PRESSIdeas April 2014 Issue by Jacob George

vol-14 Issue- 04 April 2014

Issue 03, 2014

Ipex’14: Blueprint for the future...................12 First-of-its-kind study tour by BMPA...........22 Varied opportunities with Web Offset.......26 Gee7 takes on wedding market...................36

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“CTP Tantra Mantra” by Kodak & Kadam...08

Konica Minolta’s growth trajectory.............38 Heidelberg for Digital future..........................40 Ajanta expands with plant in Thailand......44

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Yuji Nakata (L) and Tadahiko Sumitani (R) of Konica Minolta Business Solutions India (P) Ltd.. See page 38”

Contents

Jasmeet D. Editor & Publisher (jasmeet@pressideas.com)

FROM THE EDITORS’ DESK.................................................................... 6

Monotech Systems focuses Digital Printing at

Kadam Digital installs Kodak Trendsetter

PrintExpo 2014.......................................................................................35

and Kodak Prinergy................................................................................ 8

Aura Prints is WGM’s Exclusive Distribution Partners...............35

WAN IFRA................................................................................................... 9

Gee7 Printek takes on the Wedding Market

Ipex 2014 .................................................................................................12

with specialised products..................................................................36

Heidelberg Digital: Focusing on market requirements ..........16

Epson SurePress Digital Label Press –

New Team of DPA..................................................................................18

Flexo Quality, Flexi Business..............................................................37

Heidelberg presents new series of Stahlfolders BH/CH..........19

Konica Minolta and its growth trajectory

PIA launches printing.org...................................................................19

over the last 4 years..............................................................................38

Mönch bookbindery in Leipzig:

Zoomin.com Mobile App delivers 0.2 million

Pioneer in Shorter Signatures...........................................................20

‘Magic Moments’ across India...........................................................39

CGS releases GRACoL 2013 compliant Proofing Paper ...........21

Heidelberg invests in digital future ...............................................40

KSPA’s Interaction Meeting with Canara Bank............................21

KODAK NEXPRESS SX Platform first

Coquetting Technology,

pre-approved platform for PSA certification...............................41

BMPA’s Delegation visits Heidelberg, Germany!........................22

The all new JETSCI M-Series Industrial

The take away from Felix’s talk is: ...................................................23

Inkjet Systems for Variable Data Printing......................................42

Manroland’s Lightweight Paper Performance Package..........25

Scodix at VillartPhoto Expo 2014, Hyderabad............................42

Muller Martini Open House:

Esko to present packaging preproduction

Varied Opportunities with Web Offset..........................................26

solutions for the 21st century...........................................................43

Monotech to distribute Contex Wide Format

Ajanta Packaging expands

Scanning solutions...............................................................................27

global presence with new Thailand plant....................................44

MPLA organizes Free Medical Camp at

Agfa Graphics supplies inkjet inks for digitally

Indian Red Cross Society, Chennai..................................................27

printed passports in Belgium............................................................45

CIP4 releases new Case Study Tool to the public.......................28

Esko: Full HD Flexo and CDI technology supports

Param installs ERP at Sama Printers................................................29

VEEPEE’s technology embracing ethos.........................................46

Oita Godo Shimbun orders Two

Bobst organises Open House at Pune...........................................47

Mitsubishi 4x1 DIAMONDSPIRIT Presses.......................................29

CorporealBrand Vs FascimileBrand = Brand Protection..........48

Maximum quality for Vprint’s Goss M600 presses with

Flexo Image Graphics to expand into distinct companies ....49

Q.I. Press Controls’ Automation solutions ....................................30

The ink in LEIBINGER inkjet printers does not dry out.............50

EAE taken over by Q.I. Press Controls.............................................31

Joint venture for sustainable packaging solution.....................51

Quad/Graphics to acquire Brown Printing Company..............31

Ajanta Packaging to add new-age Weigang at Sharjah .........51

Kodak and manroland sign agreement

VINSAK starts manufacturing

regarding KODAK PROSPER ..............................................................31

AB Graphics’ label finishing equipment........................................52

PrintExpo 2014:

4th edition of the ETS International Cartoon Contest.............52

The 6th edition scores high points in Chennai...........................32

Agfa Graphics adds primer option to

Xerox launches two new products at PrintExpo 2014.............34

Jeti Titan S and HS flatbed inkjet printers.....................................53

Param targets South with PrintExpo debut.................................34

Esko has ‘Racing’ themed stand at Fespa Digital 2014 ............54

Vineet K G. Associate Editor (vineetkg@pressideas.com) Jasvinder S. Sub-Editor (jasvinder@pressideas.com) Jacob George Marketing and Sales (jacob@pressideas.com) M.S. Mukundan Advertising and Sales Southern and Western India (aims@pressideas.com) Graphic Designer Anil Kumar

Networking/ Hardware Consultant Sukhdeep Singh USA Correspondents Tensi M., Preeti European Correspondent Rimi, Yadhu Morphine Production Thomas K Alex

PRESSIdeas April 2014 Vol. 14, Issue 04 Printed by Jacob George and published by Jasmeet Singh on behalf of PRESSIdeas Publishing Pvt Ltd. Printed in India at Hues and Colors 363, Industrial Focal Point, Phase-IX Mohali, and published at PRESSIdeas, 437-A 1st Floor, Industrial Area, Phase-2 Chandigarh-160002 (India) Every effort has been made to ensure that credits accurately comply with information supplied. All material supplied is compiled from sources believed to be reliable or solely an opinion of the authors. PRESSIdeas is not responsible for any steps taken based on the information provided herewith.

April 2014

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FROM THE EDITORS’ DESK Dear Readers, The Indian Wedding Market is estimated to be worth over US$25bn and growing at 30% annually. It is one industry that hasn’t seen a slowdown. It is proved by the fact that half of the nearly 900 tons of gold consumed in India is bought during the Wedding Season. Gee7Printek came into being when seven photographers from different parts of Punjab joined hands to Digitally print Wedding Albums from Ludhiana. The company takes on the Wedding Market by combining HP’s Digital Print quality with value-adding enhancement capabilities of Scodix to deliver exclusivities, specialized products and more. Digital is the buzz word. Heidelberg, the largest Offset giant is extending its Digital and software portfolio and pooling activities in this sector in the Digital division. Its latest development is in the “4-D” printing. The Jetmaster Dimension from Heidelberg is an inkjet-based digital press for printing on three-dimensional objects. The very first application for this system is being implemented at one of Europe’s leading online print shops. Heidelberg’s a dream technology for Offset Printers world over. It was ‘a dream come true’ experience for a team of Bombay Master Printers’ Association when it went on a study tour to Heidelberg in Germany. The Association is celebrating its 60th Anniversary and the tour marks another milestone in its success journey. It indeed was a rare experience for the visitors. The first-of-its-kind tour is divided into a two-part story to appear in two successive issues of PRESSIdeas. The interesting first part comes in the April edition. Kadam Digital and Kodak co-hosted an Open House, “CTP Tantra-Mantra”, which was attended by over 140 attendees. The venue was the Aurora Towers Hotel, Pune. The event marked the latest installations of Kodak Trendsetter Q800 and high-end Kodak Prinergy Workflow by Kadam. The company complements its existing Kodak Nexpress SE 3000 Digital Production Color Press with the latest addition. With over 10,000 Konica A4 machines installed and seven models for customers to choose from, Konica sees a huge market and expects to triple the sales. To know how, just read the full story, ‘Konica Minolta and its growth trajectory over the last 4 years’. In the event’s review section, we have this year’s biggest show Ipex 2014 and India’s grand PrintExpo 2014 exhibition that recently concluded in Chennai. Important industry developments include Ajanta Packaging recently opening a new overseas plant in Thailand to locally serve its Thai and also international customers. PRESSIdeas has an exclusive story. Bangalore based VEEPEE Graphic Solutions has made a ‘game changer’ investment which makes it one of the first Asian companies to adopt Esko “Full HD Flexo” and obtain the Full HD Flexo Certification. The installation of Esko’s CDI with Full HD Flexo technology and the subsequent certification puts VEEPEE in a select group of elite operations, globally certified to Esko Full HD Flexo. Also of interest should be the article on the menace of Gray Market diversion, dealing with unauthorised distribution channels, their impact on brands and methods of protection. Read all this along with the regular news and the latest happenings within the industry in this April 2014 issue of PRESSIdeas.

- Jasvinder Singh, Sub-editor

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April 2014

Kadam Digital installs Kodak Trendsetter and Kodak Prinergy Kodak Trendsetter Q800 and high-end Kodak Prinergy Workflow to fulfill quality requirements of Pune’s Offset Printing market. Kodak has announced that Kadam Digital Transprints Pvt. Ltd., a Pune based Pre-Press Bureau, has added the Kodak Trendsetter Quantum 800 Platesetter to their Offset capabilities. Kadam Digital and Kodak co-hosted the Open House, called “CTP Tantra-Mantra”, which saw participation of over 140 attendees from the print market in Pune. The venue was the Aurora Towers Hotel, Pune.

“The Kodak Trendsetter Q800 is our second Kodak installation, after the Kodak Nexpress SE 3000 Digital Production Color Press. The Kodak Trendsetter Q800 along with Kodak Prinergy Workflow bolsters our Offset solutions and adds value to our customer offerings.” - Sanjay Kadam

Key Notes : > Kodak technology at Pune’s renowned prepress bureau. > CTP Tantra-Mantra Open House by Kodak and Kadam. > Trendsetter Q800 – speed up to 42 plates/hour and flexibility to image 2-page to 8-page plate sizes.

April 2014

Kadam Digital Transprints Pvt. Ltd. is a multi-service umbrella organization that has been providing printing solutions since 1990 and has carved a niche in Pune’s printing market as one of the most advanced printing houses in the city. Kunal Kadam, General Manager, Kadam Digital Transprints Pvt. Ltd., in his address at the event, said about the new installation, “Kadam Digital has always opted for modern, emerging printing technologies and equipment in our efforts to deliver the best to our customers. It is with this constant endeavour that we have added the Kodak Trendsetter Q800 to our repertoire of high end equipment, as it is a CTP that truly takes print quality to superlative levels. Add to this the versatility and support that Kodak Prinergy Workflow imparts, and we have a complete high-end setup to really add value to our printing operations.” Sanjay Kadam, Director, Kadam Digital Transprints Pvt. Ltd. said, “We have always appreciated the

productivity and quality that Kodak technology brings to our output, helping us achieve our business goals and expand our customer base. The Kodak Trendsetter Q800 is our second Kodak installation, after the Kodak Nexpress SE 3000 Digital Production Color Press. The Kodak Trendsetter Q800 along with Kodak Prinergy Workflow bolsters our Offset solutions and adds value to our customer offerings.” Some key features of the Kodak Trendsetter Q800 are listed below: • Speed up to 42 plates/hour • Flexibility up to image 2-page to 8-page plate sizes that is a minimum of 267 x 215mm up to a maximum of 838 x 1143mm and extremely fast throughput • Connectivity to 3rd party workflow systems via 1-bit TIFF files • Screening up to 450 lpi. Optional 25, 20- or 10-micron Kodak Staccato Screening creates photorealistic images • Resolution: 2400 dpi and 1200 dpi • Kodak Squarespot Imaging provides accurate, stable, repeatable imaging for fewer plate remakes, fewer adjustments in prepress, and exceptional print quality Kadam Digital also has high-end Kodak Prinergy Workflow, which offers: • Prinergy Connect High-End Software provides 2x Refiners for Normalizing, Color Management,

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April 2014

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Kadam Digital Transprints Pvt. Ltd. also introduced their new web-to-print facility on their improved Website, which is an

automated process to upload the file and print order. This facility helps track information on job cost and timelines, while also monitoring the progress of the job from the customers’ location, saving the customer valuable time and money. Nilesh Dandige from Kruti Infomedia, Pune, has developed this unique, easy-to-use solution for Kadam Digital’s numerous customers and is working tirelessly to enhance its implementation.

Arnab Maiti, National Manager – PrePress Solutions and UWS, Kodak India added, “Kadam Digital has been one of our most valued customers. The relationship further strengthens with their purchase of two Kodak solutions: the renowned Kodak Trendsetter Q800 Platesetter and Kodak Prinergy Workflow. With the help of Kodak Prinergy Workflow’s pre-flighting and trapping capabilities, as well as the reliability and stability of the Kodak Trendsetter Q800, Kadam Digital has the right set-up in place to complement their web-to-print solution and run a seamless operation with evolved technology.” Sessions for the day were concluded by Abhiram Sathe, National Manager – Technical Support, Kodak India, who educated the audience on the types of digital plates, with a brief introduction on the manufacturing of Kodak plates, and then addressed some common problems that occur with plates during offset printing.

April 2014

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Ipex 2014 - The London event delivers blueprint for the future of print centric events.

When Ipex 2014 closed its doors on Saturday, Informa Exhibitions had firmly established the show’s future and new direction at the state-of-the-art ExCeL London Exhibition and Conference Centre. The event, which took place from 24th – 29th March 2014, saw a total attendance of over 22,000 which included 3,532 exhibitors, with a geographical visitor split of 54% UK and 46% international.

“Ipex 2014 has proved that the combination of exhibitors representing the whole print supply chain, supported by a robust content programme, is the future for events including Ipex.” - Patrick Martell, Ipex 2014 President

Key Notes : > The key event of 2014 for the international print community. > The most comprehensive content programme ever seen at an international print centric event. > Over 170 industry experts participated in the World Print Summit, Masterclasses and Cross Media Production theatres across the six days.

