workforce by a significant 10%.

So let us assess what are the factors that are contributing to this trend...
One good reason is, girls who are literate or semi-literate shun manual labour. According to a report by IndiaSpend, the enrolment rate of girls in elementary education is nearly 100%. In higher education, it’s up from 7.5% in 2002-03 to 20% in 2012-13.

Indirani S of ASA Screens, Hosur, Tamil Nadu, says, “An empowered woman is one who has education, right learning and is capable of self-earning without having to depend on others in the family.”

When I spoke to my print college classmates, they said, when a man seeks a job, he needs no one’s permission. “Girls and women have to combat patriarchy and a plethora of permissions from fathers, brothers, husband – and society.”

Radha Khandelwal, director of Nextgen Printers, Kolkata says, “Striking a balance between home and office is not a problem or an issue once you get to change your mind set. I understand it is difficult for many, especially in the Indian scenario. Once you are able to get the backing from the family, the rest is easy. I am among the fortunate women in India who have the full support of the family.”

Many of my classmates from college are not as fortunate as Radha Khandelwal. They are home-makers. They shared with me, that as the family becomes affluent and were able to afford a moderate lifestyle, women are expected to “stop working and look after the family members.” A women’s primary objective is considered towards the family first and then the work.

Meeta Shah of A&M Enterprises says "For women in our industry the main factor which affects is the incompatibility of work and family duties. There is a stigma against females working outside the home which is evident in our printing industry which is said to be covered 80-85% by the male."

In many cases, limited mobility from the home to the workplace is a major factor. Even with comfortable road and rail connectivity, safe public transport like metros, it is not boosting women employment. Farther the home is from the workplace, lesser the chance of retaining the job.
According to a report in 2012, 84% of Indians believe men have a right to work instead of women when jobs are scarce. Out of the total jobs created since 2005, a meagre 10% have been occupied by women.

It is also believed, schooling was a parental strategy to improve a daughter’s resume on a matrimonial site. This boosts the prospects of a woman in the marriage market rather than the job market.

The scenario in the print-packaging industry
Interestingly, a sizeable proportion of women in the business are employed in the finishing section of print plants – packing, stamping, collating, stitching and dispatching, while many others are involved in the administration, office support, and sales. Very few women are involved in management and marketing, while a miniscule number actually work on the big heavy metal print presses.

Hema Java, marketing executive, Java Paper Group, makes an interesting observation. “I’ve never been to an Indian packaging event which had seen more than 5% of the total participants as women. There is a deficit, especially in senior management.”

She argues that labour laws in the country, though made to protect the interest of the workers, have actually made it a hindrance for employers to take on employees on their payroll.

Java says, “The maternity leave increased from three months to six months is one such example, wherein the paid leave of six months is becoming a liability on employers making them think twice before hiring a woman employee.”

Java makes an important observation about the prevalent gender-bias in the corporate hierarchy. “Our industry has a mix of old-school print firms, new start-ups and next-gen printers all surviving in this ecosystem simultaneously. Due to this, there is a fair bit of acceptance in the industry of working women but the number is way too low as compared to men in the industry. I personally have encountered gender bias a couple of times. I had someone ask me whether I come to work a full day as it’s assumed that I would probably work just a couple of hours.”

"I have observed the gender bias in the labour section of our printing industry. The working strength and pattern definitely affect the women labour with the heavy-duty machines, its mechanism and most important the time factor which involves working till late hours," adds Meeta Shah. "To tackle this gender gap, there should be training institutes for labour in almost all cities for our industry where both men and women can be educated and trained with different printing and finishing machines thus help them perform better with no gender bias."

Madhura Mahajan, head of the department, printing engineering department, PVG’s College of Engineering, Pune stresses on lack of training. Mahajan says, “Women are not encouraged to receive training or exposure to develop skills in any technical area. This lack of exposure to skill-based work cannot be undertaken, thus lowering their participation in the labour force.”

She adds, “I believe safety, training and enhancing skill-based programs can increase women labour force. Women at a higher cadre should be given higher incentives, training opportunities, and tax incentives.”

What are we losing?
If the gender ratio in the workforce becomes even in India, the IMF estimates, the world’s biggest democracy would be 27% richer.

As per 2015 study by the McKinsey Global Institute, if women participated in the economy at par with men, India GDP could rise by up to 60% or USD 2.9 trillion, by 2025. At present, the contribution of Indian women is 17% and the global average is 37%.

Over 75% of the urban women and 50% from the rural areas who are engaged in household work wants to get a job. Rural women feel they lack the necessary skill set.