April 2014

“With the fast evolving print industry and the challenges these changes represent, Informa Exhibitions has collaborated closely with its stakeholders to ensure the delivery of an informative and engaging event that offered a wide range of benefits, most importantly a good return on exhibitor and visitor investment,” comments Peter Hall, Managing Director of Informa Exhibitions. “I particularly want to thank our exhibitors for their continued support, and am delighted that we could repay their confidence in Ipex by providing a high quality international and UK audience to ensure it was the key event for the international print community in 2014.” Olotunde Oyelone, CEO of Printmaster Limited in Nigeria, said: “I have been going to Ipex for nearly 20 years and was interested to see what the event was offering. I found the seminar programme in the Masterclasses very useful, especially the session ‘Adding value in the label sector’. Knowledge is important for print businesses to progress, and

I’m looking forward to see how Ipex develops in the coming years. Additionally, the new location in London is very convenient and cost effective for me.” Nigel White, Commercial Director of The Henley and South Oxfordshire Standard, added: “Thursday was our first day at Ipex, but I wish we’d come earlier. There were just too many companies we wanted to talk to; I don’t think we got round to everyone.”

Ipex exhibitors report positively Olaf Lorenz, General Manager, International Marketing Division, Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe, said: “Ipex has been everything we wanted it to be and fulfilled all our objectives. We have been getting 600 qualified leads per day and have already collected more than 40 letters of intent, as well as closing some sales. Based on our historical experience of these types of shows, we are confident that Ipex will net us over €3.5million worth of new business.” First time Ipex exhibitor Lumejet is delighted with the show: “Quite frankly we are thrilled with Ipex 2014, it has far exceeded our expectations,” commented Miles Bentley, Commercial Director. “As a company we were fortunate that Ipex 2014 came just at the right time for us in our development cycle; it has delivered a significant number of good quality contacts and we have not stopped since the show opened its doors.”

pressideas/ commercial printing

we had not entirely expected. I think the proximity to London in particular may have had a big part to play in that. We were also delighted to award JFM, Manchester, with its Full HD FLexo certificate on stand in recognition of the high quality flexo print it can now deliver using Esko’s class-leading technology.”

Comprehensive Content Programme In addition to the exhibitors on the show floor, Ipex also delivered the most comprehensive content programme ever seen at an international print centric event. Across the six days, over 170 industry experts participated in the World Print Summit, Masterclasses and Cross Media Production

Keith Dalton, Director, Fujifilm Graphic Systems UK, added: “We’ve had immensely positive feedback from everyone on our approach to Ipex 2014, and feel that the support we have given the show and the successful ‘print shop’ we were running on our stand paid off. This was reinforced by the comments we were constantly receiving throughout the show. The visitor numbers were good despite the absence of a number of industry suppliers, and our stand was constantly busy with customers and some of those suppliers themselves!” “Epson always values direct contact with end users, and, further to the sales closed, Ipex 2014 has provided us with another opportunity to gain up to date customer opinions, especially with the International audience, to aid our future product development,” comments Duncan Ferguson, Director Prographics, Epson Europe. Paul Bates, United Kingdom & Ireland Business Manager, Esko says, “Esko has been pleased with the number of international visitors at the show but also the quality of conversations that have taken place with decision makers. The number of high level company executives has meant we have been able to have very meaningful conversations about the benefits of our hardware and software solutions and how they can streamline workflow and improve production capabilities. The range of market sectors represented was also interesting as was the fact we have been able to speak to some brand owners. The latter was a surprising shift in visitor demographics that

April 2014

pressideas/ commercial printing

theatres, and offered practical takeaways, new ideas, skills and solutions that printers can implement in their businesses. Conference producers reported a very good attendance in the 115 seminar sessions, with packed-out theatres and limited standing room only available in some of the keynote addresses. Kathy Sletten, Director, Print-Manager, Aveda Corp, Estee Lauder, spoke on the ‘An Audience with the Print Buyers’ session. Afterwards, she commented: “I was pleasantly surprised to find our audience so interested and engaged, and wish we’d had more time to share with them. They asked many relevant and engaging questions, some of which have given me food for thought. We never stop learning from each other as long as we keep the dialogue going, and the World Print Summit at Ipex 2014 provided the perfect stage for some great discussions.” Carole Arrantash, from UK based Quadrant, which is part of the Linney Group, was complimentary of the sessions she attended in the World Print Summit: “This was a

April 2014

fabulous opportunity to gain an insight, both into what print buyers expect from their suppliers and how they prefer to be approached. To have the opportunity to ask pertinent questions to assist printers in their quest to work with such prestigious companies was also both unexpected and invaluable.” SME printers attended practical sessions that addressed their

business issues and solutions to streamline production and support business growth in the Masterclasses. Bill Campbell, CEO of Australian print business, Fergies Print & Mail, says: “The Ipex Masterclasses were the main motivator for our decision to visit Ipex 2014 – they have assisted our management team in validating

pressideas/ commercial printing

the possibilities of our X-Serie machine and what it could mean for communications in the commercial print and packaging sectors. We were overwhelmed by the interest our technology received, a curiosity that I feel we satisfied and we look forward to business opportunities that may materialise in the future.” Peter Hall continues: “The initial feedback from Ipex’s stakeholders confirms that the changes we implemented and the features we introduced provided visitors with more reasons than ever to attend. It also helped us deliver a multi-faceted show that completely supports the industry. I believe that Ipex 2014 firmly set the tone for future events.” Tim Webb, Executive Director of PICON, the direction we are guiding our company in. From a commercial perspective they have provided clarity to several key areas of interest.” In the content driven Cross Media Production feature, which ran from 25th – 27th March, delegates learnt how to effectively implement multi-channel communication strategies in the 1-2-1 Digital and Direct Marketing, Publishing and Brand Management Theatres. Ipex’s stakeholders were unanimous in their opinion that the feature, which had a number of supporting exhibitors, should be a key element in the future blueprint for Ipex.

The Make-Ready Challenge champion The innovative Ipex Make-Ready Challenge, sponsored by Burnetts, proved a hit with visitors during the show. This entertaining competition drew 24 entrants from the around the world to compete against the clock on a Heidelberg 5-colour press. UKbased contestant Tony Dowd completed the challenge in the record time of 4 minutes 53 seconds, and was crowned the make-ready champion on Saturday.

major printing industry exhibitions to highlight the benefits of product innovations and latest technology, and this was precisely the philosophy behind Komori’s decision to sponsor the Ipex Eco Zone,” comments Steve Turner, Director of Sheetfed Sales, Komori UK. “Our demonstrations of the Komori H-UV curing system, with its many ecological strengths, generated serious interest from a wide range of visitors from within and outside the UK.” In the Future Innovations Zone, which included three different sections covering 3D printing, printed electronics and photo products, presented technologies that are set for rapid expansion over the next few years. Ceradrop co-founder Nicolas Bernardin says: “The Future Innovations Zone at Ipex provided us with the opportunity to raise awareness of the potential of printed electronics to the print industry. A large mix of visitors from the UK, Europe, USA, Middle East and Asia were enthralled by

commented: “The decision to move Ipex to ExCeL London has been a real step forward as far as our membership is concerned. The location, the facilities and the staff have all contributed to a really smooth transition from Birmingham, and ultimately a successful show. Overall, the exhibition has been better than expected with a good level of high quality visitors from around the world looking to do business.” Patrick Martell, CEO of St Ives and Ipex 2014 President, concludes: “Every time I visited ExCeL this week there’s been a real buzz. It has been brilliant to see the spread of international and UK visitors who attended the show to learn, network and do business. Ipex 2014 has proved that the combination of exhibitors representing the whole print supply chain, supported by a robust content programme, is the future for events including Ipex.” Ipex 2018 will take place at ExCeL London from 19th – 24th March 2018.

Inspiration Avenue provided visitors with an eclectic mix of visual and factual elements that demonstrated all that is great about print with three stations spread throughout the Boulevard.

Komori sponsored Eco Zone The Eco Zone, sponsored by Komori, also proved a popular feature for visitors. “Komori has a long-standing track record of utilising

April 2014

Heidelberg Digital: Focusing on market requirements Digital activities have one common goal – to ensure that Heidelberg customers have a successful and profitable future. Heidelberg is extending its digital and software portfolio and pooling activities in this sector in the Digital division. Rapid expansion is planned, with the existing range to be enhanced with new products that will provide the ideal solutions for future market requirements.

“Synerjetix” – joint inkjet projects with partners

“We see inkjet technology as a driver for new applications inside and outside our industry. That’s why we are combining our knowhow with that of our partners, and creating well-integrated systems.” - Stephan Plenz

By working with a number of partners and focusing on inkjet technology, Heidelberg is looking to develop new digital solutions for industrial commercial and packaging printing. The strategy – dubbed “Synerjetix” – stands for the joint development of industrialized ink jet production systems to enable printers to offer high-end, creative applications with reliable machinery that meets proven Heidelberg quality standards. “We see inkjet technology as a driver for new applications inside and outside our industry. That’s why we are combining our know-how with that of our partners, and creating well-integrated systems. First and foremost, we want to work with our partners to improve the quality of inkjet applications and thereby increase our customers’ confidence in this technology,” explains Stephan Plenz, Member of the Management Board responsible for Heidelberg Equipment.

First “Synerjetix” technology presentation for label printing planned for this fall

“4D” printing: Heidelberg presents the Jetmaster Dimension.

The first technology presentation is planned for this fall, when a label printing press that combines flexographic and inkjet printing will be unveiled as a cost-effective solution for producing short runs and customized labels. The new development comprises a digital inline printing system based

Key Notes : > “Synerjetix”: Joint projects based on inkjet technology ¬– new development launched for commercial and packaging printing. > Advisory Council provides crucial support. > “4D”printing – Heidelberg presents Jetmaster Dimension for customized printing on threedimensional objects.

April 2014

Online print shop flyeralarm is the first company in the world to apply “4D” printing and will be printing on sports balls from this fall.

pressideas/ commercial printing

Three years of successful partnership with Ricoh – The Linoprint C 901 and C 751 digital printing systems from Heidelberg are designed for the value segment and can be integrated into the Prinect print shop workflow.

on inkjet technology from Fujifilm, which is integrated into a label printing press from Gallus. “Today, just five percent of all labels are printed digitally. However, the demands for customized, cost-effective, and versatile printing solutions in this market segment are growing. We are working with our partners Fujifilm and Gallus to present a solution that will meet these demands perfectly,” says Jason Oliver, Head of the Digital business unit at Heidelberg. “Applications for industrial commercial printing will follow in the next stage.”

New development launched for commercial and packaging printing In parallel with this development, Heidelberg and Fujifilm have initiated a joint project to develop new highly productive inkjet-based digital printing systems for use in commercial and packaging printing markets. Although digital printing based on electrophotography has come of age, industrialized ink jet systems for high quality, high productivity sheetfed applications are only now beginning to emerge.

Advisory Council provides crucial support for activities In an effort to ensure that future developments can make full use of all the digital printing know-how available in the sector and beyond, Heidelberg has established an Advisory Council. The Council’s members include technology and market experts, digital users, and some of the company’s customers. “Providing a strong backbone for Heidelberg’s Synerjetix strategy, the Advisory Council ensures that our development work can benefit from unbiased, independent feedback, which will improve our development effectiveness, and

shorten our time to market”, says Oliver.

“4D” printing: The Jetmaster Dimension from Heidelberg The Jetmaster Dimension from Heidelberg is bringing a new solution to the market that enables customized printing on three-dimensional objects. As a result, the company plans to drive new levels of cost efficiency, flexibility, and productivity in customized design options for massproduced articles. Heidelberg has already found its first user in one of Europe’s leading online print shops, flyeralarm. Starting this fall, flyeralarm is planning to print standard sports balls in line with customer requirements and market them through its web portal. Indeed, more and more end users are looking for personalized design options when shopping for mass-produced items such as sporting goods, footwear, furniture, and cars. High-quality printing with logos, text, and other graphic elements is usually their first choice. What’s more, the technology can also be used to print large-scale advertisements on airplanes, trucks, buses, and trams – an application that currently requires labor intensive and costly film-based solutions. When it comes to industrial production processes, manufacturers want a quick and cost-efficient way to apply customized messages, type designations, and batch numbers. Usually, these features are added right at the end of production, need to be of good quality, and also have to be applied to a whole range of products. At present, meeting all these requirements still requires a separate process step away from the production line.

Inkjet printing offers the ideal solution, as it can deliver high-quality results in a wide spectrum of colors on a broad variety of surfaces, without having to come into contact with the product. The Jetmaster Dimension from Heidelberg is an integrated solution that enables users to print high-quality, customized motifs cost-effectively on all sorts of items, with the option of multicolor printing soon to be added. The type of surface that is being printed determines the most suitable print head and ink. During the initial stages, all sales activities will be handled through the head office of Heidelberg. Customers who are interested in a Jetmaster from Heidelberg can find out more by emailing 4D@heidelberg. com. Heidelberg will also provide the corresponding services and consumables, thereby giving users a single point of contact.

Linoprint C digital printing systems: Hybrid printing & short run applications Heidelberg customers are already benefiting from digital printing and software solutions that originally grew from in-house projects or collaborations and have undergone consistent development. For example, Heidelberg is now entering its fourth year in its strategic partnership with the Japanese company Ricoh. Heidelberg offers the highly developed digital printing systems from Ricoh under the names Linoprint C 901 and Linoprint C 751. The systems support customers in combined digital-offset applications and short run printing and can be integrated into the Prinect print shop workflow via the Prinect Digital Print Manager. With more than 400 Linoprint C digital printing systems already sold worldwide, Heidelberg has highlighted its expertise as

April 2014

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the only conventional press manufacturer in the industry to successfully market integrated digital and offset applications. “The three-year partnership with Ricoh has been an all out success. When it comes to digital printing, we now have a global sales and service network through which we can expand our market options,” says Oliver. “Customers who have bought solutions from our Linoprint C range are tapping into new value-added business opportunities, such as hybrid applications that utilize both offset and digital technologies in combination.”

Leading the industry: The Prinect print shop workflow With the Prinect print shop workflow, Heidelberg is the only supplier in the print media industry to offer a software package that integrates all the management and production processes of a media service provider. Heidelberg has also been expanding its portfolio for years through partnerships and acquisitions. Today, the company’s offerings range from web-to-print portals and prepress solutions to pressroom and postpress technology. “Virtually every single piece of equipment

The Prinect print shop workflow is a success story – more than 800 customers around the world utilize end-to-end integration with the leading industry software.

that Heidelberg offers includes Prinect components. Prinect is a genuine success story and offers our customers in the commercial and packaging printing sectors crucial support in boosting efficiency and lowering costs. There are already some 800 media companies around the world currently using Prinect integration solutions,” says Oliver.

Multi-channel publishing offerings break into new market segment At the end of last year, in a move to gain a foothold in the growing multi-channel publishing segment, Heidelberg acquired a stake in Siegen-based German software manufacturer Neo7even. Heidelberg aims to use Neo7even software to open up new business options for print shops, enabling them to offer their customers media-neutral publishing services, for example in print and online, on a wider scale in the future. The new portfolio ties in closely with Prinect and is being gradually integrated into this. Oliver sums it all up: “Ultimately, all our digital activities have one common goal: We want to ensure that our customers have a successful and profitable future and continue to secure a sustainable business for Heidelberg.”

New Team of DPA Delhi Printers’ Association elected its new office bearers and executive committee members at its annual election held on April 27, 2014. Eight office bearers and 20 executive committee members were elected. The Returning Officer, Mr. Arun Bansal, declared at the Annual General Meeting the names of the following 28 candidates who were elected unanimously for the year 20142015: President – Mr. Deepak Arora (JMD Colour Scan Pvt. Ltd); Vice-Presidents – Mr. Kewal Krishan Singhal (Santosh Offset), Mr. Mohd. Mustaqeem (Alfa Offset Printing Press), Mr. O. P. Dewan (Dewan Offset Printers Pvt. Ltd); Hon. General Secretary – Mr. Sunil Jain (Graphic Print); Joint-Secretaries – Mr. Mahinder Budhiraja (Emkay Printers), Mr. Megh Raj Bhati (Choudhary Offset Process); Treasurer – Mr. Rajiv Gupta (Press of India); Executive Committee Members – Mr. Ajay

April 2014

Deepak Arora

Sharma, Mr. Ashwani Dhingra, Mr. Ashok Aggarwal, Mr. Ashok Kumar Nandra, Mr. Atul Goel, Mr. D. K. Vohra, Mr. Manoj Arora, Mr. Mohd. Mursaleen, Mr. P. N. Kapur, Mr. Prakash Dass, Mr. Puneet Talwar, Mr. Rajesh

Rajiv Gupta

sunil jain

Gupta, Mr. Rajesh Sardana, Mr. Sanjay Sharma, Mr. Sanjay Jain, Mr. Sandeep Aggarwal, Mr. Shiv Mittal, Mr. Simranjot Singh Bhatia, Mr. Sunil Jain and Mr. Vivek Jain.

pressideas/ commercial printing

Heidelberg presents new series of Stahlfolders BH/CH Frequently in folding the margins are minimal for print shops and book binders, however, the demands on productivity, folding accuracy and quick change over are continuously increasing. The new Stahlfolder BH/CH family from Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) now offers high productivity and Heidelberg quality at a lower cost. The attractively priced buckle plate folders (BH-models) and combination folders (CH-models) are based on proven, technically solid technology and are available in 56, 66, 78 and 82 centimeter widths. The new machines are targeted to existing Stahlfolder TH/KH customers who are looking for lower cost additional capacity or to customers who are looking for a low cost start in professional folding, in order to be able to ensure added value and quality control in their own production flows. The new Stahlfolder BH/CH machines are characterized by automation options which are designed to be easy to use and the same operator-friendly touch screen control, the users have been familiar with for many years to guide them safely and easily through all process steps. The folding roller gaps and buckle plate stops can be set and stored automatically with a new job. This reduces set up times, and repeat orders can be reproduced any time quickly and precisely with the original set values. Moreover, the automation makes the operation of the machine a lot easier as

The new automation technique of the Stahlfolder BH/CH models facilitates setting and ensures short set-up times.

many adjustments can be done in parallel which relieves the operator. The new BH/CH machines can be customtailored with various options and modules as e.g. automation, feeder types or configurations of fold units. The Stahlfolder BH-machines are available with up to 4 folding stations. For the CH models the cross-fold variants KL, KTL and - additionally in the 78 working width - the cross fold variants KLL and KTLL are available. The machines can optionally be equipped with flat pile feeder, round continuous feeder or pallet feeder.

Proven fold technique provides security of investment The new machines are based on the proven Stahlfolder TH/KH series. The Stahlfolder TH/ KH folders, the most successful industrial folders worldwide since 2004 are now complemented with the lower cost BH/CH

models. The new BH/CH Stahlfolders use the same essential components such as the Extra Grip folding rollers, the proven Tremat sheet separation and the nonslip gear drive. They are suitable for multiple applications in commercial and signature production, their operation is as easy and they provide a proven fold quality. Stahlfolder BH/CH machines use the proven MCT-control (MCT = Modular Control Technology) of Heidelberg so that they are compatible with already existing Heidelberg deliveries. In the future the customers can also utilize the large variety of Stahlfolder units and additional functions with extended requirements. Like any other Heidelberg folders, the new BH/CH models are available with EC-conform safety installations which correspond to European safety standards.

PIA launches printing.org Printing Industries of America has launched the new printing.org website. The new website offers easier navigation and readability, a modernized look and responsive design and intuitive search results. The Printing.org website has always offered valuable benefits for the printing industry. The redesigned look provides smoother accessibility to products, services, and member benefits.

can interact with other industry experts when responding to the weekly Print Pulse question. This is an avenue that can encourage industry leaders to engage and discuss the hot topics and current events.” A key feature of the new website is the new Interactive Affiliate Map, allowing members to locate local Affiliate organizations. Visitors can also weigh in on the weekly “Print Pulse” instant survey to see how their answers stack up with their industry peers.

“We are thrilled to be introducing improved functionality and searchability on our site,” said Michael Makin, President and CEO, Printing Industries of America. “Members

April 2014

Mönch bookbindery in Leipzig: Pioneer in Shorter Signatures “In order to make print products more attractive, you have to try something new from time to time,” believe the two innovative company owners Bettina and André Mönch. It was exactly ten years ago that a thread-sewn book by the artist Olaf Nicolai and produced by the Mönch bookbindery was awarded the top prize, the Golden Letter, at the Leipzig book fair. The book titled Rewind – Forward, which was released by the renowned publishing company Hatje Cantz Verlag, features numerous shorter signatures, which lend the 168page art book a special appeal. Just as the German artist from Halle is famous in his home country and beyond for his conceptual artworks using a wide range of media, so too is the Mönch bookbindery known for its flair for creative print products.

A Product Becomes Popular

The Mönch bookbindery in the city of Leipzig in eastern Germany has produced thread-sewn books with shorter signatures for over a decade – first manually, and now industrially using the Tween option on the Ventura MC book sewing machine.

What required Bettina Mönch’s dexterity using a book sewing machine operated by foot pedals for the book that debuted in 2003 has now become industry standard. “More and more customers, mainly from the art scene, are keen to enhance thread-sewn books with short signatures,” says Bettina Mönch, a trained assortment bookbinder. She took over the company’s operations in 1987 towards the end of the GDR era from her grandfather Werner Kretzschmar and has run it together with her brother André Mönch since 2003.

two apprentices produce in one shift, has become increasingly well known thanks to word-of-mouth marketing. Its circle of customers has grown over the years, as have its runs of thread-sewn books featuring shorter signatures. Today its runs are sometimes as high as 1,000 copies. Naturally, runs of that size cannot be processed manually using the book sewing machine from their grandfather’s days.

Dare to Take Risks In order to be able to produce shorter signatures cost-effectively and increase its capacity, the Mönch bookbindery, which concentrates fully on print finishing, turned to Muller Martini, and essentially set the development of the Tween option on the Ventura MC book sewing machine in motion. It is no coincidence that the Mönch bookbindery has virtually become the pioneer of the shorter signatures option. The company, which moved into the Tapetenwerk, a creative quarter for artists located on the site of a former wallpaper factory, in 2007, has always dared to take risks. “In order to make print products more attractive and ensure they stand out, you have to try something new every now and then,” say Bettina and André Mönch, especially given the increasing competition from electronic media.

The family business, whose eight employees and

Key Notes : > Digital label printing presses leveraging Fujifilm technology to be showcased in Autumn. > Partnership with Ricoh gaining traction: More than 400 Linoprint C digital printing systems already sold. > New “4D” printing solution opens up market potential.

April 2014

Bettina and André Mönch run the Mönch bookbindery in Leipzig together. Right: Hans Thomas, Sales Representative at Muller Martini Germany.

pressideas/ commercial printing

1571 gathering machine from Muller Martini recently acquired on the secondhand market, has observed that he is processing increasing numbers of digitally printed jobs.

While the Rewind – Forward art book, which won the Golden Letter award at the Leipzig Book Fair in 2003, was produced manually, today the Mönch bookbindery stitches shorter signatures using the Ventura MC with the Tween option.

Offset and Digital His sister recognizes that “thread-sewn books with shorter signatures will remain a niche”. However, Bettina Mönch is confident that demand for such products

with integrated foils, transparent paper and various different fold types will increase, not least because of the growing popularity of the digital segment. André Mönch, who himself operates the Ventura MC and a

The result is that the runs of (exhibition) catalogs, book covers, dissertations and Bachelor’s and Master’s theses in the A5 to A4 range, which are ordered by printing plants, publishers, industrial customers, graphic designers, advertising agencies and galleries, artists and private individuals from Leipzig to Berlin, are on the decrease. Currently, however, the number of signatures gathered in-house, pre-inserted via a brochure line or delivered is growing steadily. That is why André Mönch changes over the new book sewing machine up to seven times daily. He benefits not only from the fact that the Ventura MC is designed both for offset and digital: “I also like its high level of flexibility, high production speeds, the opening system, the tight stitching and, in particular, the short threads.”

CGS releases GRACoL 2013 compliant Proofing Paper Since the very first SWOP certification on inkjet devices, CGS has consistently developed contract proofing systems for printers and publishers. CGS Specialty Proofing Papers are the proofing stock of choice for contract proofs to Fogra, SNAP, SWOP and GRACoL, worldwide. Now, in response to the new GRACoL 2013 standard, CGS releases ORIS Pearl Super G Proofing Paper. The significant change from the old GRACoL 2006 brings the white point into line with typical commercial printing stock. The shift can affect the appearance of commercially printed outputs, so it is important for printers, designers and print buyers to adhere to the new standards. Until recently, GRACoL 2006 has been the primary reference print condition used by designers and print buyers in North America and other regions of the world. The updated version now released from the GRACoL Committee is called GRACoL 2013 (CGATS 21 RPC-6). The main difference between GRACoL 2006 and the new GRACoL 2013 dataset is the white point. The target white point for GRACoL 2006 (95 L*, 0 a*, -2 b*) was based on the legacy ISO 12647-2 standard, which in turn was based on typical commercial printing

stocks available in 1994. The GRACoL 2013 white point (95 L*, 1 a*, -4 b*) is in sync with today’s typical commercial stocks. Being better aligned with today’s premium commercial stocks means printers should find it easier to simulate proofs. Calibration and verification of GRACoL 2013 requires use of M1 capable instruments. This means that use of GRACoL 2013 in production cannot be done unless you have M1 capable instruments. Specially formulated for M1 and M0 measurement devices, ORIS Pearl Super G promises pigment-based printers the top quality paper available for proofing and professional print jobs. Simply create a

colour match for the new profile and continue printing proofs as normal. ORIS Pearl Super G maintains the tradition of offering superior proofing media to commercial printers and proof providers. The ORIS Professional Media family is made under the strictest manufacturing tolerances to ensure consistent batch-to-batch quality. The ultra-fine-grain nanoporous coating provides twice the surface area of common microporous papers, which allows for higher ink densities, uniform ink absorption, better shadow detail, larger colour gamut and faster drying.