Meeta Shah, A&M Enterprises
When women come together, amazing things transpire. Women can think differently about her business and take action to become part of a powerful community, sharing to create profound and extraordinary results. The awards won by A&M are the proof of our capabilities and dedication.

Vani Raheja, Ingenious Appliances and Packaging
My creative inclination got me interested in packaging. We started with getting job work done from various places and finally set up our in-house facility when business started growing. Thus, I started Ingenious Appliances and Packaging, eight years ago, with the blessing and encouragement of my parents.

Zalak B Shethia, Tarun Prints Group
I completed my BSc in fashion designing and a graduate diploma in fashion management from London College of Fashion. Being a fashion designer, my job involves designing garments for women’s western wear where screen printing is the most crucial aspect.

Aaditya Kashyap thinks labellers should take their gloves off - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

Noel D'Cunha — Sat, 07 Jul 2018 12:36:00

PrintWeek India (PWI): Give us an update on Marks' new plant?
Aaditya Kashyap (AK): The new plant is under construction and should be ready in Q4 2018. We are working to achieve our vision to have a plant which can qualify for all international quality audits and be instrumental for us to achieve top production and service quality, using the most advanced technology and process optimisation.

PWI: Marks Emballage, that sounds French…
AK: Yes, “Emballage” means packaging in French. We tried a lot of word combinations but ‘Emballage’ just defined our vision to offer a wider range of packaging solutions, great brand recall, a great conversation starter and a differentiator. And MCA made it easier by rejecting at least 10 names before giving us the beautiful new name we are proud of – Marks Emballage.

PWI: How did Marks start out? What does the company specialise in?
AK: Marks had a small beginning in 2011 as a trading company for packaging materials and corporate gifting for a pharma company. During this time, we identified an opportunity in the label printing sector. With this, we started label production in 2013 and have not looked back since. We have been focusing on labels for pharma. We have kept on investing and growing since then. Today, Marks is building a world-class facility with best in class capabilities and capacities for self-adhesive and filmic labels.

PWI: From starting with Chinese label printers to Bobst to Gallus. Tell us about your equipment selection?
AK: I can relate the journey to learning to walk to walking, and now we are ready to run. I come from a banking background with very limited knowledge about printing when I started. I got my first steps on the most entry-level solution in a Chinese stack flexo press to start with. This was done with the intention that if I fail then I burn only a finger and not my hand, if you know what I mean. Two years later, Bobst was a natural progression following the initial learning phase. Today, we are confident and expanding our facility with the ability to service the bigger brands and even look to exports. Hence, we added two Gallus Labelmasters and Pantec along with Prati finish lines to give the best results to the end-user.

PWI: Your outlook for the Indian label market?
AK: On a very conservative side, the label market is estimated to be around Rs 3,000-crore. A 15% growth means Rs 450-crore of label jobs is there for the taking. All the brands need are quality label printers with capacities to produce and grab the jobs.

When I look at the market in India, especially for the label, it is getting bigger and bigger. One reason: we have seen packaging enter the interiors of India, and everything that wasn't within reach earlier, are now easily available. Also, within the Indian market, there are new Indian companies which are established with a strong belief that as an Indian company, they have to make things in India. All this is, and will, trigger growth in the label, carton, and flexible industry.

If there’s a 15%-20% growth in the labels requirement, the top 10-15 firms are ready with the equipment to cater to it. It’s the smaller printers who ponder about how they’d get to the next level. I believe, if there’s an opportunity, shift the gear not from first to second, but straight to the fifth. And I think, not everybody is thinking like that.

PWI: Not many years ago, in terms of quality offset was considered a superior technology to flexo or even digital. But the gap is narrowing. Indeed, flexo and digital are both getting closer to offset quality…
AK: Flexo and digital are evolving at a very quick pace and achieving almost similar print results like in offset. Today the gap is very narrow and it’s getting closer. In the flexo, the advances are not only brought about by the full servo mechanisms but the entire spectrum of digital plate materials, mounting tapes, sleeves, anilox rolls, doctor blades, enhanced curing, etc. Today, good flexo print houses are able to print comfortably at 200lpi and thus achieve very close to offset qualities.

In the digital space as well, electrophotography and UV inkjet are evolving very rapidly. The results are very encouraging for digital to become mainstream in near future with its other inherent benefits of easier operations, personalization, and short runs.

PWI: The last two Labelexpo Europe in Brussels saw the introduction of hybrid label presses. Almost all major flexo press manufacturers have unveiled their version of a hybrid press. Gallus has the Labelfire 340. Mark Andy installed its first digital press in India recently. The trend of hybrid presses is catching up?
AK: Flexo and digital have long been thought of as competing technologies, but in reality, they should be thought of as complementary technologies — both technologies have their own inherent advantages and disadvantages.

PWI: What are they?
AK: Flexo gives speed and flexibility of combining different print process, multiple varnishes, screen effects, embellishments with hot and cold foiling and inline finishing solutions at lower costs (not possible on an independent digital) loved by the supply chain of print buyers.

The digital device satisfies the ever-growing demands for differentiation of the brand with more and more personalised artworks, handling growing SKU’s and short runs for the brand marketing team (not possible on the flexo).

The hybrid presents a unique opportunity to combine advantages of both technologies onto a single transport system thus finding its own niche.

PWI: Basically, what you are saying is the hybrid just proves that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, right?
AK: Yes, absolutely. In flexo, when one SKU or version of a label is printed and completed, it then takes additional time and labour to complete the setup, or makeready of the next job to print—changing colours, plates, etc. And during that makeready downtime, when the press is not running, the label printer/converter is not making money. This situation can very well be changed with the hybrid presses. The downtime can be minimised while printing multiple SKUs from a family of labels. Thus, help the printer make more money.

So basically, a hybrid is a win-win for both the printer and the brand owners and thus will only get more and more popular.

PWI: What’s your hybrid experience here at the Gallus Innovation Days?
AK: I saw the Labelfire 340. It enables label printers to broaden their product portfolio as also bring in flexibility and efficiency. The machine runs with a web speed of up to 50 metres per minute and offers seven colours. The new Upstream screen printing unit to produce opaque white is a good addition and the digital embellishment unit downstream will accomplish all finishing processes inline.

PWI: Flexo narrow-web presses are getting wider and wide – take, for example, the Labelmaster Advanced. Do you think this will allow label printers to find new avenues in flexible packaging space with medium width flexo presses?
AK: We are seeing more and more products are moving away from glass, aluminium and HDPE bottles in exchange for pouches or bags. This presents a loss for the label industry, meaning products that once were labelled, are moving towards flexible packages.

While the flexible packaging is increasing but due to market forces the run lengths are getting shorter and shorter and becoming unviable on gravure or wide flexo.

This is where the narrow web printers with medium width presses can find a perfect fit to produce flexible packaging for short lengths.

While the move to flexible is a loss to the label industry, the upcoming opportunity to participate in the short-run flexible jobs more than compensates for this label business loss. The opportunity in short run flexible packaging is tremendously high and will continue to grow.

PWI: We have seen a few intermittent presses being installed, particularly few top label printers in India. But as a technology, it has not taken off as yet. Why?
AK: While intermittent offset has its unique advantages in the print quality and lower cost of a new job due to inexpensive plates, the advantages are quickly overshadowed by the limitation of the intermittent speeds (typically 200 impressions per minute – 50-70 m/min) and inability of printers to manage the wide range of spot colour requirements of brand owners used to 8- to 12-colour flexo press output in either a CMYK or six-seven colour ECG configuration.

The whole challenge is the habit developed over time with the letterpress and flexo press experience. It’s difficult to change the perceptions. Also, to manage the output from the intermittent press, the technical skills needed by the press operator and pre-press team would be higher than the conventional flexo press operators. To change clients used to flexo output and getting the same artwork approved from offset would be another deterrent. Thus, we see the advantages quickly getting overshadowed by these factors.

We may not see intermittent presses being sold in the same numbers as flexo presses. But we do see technically sound printers (like Pragati, Sel Jegat) understanding the advantages of the technology and going for new intermittent presses.

PWI: The big revolution in flexo pre-press has eliminated certain challenges flexo as a technology had. When you look at flexo from the repro side, do you see a screen ruling of 200+lpi; 1% dot as a new normal now?
AK: Yes, this is true. It’s time, the printers push the 133/150 lpi. There is a need to go higher with print quality as this is can be a differentiator for the brand and the printer. Since there is a very limited choice of substrates the whole focus is on attractive graphics and shelf appeal.

This is where the printers can start making a difference with a strong prepress, good anilox inventory, press skills, and process standardisation to achieve this high quality.

PWI: Talking about anilox, it is at the heart of printing. How does one go about selecting the anilox? What’s your formula for selection?
AK: Yes, there’s much to anilox roll, because a wrong specification can cause real problems. I may not be able to explain things in detail, but just to simplify things, anilox is not just about ink-transporting cells but angles, ink carrying capacities and importantly the screen ruling that determines how good the anilox, which will ultimately deliver the flexo print.