KSPA’s Interaction Meeting with Canara Bank Karnataka State Printers Association (KSPA) organized Interactive Meeting with Canara Bank with Printech Park members on dated 13.03.2014 with Executives Officers from Canara Bank. The bank officials included V.S. Ranganatha – AGM; Veerabhadra Reddy – DGM; H.L. Gopinath – Chief Manager; J.A. Louis – Chief Manager; and S.R. Ramesh – Senior Manager. The members learnt about the various facilities available with the bank. More than 50 members attended the

meeting and got their queries answered by the dignitaries.

April 2014

Coquetting Technology, BMPA’s Delegation visits Heidelberg, Germany! BMPA takes its 28 members to a study tour – a first-of-its-kind from India to Heidelberg, Germany.

The Bombay Master Printers’ Association (BMPA) is celebrating its 60th Anniversary (1954-2014). In collaboration with Heidelberger Druckmaschnien Germany (HDM) and Heidelberg India (HIN) it just organized an exclusive international study tour for its members. In all 28 people signed-up for this first-ofits-kind event from India to HDM. “The entire event was seamlessly handled between the BMPA’s Secretariat, HIN and HDM,” says Nitin Shah, team member to BMPA’s Task Group on Industrial Visit.

The make ready

Each and every press is assembled based on a sales order. The skilled hands of HDM technicians first assemble a press then they test it for its functioning, reliability and reproduction and finally take it apart for final dispatch to the customer.

Key Notes : > BMPA marks 60th anniversary celebrations with exclusive international study tour for 28 members. > BMPA team visits the Mecca of press manufacturing at Wiesloch. > Wiesloch-Walldorf plant – workforce of around 6,500, 860,000 m2 area, world’s largest press production facility that has built over 400,000 printing units.

April 2014

The visiting team reached Hotel Crowne Plaza on the 23rd of March. The city of Heidelberg is a famous city for many things, like, for being the romance capital of Europe; for its fascinating castle which is one of the most visited places in Germany; the University of Heidelberg which is the oldest (over 1000 years old) in the country and reputed to be the best place for studying medicine in whole of Germany; and of course, for the Printing fraternity, it’s Heidelberg – the maker of stellar machines and hi-tech solutions.

A little over 30% of Heidelberg’s population comprises students. The students make the place fun, lively and very English-ready. So a more purposeful statement, for the group, from all of the above can be: Heidelberg is a brand you can be in awe of and fall in love with especially since it has evolved out of a setting which is very beautiful, picturesque and rich in heritage, culture and academia.

Bernhard Seidl makes a presentation on HDM; Robert Crooker Jr. makes a presentation Digital Print = Digital Business Model On Day 1 – March 24th (pre-lunch), the team was warmly received at the Prinect Room of the Print Media Centre (PMC). The next four days involved extensive commute, getting a bird’s eye view on the setups of three print establishments – one each, in packaging, commercial and hybrid. Monika Clauer of HDM Event Management had planned the tour for BMPA’s team. At the PMC, Felix Mueller, Sheetfed Product Marketing, welcomed the Indian delegation.

pressideas/ commercial printing

After Felix, Bernhard Seidl, Sheetfed, Product Marketing, SpeedMaster, made a presentation on HDM. Bernhard is someone who has seen Heidelberg grow before his own eyes. Seidl, is a very offset passionate personality. He told the team about how in 1850 Andreas Hamm established HDM. Working with the machinist Andreas Albert, a former master craftsman at Koenig & Bauer, Hamm decided to incorporate flatbed cylinder presses and “other machines relevant for book printing” in the production plan. At the end of the 19th century, the firm relocated to Heidelberg where it became a corporation under the new name “Schnellpressenfabrik AG Heidelberg” and their product “Original Heidelberger Tiegel” aka the Platen Press, which printed at a speed of 1,000 to 3,000 sheets per hour came to make the company famous throughout the world in a very short period of time. In the early 20th century Hubert

Sternberg, a member of the management board at Schnellpressenfabrik, visited the big daddy of assembly line technique aka Henry Ford in the US. From the latter Sternberg learn the art of perfecting mass production. He came back deeply impressed and replicated the conveyor belt model using movement on rail that enabled the company to produce at least 100 assemble Tiegels each month. Even today the systems remains almost the same except the conveyor today has transformed into a pallet! Bernhard shared with the team statistics on the German print markets’ broad segments. These figures are estimates by PIRA for 2012, accordingly Forms and Business Stationery was seen to be declining (16%), Advertising printing on the rise (35%), Publishing up (25%) and Packaging and Labels (24%). There’s a clear message from all of the above says Bernhard: “Look out for new business”. One of the ways in which Heidelberg has kept afloat is by looking for new ventures. He mentioned how HDM today also manufactures sophisticated electronics and deploys its foundry skills for automotive giants like Mercedes, Audi and BMW. HDM today has become a 360 degree solutions and services provider to the print industry. And this is how, Bernhard states Heidelberg is different from the

competition. Bernhard also made a case for Intelligent Packaging as one of the promising areas for the near-future. Seidl also told the difference between machines from China and Wiesloch. He clarified that Qingpu (China) is a strategic orientation for HDM and that only “pre-configured” SpeedMaster (SM) presses are “assembled” at Qingpu. And that at Quingpu all parts for assembling the press come from Germany, manufactured at Wiesloch and from the foundry at Amstetten, consistent with HDM’s total QC. However, all customised solutions still come out of the Wiesloch factory. Presently HDM operates out of 11 production sites viz. Amstetten, Brandenburg, Kiel, Langgöns-Oberkleen,

The take away from Felix’s talk is: The best machine is not the largest one nor is it the one with max of technology; but the best is that machine which makes you money and for a longer time. Look out for the best workflow. That is the winner. Heidelberger Druckmaschinen is in a unique position to offer you everything within the supply chain of print management and technology.

Leipzig, Ludwigsburg, Wiesloch, Shanghai (China), Nové Mesto (Slovakia), St. Gallen (Switzerland) and Sidney (USA). Heidelberg’s mantra of Strategic Orientation has key goals that direct the firm to: • Get into emerging markets • Enhance solutions for packaging printing • Drive for into digital and new ventures • Provide a raft of solutions under the services and consumables space

“Offset must have a digital complement”, Bernhard Seidl” The Prinect Centre gave BMPA’s team an opportunity to have three other vivid presentations. The group got a live video demonstration of HDM’s Prinect workflow that rendered a folded-carton packaging job. Heidelberg is the only manufacturer to offer a print shop workflow that integrates and manages the entire print production process. Prinect covers everything from print shop management, online customer connection,

April 2014

pressideas/ commercial printing

prepress and digital print workflow to makeready optimization, colour, quality, machine operation and a full range of services. The study group got to see that Prinect is wonderfully leveraged by German printers and converters to gain efficiency, productivity and control. Even small sized print shops, doing less than 1 million Euro, also deploy the Prinect. Next at the PMC, HDMS’s Robert Crooker Jr., Senior VP Digital Print Biz. Dvp. and Strategic Partnering made a presentation to the team. He set the stage up with a simple equation, Digital Print = Digital Business Model. Robert emphasised and underscored that the digital print model works differently from the traditional offset print model – that Digital calls for a fresh business model, which effectively leverages and transforms the power of digital print communication to provide a value add that brings better profits on per transaction or per impression basis. Robert offered more statistics and handholding on the power of industrialised digital printing. By 2020 in Germany, figures from the Pira report he shared, show that print production volumes for digital are forecasted to be growing at +10.9%, Flexo at +2.6%, Sheetfed Offset at +0.1%, Web offset -1.7%. In this presentation he said that 56% of a typical print job in Germany presently tends to have run length of less than 2,500 sheets. Robert’s figures also projected the effectiveness of HDM’s Anicolor technology in managing short run offset job costs. Anicolor makes offset as cost effective as digital for run lengths in the region of 125 quantity and more. This presentation also demonstrated effectively that HDM with its digital portfolio lined up under “Linoprint”, where-in the entire digital press is supplied by Ricoh and Heidelberg extends the product’s versatility by deploying an interface for the Prinect module and bringing the famed HDM service and support, has no plans to focus on document printing. Through Linoprint in conjunction with Ricoh, Heidelberg has goals to cater to POS

April 2014

& Advertising jobs, Packaging & Label and Commercial Short Run & VDP. Crooker spells out Heidelberger’s Digital Strategy, yet in the pipeline, where-in the service channels of HDM and Gallus will be effectively synergised to provide customers (print shops) to expand their digital foot print where HDM will collaborate with Fujifilm to bring broad spectrum digital solutions throughout all popular job segments – commercial, packaging and label & foil. Next in line the Indian group got to witness how HDM is making efforts to develop printed products that can become more relevant to the marketing mix that drives today’s communication. Martin SchmittLeven, a unique personality, who comes straight out of Heidelberg’s R&D brought with him a slew of printed products that he and his department research and innovate over with an aim to commercialise and penetrate print’s latent opportunities. Now this is something that we must admire about HDM. They are taking steps and measures to make printed products engaging and meaningful to ‘marketing’ and ‘sales’ in a highly digitalised and multichannel age. Martin presented his marvellous solutions including: • Micro embossing, • QR codes (which he thinks are somewhat passé and archaic) • Augmented Reality (AR) • Media Convergence with RFID • TouchCode • Smart Shelf Concept • Functional Printing aka 3D surface decoration with inkjet which complements the process of Additive Manufacturing popularly known as 3D printing. After Martin’s powerful hi-tech solutions, Peter Schwab, Product Management, Sheetfed at HDM discussed the firm’s cutting edge prowess with coatings and post printing applications with samples to the

delegation from Mumbai in the Print Media Centre. Peter laid down the key drivers for expansion in consumption of coated and special effects of printed products. Keeping a keen watch on these influences can help print shops project upcoming demand. Schwab also presented to the delegation the various application technologies that HDM offers: Double Coating, Duo Technology, UV Technology and Cold Foil. Before departing from HDM’s PMC, the team was given a tour of its extensively equipped Demo Centre. Bernhard helped them understand the latest ANICOLOR technology, which has been developed to make offset short runs out perform digital static page runs. With ANICOLOR, the offset press is able to give a sellable sheet as early as the third sheet onwards.

The second half at the Mecca of press manufacturing Now the BMPA team reached the Mecca of press manufacturing at Wiesloch. The entire HDM factory is spread over 0.8 million sq mtrs and contains 2,000 plus bicycles for facilitating internal commute. The Wiesloch-Walldorf site was initiated in 1957 and represents an important milestone in the history of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg). Since the plant opened, over one billion Euro has been invested in it. Today, the WieslochWalldorf plant has a workforce of around 6,500 and covers an area of 860,000 square meters (9,250,000 square feet), making this ultramodern printing press production facility the world’s largest. The parts and components required are manufactured at the Heidelberg sites in Amstetten, Brandenburg and Wiesloch-Walldorf and by several hundred outside suppliers. All Heidelberg sheetfed offset presses, except the SM range of pre-configured presses, used by printers the world over are assembled at Wiesloch-Walldorf. Since production started here, over 400,000

pressideas/ commercial printing

printing units have been built, and the plant is still growing.

• •

The Wiesloch-Walldorf journey commenced with Hall 11. All the members of the team were provided a hearing aid to make sure that tour guide, Bernhard Seidl could talk to them un-hindered by the shopfloor din. There they saw the SpeedMaster press and also two behemoths – the twin SpeedMaster XL presses. Both the presses are configured either for conventional inks or UV inks which allow them to undertake mixed operations and can readily offer double coater solutions. The two presses were: XL 75-YY7LYYLX3 and XL 106-LYY7LYYX3. What configuration do all these numbers imply? • •

•

• •

1st unit chamber doctor blade 2nd and 3rd unit drying units either with IR/hot air or UV depending on application 7 offset units, in which 2nd unit is ready for online coldfoil and the 1st unit takes care of the glue, 11th unit chamber yet another doctor blade 12th and 13th units are again drying units either IR/hot air or UV

14th unit chamber once more doctor blade Delivery with 3 extensions

In the next Hall 6, the printing press you have placed an order for comes to get handfitted basis an assembly line on pallet. The pallet moves from one team or individual to another in every stage of value addition that comes to make the machine complete, as one whole. Each press sold by Heidelberg therefore is hand-fitted with effective check points at every few intermittent stages. The BMPA group saw that HDM does not hold any ready stock by way of an inventory. Each and every press is assembled based on a sales order. In Hall 6, the skilled hands of HDM technicians first assemble a press then they test it for its functioning, reliability and reproduction and finally take it apart for final dispatch to the customer. Bernhard Seidl also showed the visiting team HDM’s another super speciality – helical gear manufacturing. In HDM’s gear manufacturing process, the order of precision is 1000th of a millimetre. Each and every Heidelberg press is equipped with only those helical gears that are hand tested for accuracy. Any gear that does not meet the given tolerance is canned.

The foundry in Amstetten happily melts it away or HDM makes exclusive souvenir clocks out of these. So what makes helical gears special? Helical gears offer a refinement over spur gears. Since the gear is curved, this angling causes the tooth shape to be a segment of a helix. The angled teeth engage more gradually than do spur gear teeth, causing them to run the press more smoothly and quietly. The typical application of helical gears is indicated when the machine requires to run at high speeds, large power transmission, or where noise abatement is important. The spares and parts fulfilment centre is fully automated, operated via robotics and runs several stories below ground and few more above ground too. This area was out of bounds since it receives and forwards fulfilled orders for global dispatch. (... to be continued) (Don’t miss the second and final part of the study tour report that appears in the next issue of PRESSIdeas. The information was shared with us by Mr. Prashant of BMPA.)

Manroland’s Lightweight Paper Performance Package Printing with lightweight paper on Sheetfed Offset, presents print companies with consistent productivity and product quality challenges. For lightweight paper, lower stability means that substrates cannot run reliably through the press if the speed is too high. And while printing must be done at the highest speeds allowable, the possibilities of curling, creasing, wrinkles, dogeared corners and small tears can pose constant threats to product quality. For printing companies which process a relatively high proportion of their jobs on lightweight paper, these constraints can be problematic. Manroland Sheetfed’s ‘Lightweight Paper Performance Package’ solves lightweight paper printing constraints with ease. Among Manroland’s five specialist Performance Packages is its Lightweight Paper Package, which offers an easy solution to the quality constraints in the printing of lightweight paper. With integration of special antistatic equipment and air supply systems,

this package, optimizes sheet separation and sheet feeding, delivery, increasing the printing speed of the press, while also reducing or even avoiding press stoppages altogether. It provides straight-edged delivery stacks to help increase productivity in the finishing operations. QuickChange Air offers the further benefit of allowing operators to adjust air settings during job change-over.

This highly popular Lightweight Paper Performance Package, can be installed on ROLAND 700 HiPrint, ROLAND 700 HiPrint HS and ROLAND 700 DirectDrive. If the constraints of printing are a concern, the Lightweight Performance Package provided by Manroland Sheetfed is the printer’s ideal choice.

A series of extensive tests has shown that the Manroland Lightweight Paper Performance Package enables 40-60 g/m2 lightweight paper to be processed at speeds of 15,000 sheets per hour and higher, increasing average production output by 25 percent and more. Manroland Sheetfed’s ‘Lightweight Paper Performance Package’ solves lightweight paper printing constraints with ease.

pressideas/ commercial printing

Muller Martini Open House: Varied Opportunities with Web Offset An open house event will be held on 6 and 7 May in Maulburg (Germany) to inaugurate the new Print Technology Center and celebrate the 50th anniversary of Muller Martini Printing Presses GmbH. Visitors will have the opportunity to see the high-performance Concepta printing press and the infinitely variable VSOP in action, as well as listen to exciting specialist talks and exchange experiences with print specialists. The company, which was originally intended by company founder Hans Müller to be just a subsidiary that would take the pressure off Muller Martini’s core manufacturing activities, soon developed as an independent business segment and experienced a success story all of its own thanks to its narrow web printing presses with countless different equipment versions for the business forms printing market. Today, Muller Martini Printing Presses GmbH with its web printing presses is a strong partner for the paper market (pharmaceutical inserts, security printing, mail shots, forms), as well as cardboard box printing, label printing on a wide range of substrates, and flexible package printing. Concepta and VSOP for Flexibility Muller Martini currently offers four printing press types: the Alprinta and the Concepta produce high-quality mail shots, commercial work, security printing materials and pharmaceutical inserts, while the Alprinta V and the infinitely variable VSOP are ideal for printing labels, flexible packaging and cardboard. Live demos at the open house event will allow visitors to see for themselves that the Concepta’s intelligent software provides for short setup times and little production waste. The infinitely variable VSOP will be used to demonstrate how quick changeovers to new sizes can be. That is especially important in flexible package printing, because runs are decreasing in size owing to the rapidly growing variety of end products. Muller Martini will present the wide-ranging possibilities that web offset offers at the open house event. Web offset enables diverse inline procedures, such as offset towers, flexo and rotogravure printing units, screen printing unit, perforation with die-cutting and punching, delivery for roll, signature and fold, cross cutting and folding modules, register control, video belt monitoring, and UV drying. Muller Martini combines all these processes

April 2014

in one machine providing high production speeds and perfect printing quality. Fit for the Future with Web Offset “Printing presses from Muller Martini stand for first-class printing quality, and have a particularly high degree of availability thanks to simple changeovers,” says Bernd Sauter, Managing Director of Muller Martini Printing Presses GmbH. “Our print specialists will demonstrate that at our open house event, and will be delighted to provide advice and engage in discussions with visitors.” Thanks to its modular design, printing plants can configure a web printing press from Muller Martini to suit their needs optimally and extend it in the future in order to enter new business segments. “Variable web offset, in particular, opens up many new perspectives,” says Sauter. From Pre-Press to Finished Product

In addition to the live demos, visitors can listen to exciting specialist talks and engage in discussions about offset printing as an interesting and profitable technology (especially in the packaging segment), variable sleeve offset printing, composite materials in offset printing, as well as commercial printing, security printing and pharmaceutical printing in general, where nothing is more important than 100% reliability. An in-house trade fair with table top presentations of over 20 exhibiting partner companies from the fields of pre-press, automation, drying, printing control and quality systems, finishing, and substrates and consumables will top off the two-day open house event.

pressideas/ commercial printing

Monotech to distribute Contex Wide Format Scanning solutions Monotech Systems has been appointed Distributors for Contex range of Wide Format Scanning Systems by Contex A/S, Denmark. Contex is a reputed global player in Wide Format Scanning. The new tie-up expands the extensive portfolio of Monotech to include a wide range

of Large Format Colour Scanners ranging from 24 inch (A1) to 54 inch scanning width, with both CCD and CIS Technology, backed by Contex Nextimage Software for Standalone Scanners, MFP Scanners and Flatbed Scanners. Commenting on the new tie-up, Mr. T P Jain, Managing Director, Monotech Systems said: “We are excited to be associated with Contex and this enables

us to become a total solution provider and opens up new opportunities. With Contex, we are equipped to adequately cater to the needs of Architects, Engineers & Construction Industries (AEC), Engineering Projects, Publishing Industry, Commercial reprographers & Copy Shops, GIS etc. Our existing Offset, Prepress, Wide Format Inkjet & LED Printer customers would also stand benefitted with the new offering and service support to existing Contex Scanners.” Headquartered in Denmark, Contex develops and produces large format imaging solutions, innovative technology and advanced scan and copy software applications. Sold worldwide in over 90 countries, Contex solutions are recognized in a wide range of industries for reliability, value, high performance and superb image quality.

MPLA organizes Free Medical Camp at Indian Red Cross Society, Chennai In commemoration of Printer’s Day celebration, MPLA (The Madras Printers’ and Lithographers’ Association), in association with Indian Red Cross Society, Tamil Nadu Branch organized a Free Medical Camp for the family of MPLA members and their staff on 16th March 2014 at Indian Red Cross Society, Tamil Nadu Branch, Chennai. The camp covered master health check-up, general, gynaecology, eye and dental checkup. A team of 12 doctors under supervision of Dr. Leena, Assistant Professor, Madras

Dental College undertook the medical responsibilities at the camp. A team of 4 doctors from A.G. Eye Care took care of the check up related to eye ailments. Dr. Leena was honoured by the MPLA team and presented with a token of appreciation. Mr. Nasseeruddin, Secretary of Indian Red Cross Society, Tamil Nadu Branch was also present during the camp. 134 people benefitted from the Free Medical Camp organized by MPLA.

April 2014

pressideas/ commercial printing

CIP4 releases new Case Study Tool to the public The International Cooperation for the Integration of the Processes in Prepress, Press and Postpress (CIP4) organization announced the availability of the Print Automation Case Studies Database. This new industry resource was established with 70 case studies from printers of all sizes and types around the world that have been collected through a CIP4 printer recognition awards program. The new database allows CIP4 members to easily upload new case studies. CIP4 members, including Tharstern Ltd, have added new case studies in the last month to kick off this new program for the printing community. “The CIP4 website receives 10,000 to 15,000 unique visitors each month and case studies are among the more popular resources,” said CIP4 Executive Director James Harvey. “We have well over a 1,000 pages of case study material, much of it including financial results and great detail; however, that much content becomes an obstacle for printers looking for specific information. Many printers like learning from the example of other printers, and case studies provide them with inspiration and new ideas, but printers also want to find examples of similar companies, of a similar size or with similar equipment. The new Print Automation Case Study Database solves that problem.”

The Print Automation Case Study Database search tool is freely available to the public and can be found from the homepage of www.cip4.org, or directly at www.cip4.org/ pacs/. Users can search by keyword in “company”, “vendor” or “product” name, or can construct searches by selecting options for one or more search fields, including: • • • •

• • •

Printing company type such as “label”, “digital” or “publications” printer Printing company size The system and software components integrated The scope of the integration, such as “interdepartmental”, “full plant” or “integrated with customer” Country or Continent The year of the case study Whether or not the case study includes financial results

Search results can be sorted by a variety of factors and include results in a table that provides a summary of what products and functions were integrated in the case study as well as several of the variables listed above. Users can select “show details” for a more comprehensive summary of each case study, including the names of vendors cited in the case study with links to the JDF

ies to be added to the system in a variety of languages, including:



English



French



Germany

Mandarin Chinese

Integration Matrix, where users can find a custom JDF Integration Matrix result showing all the established integrations between that vendor and others. While most of the initial case studies are in English, the Print Automation Case Study Database now allows case studies to be added to the system in a variety of languages, including: English, French, Germany, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese and Spanish. Once users find the case study they are most interested in, they can then open the case study document directly to review or save to their computer. “The Print Automation Case Study Database is a wonderful resource for print professionals and students of print automation,” said Harvey. The system makes it easy for printers to access and find the information they are looking for whether they are senior managers looking for strategic inspiration, managers looking for implementation planning resources or technical staff researching solutions. The Print Automation Case Study database can be accessed at: www.cip4.org/ pacs/.



Japanese



Spanish

e users find the case study they are most interested in, they can then open the case study document directly ew or save to their computer.

April 2014

Sample Print Automation Cases Study Database search and results.

pressideas/ newspaper

Maximum quality for Vprint’s Goss M600 presses with Q.I. Press Controls’ Automation solutions Vprint, the direct mail industry’s largest family-owned company in Europe, has signed for the upgrade of their three Goss M600 heatset presses with Q.I. Press Controls’ total automation solution: mRC-3D, IDS and IQM. The Belgium printer, located in Mouscron near the French border, is an established name for more than 60 years in the European market of promotional materials for personalised direct mailing. Their three Goss M600 presses will be fitted with 6 mRC-3D camera’s for colour register control including motorized bars, front to back control and anti-embossing and 6 IDS camera’s for controlling colour including print defect detection. IQM will deliver them quality and performance reporting. “About three years ago we opted for an offline solution,” explains Thierry Ngoma, Production Manager at Vprint. “At that time this seemed to be a good investment, however the quality demands have increased over the past years. As our three Goss M600 presses print from roll to roll and thus samples cannot be taken while printing, it requires more waste before having a good quality copy. Colour stability was also an issue to look into. We came to the conclusion that in order to meet our high performance and quality according ISO -12647/2 standards, press automation would be a necessity.”

Initially Vprint was looking for colour control on one press, but after analysing the total saving potential they were convinced by the additional benefits of renewing the register system and having quality and performance reporting as well; and for all three presses! Van Daele: “IDS colour control will offer us high colour stability at minimum waste. Customers can truly rely on the receipt of high quality products as IDS has print failure detection that in the end will avoid bad copies to be distributed to customers. This will surely contribute to an even more positive customer satisfaction rate.” He continues: “One of our demands was to have a solution that would be employable

for all productions as in some of our productions there is no space for colour bars. Q.I. Press Controls’ IDS has a markless mode in which it reads from the image. This fits our needs perfectly. These operational/ financial winnings together with the savings on maintenance by installing the AIMS (Automatic Ink Mist Shield) of the mRC-3D camera will certainly generate quick savings.” Erwin van Rossem, Area Sales Manager at Q.I. Press Controls and responsible for the Belgium market: “It is great to have such a commercial printer as V-Print in our clientele and it’s the first mRC-3D installation in Belgium. We are honoured to be selected to support them in achieving their quality and performance goals.” Vprint is family owned, its shareholders are the brothers Edward and Roby Van Daele. Under the leadership of Roby Van Daele the company has grown enormously especially in the last 10 years. Vprint has a policy of continuous investment in order to stay ahead of the latest developments in its market which has resulted in Vprint currently being the industry’s largest familyowned business in Europe. The number of employees has doubled in the past 10 years and the productivity has tripled. Vprint is leading in the field of personalized mailorder documents with a daily production of 3 million mailings.

April 2014

pressideas/ newspaper

EAE taken over by Q.I. Press Controls Four months after beginning bankruptcy proceedings, EAE found a buyer to ensure its continuance: Q.I. Press Controls, specializing in closed-loop press controls, purchased the business and assets of EAE, effective 1 April. Q.I. Press Controls says it will continue EAE’s core business at the firm’s Ahrensburg (near Hamburg) and Atlanta (USA) locations. “The acquisition of EAE underlines our commitment to the printing industry,” says Erik van Holten, Chairman of Q.I. Press

Controls. “Innovation has always been key to our success. With the acquisition of EAE, Q.I. Press Controls is able to meet the requirements of the printing industry in an even more comprehensive way. Through the expansion of our product portfolio we have become an even more interesting business partner to our customers.” “With the successful sale we have reached our goal of securing the continuation of our core business,” said the insolvency administrator, attorney Peter-Alexander

Borchardt. Nearly all employees who are currently working for EAE, will continue to work for the company, say Q.I. Press Controls and EAE. The Netherlands-based Q.I. Press Controls is an international company with eight locations worldwide, specializing in systems to automate the printing process. The two companies were competing in the area of closed-loop colour control for newspaper presses.