Take, for example, the screen line. For us, the thumb-rule is: if 175lpi ruling is selected, the maze for the anilox has to be 175x5, say around 800lpi minimum.

Then you have the solids, the mid-tones, the fine text or high process. For a process, which used to be 1000lpi a few years ago, has moved to as high as 1500lpi today. So, we code the anilox into three areas and depending on the results we want, we specify the anilox roll.

PWI: Do you think that it’s important to have a fixed set of suppliers? Why?
AK: It is, but it is also important to put the proper set of material that you buy from the fixed suppliers, to use. The suppliers could one, two or more.

Today, a CMYK from one printing ink manufacturer would be different from the other. For example, we buy inks from two different companies, and then we buy aniloxes from two different suppliers.

Till this time, it’s fine.

The problem occurs when the press operator selects two aniloxes from one company and two from the other. Then he selects cyan and magenta from one ink company and yellow and black from another. If the press is standardised to run on either one type of ink or anilox, your entire standardisation process goes for a toss.

PWI: How does one dispose of the liner? Is there a greener way to do it?
AK: The label industry has two main wastes – the matrix waste at the print site and the liner waste from used labels at the brand manufacturing site.

Unfortunately, in India, we are not taking any steps to dispose of the same in a more responsible way. Currently, most of these wastes end up in landfills or are burnt away.

We already have examples of various initiatives in the Europe and UK from which we can learn and strengthen those initiatives by joining forces.

PWI: For example?
AK: For liner waste, we are seeing an organisation like Cycle 4 Green in Finland collecting the liners and converting them to recycled paper with the active involvement of a paper manufacturer Lenzing Papier GmbH in Austria.

On the label matrix waste at printer’s site, we have a great example from the UK – Zero labels to Landfill program run with the active involvement of industry association - BPIF Labels. They are also collecting waste from all printers and then centrally managing them to send them for recycling. While this can be a viable business opportunity when the waste is aggregated, it may not be the case for each individual printer.

The above two programs not only are pioneers to show the right direction to dispose of waste more responsibly, it could also mean lower costs and more green points to brands and printers.

Basically, there can be an independent opportunity to collect label liner waste and recycling the paper across major manufacturing hubs in a country like India.

PWI: The industry is slowly but steadily consolidating: What should be the strategy?
AK: Consolidation is nothing new. We see much larger consolidations happening across all industries globally, In fact, it is coming very late to the label printing industry and quite slow in the Indian label industry.

PWI: Why do you say that?
AK: The present label industry in India is highly fragmented. Most of the printers are single site family-run businesses. We also see many new companies started either by new entrepreneurs, expansion of existing offset business by younger generation or by press operators leaving established companies to start their own. Majority of these players with either secondhand equipment or entry level presses with a lot of manual operations. There are very few who start with a decent investment in new technology and automation. While this may have worked in the past, the same may not work in present or coming days.

PWI: Why?
AK: Today, we face a very different scenario. End users have consolidated their buying operations on a regional and often on a global basis and squeeze converter margins; the cost of the most efficient converting machinery and surrounding workflow and ancillaries is far higher; run lengths continue to come down as product variation and shorter marketing cycles become the norm; and there is a huge shortage of trained press operators.

While small players are able to survive purely based on local servicing and proximity to their customers, the medium-sized converters have found it increasingly difficult to remain profitable and continue to keep investing.

PWI: And what are the challenges?
AK: The big challenge is access to capital. We do not see any major backing of print or packaging companies by venture capital or private equity firms in India like in the west. And because of the small sizes of businesses, the ability to raise capital is very limited and also the cost of capital is very high.

PWI: So it’s consolidation either through merger or acquisition?
AK: That’s the only viable solution in today’s scenario. Another option is the formation of groups, like what is happening in Europe. Rako, X-Label, and Baumgarten forming All4labels group is a classic example of working together – a win-win for all.

I would certainly consider this theme – working together is better than working against each other.

Mergers and acquisitions are perfect to consider when the companies have to complement strengths either in geographical reach, customer base, technical manpower, infrastructure, and capital.

PWI: And finally, your three takeaways from the Gallus Innovation Days 2018?
AK: One, Gallus’ passion for innovation. I was introduced to the team behind the crafting of these machines, from technician to electrician to the design team and even the promoters who demonstrate a great passion for innovation.

Two, the ultimate experience centre. The entire range of Gallus presses present in one place which showcased the versatility in printing with a lot of advanced technologies – a must-attend for anyone investing in label production.

And third, digital shall become mainstream. The newly launched Gallus Smartfire presents a very attractive entry-level digital solution for existing print houses as well as new entrepreneurs thus democratising digital label production like never before.