Quad/Graphics to acquire Brown Printing Company Quad/Graphics and Brown Printing Company have jointly announced a definitive agreement whereby Quad/Graphics will acquire Brown, which serves premier publishers and catalogers with printing, distribution and integrated media solutions. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory clearances and is expected to close in the second half of 2014. Both Quad/ Graphics’ board of directors and Brown’s parent company Gruner + Jahr and its shareholders approved the transaction. Quad/Graphics is purchasing Brown for $100 million. “This acquisition is consistent with

our ongoing strategy to transform Quad/ Graphics and create value for our clients and shareholders,” said Joel Quadracci, Quad/Graphics Chairman, President & CEO. “Brown is a well respected, financially strong company focused on delivering superior quality and impeccable customer service to a diverse range of clients. This acquisition will enhance the many ways we help publishers and marketers drive top-line revenues while better controlling their overall total cost of production and distribution. With print as our foundation, we will continue to find innovative ways to connect and integrate print with other media channels to increase reach, response and return on investment. We are excited by

the opportunities ahead and look forward to welcoming Brown’s clients and employees into our family.” Mike Amundson, President & CEO of Brown Printing Company, said, “We are excited about this acquisition as it will benefit our clients through the expanded depth of the combined platform. In addition, Brown and Quad/Graphics are united by a common culture based on a passion for innovating and providing the highest quality products and client experience in the industry. I am convinced that Quad/Graphics is the best owner for the future of Brown.”

Kodak and manroland sign agreement regarding KODAK PROSPER Kodak and manroland web systems GmbH have signed an agreement to integrate the KODAK PROSPER S20 and S30 Imprinting Systems into Web Press Lines. The integration will enable high-value variable print for newspaper applications. Manroland, a 170-year-old web press manufacturer will become the first worldwide reseller and OEM partner focused on the newspaper industry utilizing KODAK Stream Inkjet Technology. “We appreciate the technology and engineering experience that manroland web systems brings to this partnership,” said Eric Owen, Vice President of WW Sales & Business Development for Kodak’s Digital Printing & Enterprise Business. “They understand how to mount print heads, control speed and micro-movements and make appropriate adjustments, resulting in

a head that is positioned at the right location for printing. This creates a true advantage for customers.” Dieter Betzmeier, Executive Vice President, Technology & Project Execution, manroland web systems said: “The addition of the S-Series print head technology from Kodak enables us to create new opportunities for our newspaper applications as well as the other markets that we participate in. Personalized advertising, micro-zoning, logistics, codes and gaming customization are just a few applications which are Imprinting System enabled through the use of variable print. Our engineering expertise has allowed us to offer sophisticated integration kits to our web press customers, enabling a high degree of automation for adjusting performance and delivering proven success. The result is a

highly flexible automated system that can be integrated into every web press.” These new systems are available in the market currently and customers around the world are already taking advantage of these high-value personalized print opportunities.

Prosper S20

The Kodak Prosper S20 Imprinting System uses Kodak Stream Inkjet Technology and the Kodak CS410 System Controller to deliver a powerful solution that leverages existing equipment to enable new imprinting business opportunities.

April 2014

When total permanence is not required, dye-based inks provide an alternative option that can help reduce total cost of ownership.

Event Review

PrintExpo 2014: The 6th edition scores PrintExpo 2014 recently concluded its 6th edition, which was its largest edition so far. The three-day exhibition took place at Chennai Trade Centre during 18 to 20 April. The industry gave positive response to the event that catered to the printing, labeling and publishing sectors and had on show end-to-end solutions representing the latest happenings in the industry. Company owners, consultants, directors, art directors, graphic designers and many more visited the exhibition and scrutinized technology of individual interest. Drawing around 175 exhibiting participants, PrintExpo displayed Presses, Printers, Management Systems, Software, Films, Scanners, Proofers, Platesetters, CtPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, machines for Folding, Gluing, Laminating, Creasing, Case Making, Coating, Die Cutting and Bar Coding etc., technologies for RFID, Anti Counterfeiting and consumables including Inks, Plates, Blankets, Solvents, Varnishes, Adhesives, Rollers and chemicals related to Offset, Flexography, Rotogravure and Digital processes. Over 10,000 trade visitors came to PrintExpo. Creative Professionals, Brand Managers, Printers, Consultants, Designers, Technologists, Managers, Students and General Public attended the PrintExpo 2014.

April 2014

pressideas/ event review

high points in Chennai The show, spread across 6,000 m2 area, was inaugurated by AMSG Ashokan, president AIFMP, PB Kumaravel, president, Tamilnadu Master Printer Association and O Venugopal, expresident of Kerala Master Printer Association. The organisers had announced a much bigger show this time. Some of the major exhibitors who exhibited at the show include Ricoh India, Grafica Flextronica, Insight Print Communications, Konica Minolta, FujiFilm, Paper Bind, Monotech Systems, Xerox India, Param ERP Solutions, HP, Adobe, Canon, Proteck and Suba Solutions, just to name a few. Printexpo 2014 was co-located with Photo and Imaging Expo 2014 and Sign and Graphics 2014. It was the first time that all the three events were co-organised together at the same venue. Scores of orders were booked at the shopfloor itself. Many leads are expected to materialize in near future.

April 2014

pressideas/ event review

Xerox launches two new products at PrintExpo 2014 high-end Production Printers. Xerox installed the first iGen 150 in India at Coimbatore. Another iGen – a 4 Diamond edition is being installed at Trichy. Looking at the growth in terms of print volumes, Xerox has achieved great results. Pankaj Kalra shares, “There are two ways of looking at growth – in terms of number of equipments sold and in terms of print volumes achieved. The second aspect is the more important measure of success. Xerox with the largest base of installed equipments in the country, had a double digit growth in terms of print volumes. That is a very positive aspect for us going into the future.”

At the PrintExpo 2014, Xerox had a good range of products displayed – from the entry level product like the 570 to the C 75, the mid production press the J 75 and a proofing device 7800 printer. For a small print requirement they had the 7830 also. In the wide format range Xerox displayed two products – the newly launched IJP 2000 as well as the 6705.

Toner vs Inkjet Xerox uses both toner and inkjet based technologies in their Digital Printers. Both technologies, according to Pankaj Kalra, VP, Xerox India, are necessary to meet the varying needs of the printers. He explains their respective importance, “Ink jet digital presses are expensive and a small time printer cannot afford it. Cost of acquisition as well as the print volume required for the inkjet digital press are high; which may not be possible for all small printers. Print volumes in a class C city may not match the print volumes in a class B or class A city. So even if a Class C city printer can afford an inkjet digital press, the print volumes available to him in his city will make it unattractive to invest in an inkjet digital press. It is here the toner based machines are ideally suited for entry level and mid level print production. These are the two technologies presently available in the market and it is the application that drives the selection of the appropriate technology for ones use.”

The first iGen 150 in India Last year has been fairly good for Xerox India with key contributors to the growth being its

April 2014

Xerox for Photo segment – the more profitable Digital There is a misconception about Xerox Digital Printers that they are more suitable for Commercial Printing and not for the Photo segment. “Xerox Digital Presses”, says Pankaj Kalra, “are widely used in the Photo segment right from the earlier days. Many of the Photo Labs used the DC 12 Xerox presses; the DC 12 press was one of our best sellers. So also our entry level Xerox 550 and 570 presses as well as our C75 and J75 presses are widely used in the Photo segment.” According to Pankaj Kalra, the choice of any particular process (Digital or Offset)

depends on the cost economics which is dependent on the run length, application (whether Static or Variable Data job) and the delivery time. A high volume Variable Data job cannot be printed on an Offset press and a high volume Static job is economical to be printed in Offset. So both the processes are complementary. “As regards the future, new investments will be more in Digital, since it is the more profitable business to be in,” asserts Pankaj Kalra. The most suitable segments for Digital Printing are: the Photo segment, Books-onDemand, Educational Materials, Products which demand consideration of security aspects and Short Run Commercial Printing. Xerox launched two new machines at PrintExpo 2014. “This is the first time we are displaying these products in India,” says Pankaj Kalra. One was the 2000 model highspeed, aqueous inkjet wide format printer. It can print up to nine meters per minute and can print on a wide variety of media. The second launch was the Xerox 570 digital press, which is an upgraded version of the best selling Xerox 550/560 press. “With the 570 we have once again raised the bar with faster speed and higher productivity,” he concludes.

Param targets South with PrintExpo debut Participating for the first time in the PrintExpo, Param ERP Solutions, Indore, had its key focus on expanding its presence in the South. “It is the first time we are participating in a show in South India. Our products have been well accepted across the country. Our objective in participating in this show is to expand our presence in the south, where we are shortly appointing dealers for our products,” says Mr.Vinod Nawab, CEO of Param ERP. He also informs about the company’s plans to expand into Sri Lanka where they already have a dealer. Param’s Speed PEQ, print management software, is developed to serve printers, print brokers and corporate users, who need flexible, quick, consistent and accurate planning & estimation tool. It helps them choose affordable solutions to match

best combination of cost, quality, delivery, productivity & profitability. It is based on feedback given by printers and other factors that have their effect on costing, job production, order management and MIS information’s. It is a very efficient tool for the printing industry. Multiple job flexibility, multiple capacity consideration, full control on variable factors in day to day working, command over individual process for every customer, cost effectiveness and wastage management etc are strength of Speed PEQ software. Speed PEQ is available in 3 commercial versions: Basic, Premium & Ultimate and can be customised depending upon the requirements and utilities.

pressideas/ event review

Monotech Systems focuses Digital Printing at PrintExpo 2014 Monotech Systems was present at the PrintExpo 2014 with its range of solutions for different segments including Prepress, Digital, Labels and Wide Format. We talked with Mr.T.P.Jain, MD of the company about the latest offerings, focus amongst other things. Monotech’s major focus area remained Digital Printing at the PrintExpo. It showed different forms of Digital Printing using the Konica Minolta range of Digital Presses like C 8000, C 70HC, which targets the Photo market, and the monochrome press bizhub 1052. “We also have products from Oce - Canon ipf 605 & 750 the technical document printer & the Contex Wide format Scanner. We also showcased our Pixeljet UV Flat Bed Printer and printed samples of our high-end Scodix Digital Enhancement Printer, samples printed on Derprosa BOPP films. The stall also has samples displayed from our other product range like Colorlogic, Oce Arizona Pixeljet, Jetsci, EFI, Bargraphics and our own software Monotech Augmented Reality,” adds Jain. Speaking about the company’s focus, Jain says that the company is going to define its products into six definite business verticals

and focus on these verticals to drive growth. “We already have market leadership in Digital Printing, Prepress and Digital Enhancement segments and we will further strengthen our presence in these segments. In the other verticals like Wide Format Graphics, Labels and Packaging where we have very good products, we will increase our focus there,” he explains. Monotech has well established Scodix in the Indian market. Scodix is a part of its Digital Enhancement vertical. “Last year it has been a very successful business vertical product and our performance would have been much better but for the high volatility in the exchange rate fluctuation,” says Jain. With seven installations in India catering to two major segments – the commercial and photo – Scodix is receiving encouraging response from Monotech’s customers as well as end users. “This year we will be introducing the high speed Scodix Ultra for volume production and highly suitable for segments like Packaging. In the current year we will be focusing more on the packaging segment

with the Scodix Ultra,” reveals Jain. With a large basket of varied products, Monotech now offers a complete package for Digital as well as Print Enhancement applications, including the Packaging segment. Monotech received good response at PrintExpo 2014. “Though we are in the midst of the General Lok Sabha elections, the timing of the show is good since it happens right in the beginning of the current year business cycle when we are able to show case all our offerings to our customers for their planning ahead. With the new government to be formed next year and with the information they have from this show, they can take informed decision for the year ahead,” believes Jain. Last year performance of Monotech was good with the company registering a turnover of over Rs.200 crores. “This is a landmark achievement for us since we achieved a 50% growth over the previous year. We are very optimistic of the year ahead as well,” envisages Jain.

Aura Prints is WGM’s Exclusive Distribution Partners World Graphic Machinery (WGM) has appointed Aura Print Solutions Pvt. Ltd. Mumbai, India as Exclusive Partners for Distribution of pre-owned and refurbished sheetfed and finishing equipment. This agreement was signed at their Office-cumRefurbishment Centre which is 50 km from Venice. Mr. Henrik Engell-Jensen, will be overseeing the India operation along with Mr. Alberto Rui, Sales Director. Mr. Henrik Jensen earlier headed India operation for EAC, distributor for Heidelberg in India till late 90s. Henrik is quite excited about the new challenge: “I look forward to this challenge as it will be business and pleasure for sure. I have fond memories of India and look forward to meeting my old friends who have transformed Indian graphic arts industry to what it is now, technologically in the forefront. India as a country has many orbit and layers and all have a role to play. We are looking forward to bring in the best technology not so old but will ensure superior quality in print and productivity.”

V. Natarajan, Director, Aura Print Solutions and the Country Manager for WGM India, expressed confidence in this current challenging economic scenario. He says, “India is at a stage where at least for Print Communication, there is only one way it can move, and that is forward.” WGM is one of the leading Italian pre-owned graphic equipment suppliers. The Chairman & MD, Mr. Mauro Beghetto, believes Used Equipment is a serious business and has modelled the organization with commitment as one gets in new. Assuring of quality equipment, support in the form of installation, training and spare parts, WGM stands apart from the rest for its reliability and trustworthiness. It follows strict code of ethics and has experience in international market in providing the right solution – a viable alternative to New. WGM chose Aura for its wide experience in Indian Graphic Arts Industry and knowledge of the nuances of international trade.

WGM and Aura in Print Expo 2014 recently announced the sale of a Heidelberg CD 74-5LX to Vadodara-based Dot Graphics Pvt. Ltd. “This Press will be utilised for speciality cartons and value-added packaging jobs for top packaging buyers such as Unilever and other pharmaceutical players,” says Chairman and Managing Director of Dot Graphics Pvt. Ltd., Mr. Ashit Amin. According to Amin, his visit to Venice for the inspection after due diligence on technicalities of the machine by WGM was supplemented with WGM’s local support to finalize the deal. The Heidelberg CD74 joins a six-colour plus coater SM102, a four-colour plus coater CD102.

April 2014

digital printing

Gee7 Printek takes on the Wedding Market with specialised products Gee7Printek came into being when seven photographers from different parts of Punjab joined hands to Digitally print Wedding Albums from Ludhiana. It is estimated that there are over 2.5 lakh Wedding Photographers in the country. There are printers of every scale and size situated across the country that cater to this huge Wedding Photo Printing market. For example, the Bangalore based Canvera has over fifteen thousand Photographers as their clients. If we look at the Wedding Album market across the country, the main focus is on special and innovative effects to make the album ever more attractive so that the printer is able to sell the final product at maximum premium for its thus enhanced value. Wedding being an once-in-a-lifetime activity (normally), one does not hesitate to spend a few thousand rupees more if a product catches one’s fancy.

HP Indigo as first choice for Wedding Album printing

The Indian Wedding Market is estimated to be worth over US$25bn and growing at 30% annually. It is one industry that hasn’t seen a slowdown. It is proved by the fact that half of the nearly 900 tons of gold consumed in India is bought during the Wedding Season.

Key Notes : > Seven photographers join hands to print photographic albums by installing Indigo 5500. > Add HP Indigo 5600 to add walk-in customers to growing portfolio. > Value addition and specialised products by Scodix beat competition.

April 2014

HP Indigo machines are today the preferred machines when it comes to high quality Wedding Album market. Obviously, Indigo (5500) was their first choice, when in the year 2009, a group of seven photographers from different districts of Punjab joined hands to start a company named Gee7 Printek Pvt. Ltd. They had chosen this Indigo 5500 to produce their own Albums which they used to outsource to the likes of Canvera. The HP Indigo 5500 got installed in Ludhiana which is a city of rich Punjabis who have made even the westerners understand the meaning of the word “Big Fat Indian Wedding”. The city is known for its riches and is that city which gets the first

launch of a Mercedes car before anywhere else in the country. The seven photographers were based out of Bathinda (Bhagwati Studio), Ludhiana (Vaaho Color Lab and Sood Studio), Jalandhar (India Color Lab), Amritsar (Ahuja Color Lab and Capital Color Lab); allow us to assure you that the market is very really huge! Within a few years, Gee7 Printek found that the rising demands were indicating the need for further investment in Digital Printing equipment. Therefore, they shifted their Indigo 5500 to Bhatinda bought a new Indigo 5600 for the Ludhiana facility. They had chosen the Indigo 5600 to also add walk-in customers to their existing portfolio.

Focusing value additions and exclusivities As competition grew and price too started playing a key role in building further customer base, the management of Gee7 Printek decided to focus more on value additions and exclusivities. The decision enabled the company not only to strengthen their position in a volatile competitive environment but also helped it win confidence of customers. Mr.Vishal Luther, one of the partners who look after the Ludhiana setup explains, “Two people exclusively look into finding new products and innovations. This team recently identified the SCODIX Digital

pressideas/ digital

Enhancement Digital Press, which we have just acquired. The effects that we can produce for our customers on the Scodix are simply amazing! There’s no other player in the market that offers the innovative value additions we give to our customers. The result is we have a committed customer base and the high-quality products earn premium for us as well.” Armed with an MBA from the UK, Vishal is an open and creative minded person with a complementing attitude towards customer service and quality. SCODIX is an asset in their hands. He showed us a handful of samples and some of them were really impressive and for the discerning one – priceless. “It’s just because of the Scodix

that today we are making Wedding Albums for our clients based across the Indian Subcontinent. The Scodix can produce innovative and exclusive effects in a short period of time. It’s amazing,” Vishal is all praises. He says that before Scodix, the business was usually seasonal in nature. But, after the installation of Scodix, they have a regular flow of customers and business all over the year since there are weddings happening all across the country. “There has been almost a 20% increase in business with the arrival of Scodix,” he reveals. Gee7 has the complete infrastructure to produce high quality Wedding Albums in house. They can produce almost 200 Wedding Albums in a single shift of 10 hours.

With about 90 people catering to Prepress, Press and Post-press activities, Vishal and his team see a whole lot of growth in the coming years. They are pretty clear in their perception that only innovations and high quality products can make them survive in this market of cut throat competition. According to Vishal, they give utmost importance to their R&D department so that they can bring out the best of their installed capacity especially diverse capabilities of machines like the Scodix. “The machine is a workhorse. It just needs to be tamed to get the best out of it. A creative mind willing to experiment can bring in innumerable specialised product possibilities from the Scodix,” declares Vishal.

Epson SurePress Digital Label Press – Flexo Quality, Flexi Business Short run labels bring a whole different premium; although possible with Flexo, not fun or viable at times; and results in lost revenues and lost customers. Arrow Digital and Epson have launched the Epson SurePress – a high quality short-run digital label press that helps greatly match flexo prints. This will help create a high value market for existing Flexo and future Flexo/ Digital presses, while producing fantastic colours and sharp labels in various short runs on numerous uncoated materials. It has a 7 Colour Inkjet that is offered with pre and post-press options that can be tailored to meet various needs and budgets. The press capitalizes on Epson’s Micropiezo inkjet technology to create output with smooth gradations and high quality colour. Its AQ ink-set design includes green and orange for a wide colour gamut, precise colour matching and accurate spot and speciality colours. It is also configured with fast and easy set-up with no need for substrate pre-treatment or coating, thereby ensuring substrate versatility. What Surepress offers is quick Pantone and consistent Pantone matched colours; the inks make this simpler as

Epson has a proven expertise in proofing and colour management. This applies heavily on the Surepress and the labelling/packaging industry. With Surepress customers achieve impressive, professional results, while handling short-run jobs quickly and efficiently. They can boost their bottom line by offering a wider range of printing solutions to their customer base and achieve just-in-time production to meet tight schedules. It also offers Variable Data Printing for maximum label customization, providing customers with the flexibility to serialize labels and print on a variety of label substrates without stopping or slowing down the printing process. Furthermore, text, graphics and images can

be customized for each individual label in the same run for increased versatility. Epson Surepress is a flexible and easy to operate machine featuring an intuitive touch screen panel. The Eco-friendly machine complies with the EU directive RoHS. Arrow/Grace paper was one of the pioneers in India to manufacture self-adhesive materials in the 1970s. With their decades of experience in packaging, coatings, labelling, and Inkjets and modern facility for trials, R&D and hands on training in Ahmedabad and offices in all major metros, it is committed to an impeccable 24/7/365 support to its customers.

April 2014

digital printing

Konica Minolta and its growth trajectory over the last 4 years With over 10,000 Konica A4 machines installed and seven models for customers to choose from, Konica sees a huge market and expects to triple the sales. Konica Minolta is in the process of having a change in the senior Management in their Indian operations, Mr.Tadahiko Sumitani who has been heading the organisation since the beginning about four years ago is being replaced by Mr. Yuji Nakata. Mr. Yuji Nakata will be Managing Director, Konica Minolta Business Solutions India (P) Ltd. to be based out of their Head Office. PRESSIdeas had the opportunity to meet both of them and talk to them about the industry in general and Konica Minolta in particular.

“Customer Service Remote Care (CSRC) helps the engineers to actually see Online the performance of the machines thus making it easier for them to exactly predict breakdowns and avoid them.” Mr.Tadahiko Sumitani.

“It has been exciting 4 years for me at Konica Minolta where we started from the scratch with just 16 people. Despite being a rather late entrant, we have reached an enviable position in the Indian Digital Print Production Industry. We thank all the customers for accepting Konica Minolta machines and the partners for supporting them in very competitive environment,” says Mr.Tadahiko, the outgoing chief. Today Konica has more than 40 people and have footprint in almost every part of the country represented by about 120 partners. In addition to the production printers under the BizHub brand, Konica has A4 size laser printers titled PagePro and A4 colour printer named Magicolor. “We also offer a lot of Workflow solutions which include Optimized Print Services (OPS) that combine consulting, hardware, software implementation and workflow management in order to lower document

spend,” adds V Balakrishnan, Executive General Manager – Marketing at Konica Minolta.

The newly launched Business Innovation Centre Talking about the launch of Business Innovation Centre (BIC) which was recently inaugurated at Singapore, Mr.Tadahiko explains, “The function of the BIC is to initiate, support and manage new business and technology development, as well as to incubate new Information and Communications Technology (ICT) service businesses for Konica Minolta. The BIC will manage the entire lifecycle of service development and incubation activities, from ideation, proof-of-concepts and pilot programs to business development and actual business deployment activities.”

Majority share in Production Printers market Konica has been doing various innovative things in the Digital Printing Industry. “In addition to environment friendly toners from Konica Minolta, the company also has reduced considerably the fusing temperatures of the toners. Now we also have Customer Service Remote Care (CSRC) which helps the engineers to actually see online the performance of the machines thus making it easier for them to exactly predict breakdowns and avoid them,” adds Mr. Sumitani. “It is basically a convenience we

Key Notes : > Konica range led by Workflow Solutions & BizHub, PagePro and MagiColor printers. > BIC to initiate, support and manage new business & technology development; to incubate new ICT service businesses for Konica. > Expects B2 size Digital Printer in India by the mid of 2015.

April 2014

Yuji Nakata (L) and Tadahiko Sumitani (R) of Konica Minolta Business Solutions India (P) Ltd. See page 38”

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provide to our customers to enhance their productivity by comparing the performance of the machines with the parameters set by Konica Minolta. We thus initiate preventive steps which result in higher uptime,” chips in Bala. “In the current year (CY) 2013 (as per IDC), the company has achieved leadership position in the Production Printing Market with a share of almost 54 percent in the Production Printers market in the country. Besides Production Printing, we also have a market share of 27 percent in A3 colour printers, 17 percent in A3 monochrome printers,” shares Bala. We asked Mr.Yuji Nakata – who is scheduled to take over the reins from Mr. Sumitani – about the targets for Konica in the coming FY. “Over the last 4 years we have exceeded our targets of growth and I would ideally like to keep similar tempo and with 54% Production Printing market share in the country it would be an interesting ride that we take,” he believes. “We will continue to bring new technologies and machines and

also a few application software to give more opportunities to our customers and print service providers to enhance their value offerings to their customers,” continues Yuji. Konica Minolta started catering to the A4 segment only last year and they are, in fact, extremely bullish about it. “Till date, we have sold about 10,000 Konica A4 machines. We have seven models for our clients to choose from. We expect to, at least, triple the sales in terms of the number of machines; we believe it is a huge market for us there,” declares Mr. Balakrishnan. Konica Minolta has over 1700 high end Production Printing machines installed at various businesses involved in Printing. Mr. Nakata, who has been with Konica Minolta in Japan, China, Hong Kong and later in Thailand before joining India operations, sees a bright future ahead and stupendous growth for Konica Minolta in the country. “Konica Minolta currently has a good base for the Production Printing machines in the country and customer satisfaction shall be our foremost priority. We expect the B2 size

Zoomin.com Mobile App delivers 0.2 million ‘Magic Moments’ across India Zoomin.com has launched Photo Prints, an app that allows a smart-phone user to print photos directly from the phone. A free app available for Android and Windows phones, photo prints with its innovative feature called “Request an address”, has delivered over 0.2 million print pictures across India. Majority users have chosen to send across the physical copies of their “Magic Moments” – to their relatives across India. Photo Print app ensures a user need not spend time – locating a photo studio, or uploading of pictures to a Computer or spends time transferring pictures to a pen drive. Photo Prints is a free to download, simple, convenient, superfast and a thoroughly functional mobile app. Speaking on the occasion, Sunny Balijepalli, Founder & CEO - Zoomin.com, said “We are extremely excited with the overwhelming response we have received, while people share numerous photos on Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp etc, the charm of printed photos is unmatched. Zoomin’s Photo Prints app aims to capitalize on this

emotional connect by offering its users the simplest way to order a set of photo prints.” One such customer, a grandparent, excited upon recently receiving pictures of his newborn grandson, says, “We were overjoyed and thrilled to have received the surprise packet of their bundle of joy. We really appreciate the convenience mobile phones have brought in to make life more communicative for the younger generation”. “Users can order photo prints in 4 simple steps – select photos, choose a size and finish, enter a delivery address, pay using credit card, debit card, net banking or cash on delivery. The photos are automatically uploaded, printed by Zoomin and get delivered at the specified address, anywhere in India,” elaborates Ajay Menon, COO – Zoomin.com. ZoomIn has partnered with two of the biggest phone brands, Samsung and Nokia, in India. It gives a special offer to Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 customers, while Nokia’s Lumia 1020, has

Digital Printer to arrive in India by the mid of 2015,” informs Yuji. Konica Minolta Business Solutions India, with Head Office in Gurgaon, Haryana, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Konica Minolta Inc., Tokyo, Japan. The company delivers services and distributes products, systems and solutions that fulfil all the requirements of office and production printing over the entire document life cycle. Its product range extends from colour and monochrome multifunctional and production printing systems, laser printers and all-in-ones to management software that integrates devices seamlessly into work processes and IT environments. To support customers such as printing and industrial companies optimally with powerful and sustainable solutions, technology leader Konica Minolta continuously invests in research and development work and regularly sets new standards for the entire printing industry. Konica Minolta Business Solutions India is represented by 4 distributors for Production Printing requirements across the country.

Photo Prints pre-installed. An iOS version of the App is expected soon. Zoomin.com is an online photo service connecting people. Customers can easily and affordably store, share, and print their digital photos from anywhere in India through their smartphones. Along with photos, customers are also provided products created using photos, along with the option of themes and messages delivered direct to their doorsteps. It is believed that 65 percent of all the photos taken are on mobile phones. With 400 million photos being uploaded to Facebook and 100,000 photos printed in Mumbai every day, Zoomin is one of the best tools available for all photo users in India and claims to be the second largest photo repository in the country. The Android version of the App can be downloaded at: https://play.google.com/store/apps/ details?id=com.zoomin.zoominphotoprints For Windows Phone, users can reach: http://www.windowsphone.com/en-in/store/ app/photo-prints-by-zoomin/fab6b450-511a4379-86b6-36ad723d67b2

April 2014

digital printing

Heidelberg invests in digital future Offers offset and digital technologies – parallel, integrated, and user-friendly.

The Jetmaster Dimension from Heidelberg is an inkjet-based digital press for printing on threedimensional objects. The very first application for this system is being implemented at one of Europe’s leading online print shops.

Heidelberg is offering its customers the opportunity to run offset and digital technologies in parallel, using a user-friendly and integrated process. The company’s digital portfolio already encompasses printing presses, consumables, software, and services for a whole range of market segments – and further expansion is on the way. As part of this growth, Heidelberg is collaborating with prestigious partners including Ricoh and Fujifilm. Furthermore, almost a third of the company’s research and development resources focused on digital. This approach is the company’s response to the factors that are critical for the printing industry’s success, such as the use of new business models, maximum versatility, and end-to-end workflow integration with innovative technologies. “Our ability to offer integrated offset and digital solutions for a range of market segments is unique in the industry. This reflects our drive to remain the partner of choice in this sector moving into the future,” says Heidelberg CEO Gerold Linzbach. “As part of our expansion in the digital sector, we are investing in technologies such as digital inkjet printing. We are also exploring printing on threedimensional objects and thus breaking into market segments that are entirely new to Heidelberg. Overall, we estimate that the digital sector offers us sales

potential of more than EUR 200 million per year in the medium term.”

Collaborations bring in expertise and accelerate development work To ensure that Heidelberg can also rapidly establish itself as a global player in the digital market, the company is primarily working to expand its collaborations. In terms of digital solutions for the printing industry, Heidelberg is widening its range of offerings with cooperation partners Ricoh and Fujifilm, to meet customer requirements with added efficiency and speed. The same applies to existing and future partnerships that will enable Heidelberg to break into new market segments. In pursuing this strategy, the company is bolstering its own expertise with that of its partners to develop an integrated system. One example of this is the printing of three-dimensional objects.

Digital label printing presses leveraging Fujifilm technology to be showcased in Autumn – launch of development work using inkjet for commercial and packaging printing markets Heidelberg is announcing the first concrete steps in

April 2014

Online print shop flyeralarm is the first company in the world to apply “4D” printing and will be printing on sports balls from the fall.

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its collaboration with Fujifilm. In fall this year, Heidelberg and Gallus are presenting a new digital printing system for the label market that incorporates Fujifilm technology. This solution is designed to meet the growing demand for a cost-effective means of producing short runs and customized labels. In parallel with this development, Heidelberg and Fujifilm have initiated a joint project to develop a new highly productive industrialized inkjet-based digital printing system for use in commercial and packaging printing.

Partnership with Ricoh gains traction: More than 400 Linoprint C digital printing systems already sold With more than 400 Linoprint C digital printing systems already sold worldwide, Heidelberg has highlighted its expertise as the only manufacturer in the industry to successfully market integrated digital and offset applications. The company is working closely with its Japanese partner Ricoh to broaden its offerings for this sector in the near future. Heidelberg currently generates sales of Linoprint products in the low eightfigure euro range, and these figures are set to grow, as more and more presses are installed and demand for the associated consumables continues to grow.

Software offerings combine productivity with flexibility More and more customers want to be able to run highly productive offset printing solutions in parallel with versatile digital technologies. Heidelberg meets these demands with the comprehensive software portfolio of its Prinect print shop workflow. Prinect can integrate all the management and production processes in a print shop into one standardized workflow to ensure they are managed efficiently. Heidelberg already generates sales in the mid eight-figure euro range with these offerings and plans to expand this sector with new products, for example in web to print, and multi-channel publishing.

New “4D” printing solution opens up market potential

is an inkjet-based digital press for printing on three-dimensional objects. The very first application for this system is being implemented at one of Europe’s leading online print shops – flyeralarm, where standard sports balls are to be embellished with personalized printing, based on customer requirements. The next step is to move into industrial applications in the automotive or aerospace industries, for example. Inkjet technology could be used to print customized full-colour motifs on the cars, trucks, and even airplanes – thereby increasing flexibility, and dramatically reducing costly labour-intensive processes used today. The overall market volume for printing on objects – in the consumer goods and industrial sectors – is estimated at several hundred million euros in the medium and long term.

The Jetmaster Dimension from Heidelberg

“4D” printing: The next step is to move into industrial applications in the automotive or aerospace industries, for example.

KODAK NEXPRESS SX Platform first pre-approved platform for PSA certification KODAK’s NEXPRESS SX Digital Production Color Platform with HD Inks has passed the pre-approval phase for Printing Standards Audit (PSA) certification. The platform becomes the first manufacturer-initiated preapproved platform for individual customer PSA certification, speeding the process for print service providers who know their buyers will require PSA certification. Conducted by the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), PSA is a certification awarded to individual print shops that go through a rigorous certification process based on the quality of the printer’s workflow and ability to produce prints that conform to a recognized characterization dataset operating in standards compliance. Pre-approval work done between RIT and KODAK makes the KODAK NEXPRESS SX

Platform an approved asset to help expedite the process for printers working toward PSA certification. “Having the NEXPRESS Platform preapproved for customer certification will drive better engagement between print shops and the print buyers and specifiers who will be looking for PSA certification from their print service providers,” said Len Christopher, worldwide Electrophotographic Systems Product Marketing Manager for Kodak’s Digital Printing & Enterprise group. “They are trying to ensure a specific level of quality and colour match capability.” PSA Certification proves that a print shop has demonstrated the ability to operate in compliance with ISO 15339 (or CGATS 21) and its related graphic arts standards

and has the ability to match a substrate colour-corrected dataset consisting of 1617 individual colours. PSA is the first global standard that incorporates ISO standards and also addresses the substrate colour adjustments required of the optical brightener agents (OBAs) in paper. “Given the increased interest in inclusion of OBAs in the substrates, it’s become more difficult to fully match colour proofing to print output processes – their inclusion affects colour management and matching,”said Jeffrey Wang, Senior Imaging & Color Scientistat RIT.

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The all new JETSCI M-Series Industrial Inkjet Systems for Variable Data Printing The economical and highly reliable JETSCI M-Series industrial inkjet systems offer value addition to the jobs for customers printing Variable Data for medium to higher production volumes. Inspired from its successor JETSCI Y series that enjoyed huge success with many installations, the JETSCI M-Series is flexible enough to include multiple printheads in order to get the

Variable Data Printing at different locations across the print width economically. The JETSCI M-Series are available with UV, Water Based and Solvent Inks. Its Print Engine is equipped with Industrial PC controller with pre installed advanced VDP

software, designed to perform under tough 24 X 7 production environment. For automatic movement control of printhead(s), it is equipped with reliable and maintenance free X-Z axis mounting assembly which is optionally controlled with servo motors and touch screen HMI. Konica Minolta 1024i Printhead offer highly reliable printhead technology available in 6, 13, 30pL drop sizes which is capable to print high quality jobs either in binary mode or 8 drop level grayscale.

Scodix at VillartPhoto Expo 2014, Hyderabad Scodix, the digital enhancement press, generated keen visitor interest at the Villartphoto expo held in Hyderabad from March 28 to 30, 2014. Klick digital press, Surat and Aakruti, Hyderabad displayed their jobs done on Scodix as sample in their gallery which was highly appreciated by the visitors. “Scodix S75, digital enhancement press will be soon installed at Klick digital press, Surat and going to be the first Scodix installation in western India by Monotech Systems. Aakruti

has already ordered Scodix S75 which has been scheduled to install in the month of May2014 in their newpremises. Installation of S75 at Zoom City Digital Press Vijawada is going on which is 2nd Scodix unit ordered by Zoom Digital Press,Vizag” as stated by Mr.Amritpal Singh Bawa DGM Scodix Division ,Monotech Systems Limited who was also present at the exhibition . The Scodix S series Digital Presses are Digital Enhancement Presses that produce the breakthrough Scodix SENSE™ printing experience, making a lasting impression on the consumer for effective brand differentiation. Scodix was introduced in India by Monotech Systems and there are total 8 Scodix S75 digital enhancement presses installed across India. Klick Digital Press,

April 2014

established in the year 1993, is a graphic process unit engaged in rendering Offset Printing services and products such as leather covers, leather boxes and photo box & photo cover pad to its clients. The welldeveloped facilities of Klick help in catering to its clients’ diversified requirements including graphic process, precise scanning and digital, billboard and multi-colour printing. Aakruti Digipress Pvt. Ltd., is a dynamic organization with all the latest equipment, advanced technology and skilled manpower. Situated in the heart of Hyderabad city, it is an end-to-end provider of Digital Offset Printing solutions. The company started as a group of Photo Colour Lab and Offset Printing industrialists with innovative ideas came together to bring ultimate printing technology.

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Esko to present packaging preproduction solutions for the 21st century Esko is exhibiting at Interpack to be held in Düsseldorf, Germany, 8-14 May. Christian Korte, Senior Vice President Sales, Marketing and Customer Services at Esko comments, “Together with our partners, we present a full range of innovative solutions that address today’s challenges of global packaging management and production supply chain. Amongst others, these challenges include avoiding recalls because of packaging misprints or non regulatory content; shortening long approval cycles; ensuring traceability and packaging protection; remaining sustainable and guaranteeing brand colour consistency on different types of packaging. Esko’s solutions tackle each of these challenges, enabling brands to gain full control of their packaging production.”

Smart software for world-class packaging development and production Esko will show unique, smart software incorporating Esko’s expertise in the packaging arena. Esko experts will detail how to enhance content management, shorten approval cycles and ensure regulatory compliance with WebCenter, a fully-featured online packaging management solution. They will inform brands how to manage brand colour accuracy across the global

supply chain – from proof to package to display – in a smart and comprehensive manner with dedicated colour solutions such as PantoneLIVE™ and leverage the benefits of multi-colour printing with Esko Equinox. Brand owners and retailers will experience high realism during the packaging development process using Esko’s 3D technologies, including Studio and Store Visualizer, to present hyper-realistic 3D images of packages from design through positioning on store shelves. Visitors to the stand can also learn how to save costs with sustainable packaging, by using Esko Cape solutions to optimize packaging logistics throughout the supply chain – including secondary packaging, palletization, and loading of trucks and containers. Finally, Esko will also present its solutions for producing high quality, consistent print results with flexo printing, the cost-effective print technology for the packaging industry. Packaging converters can see numerous solutions for labels, flexible and corrugated packaging and folding cartons using Esko’s broad array of flexo tools and solutions.

Better together Partners joining Esko at Interpack and showing integrated solutions that streamline the entire packaging development process

include: • HP Indigo and HP Scitex: showing digital and wide format printing solutions, powered by Esko software solutions, for the digital print production of folding carton, flexible packaging, labels and corrugated production. • Sun Chemical: one of the key ink partners to the PantoneLIVE ecosystem, showcasing the colour management capabilities of PantoneLIVE on their stand. • Videojet: showing a unique joint project where coding and marking of complete content blocks such as nutrition panels and regulatory content is applied to preprinted material. This is done through a workflow setup that combines the production data of flexible packaging with end of line added data. This concept opens new opportunities to add variable, regulatory data end of line on the finished and packaged product. “We look forward to attending Interpack,” concludes Korte. “and are excited about the opportunity to start conversations with brand and packaging professionals from all over the world on the range of Esko solutions that help them improve their operations. We will have brand management and product experts on hand to inform visitors how Esko and its partners address the challenges brands are facing with intelligent solutions for the 21st century.”

April 2014

Ajanta Packaging expands global presence with new Thailand plant Ajanta Packaging has recently opened a new overseas plant in Thailand – the vibrant economy with opportunities for sustainable growth – to locally serve its Thai and also international customers. Ajanta Packaging, the Indian packaging giant offering a full range of labelling solutions through a combination of waterless offset, narrow web flexo and screen printing and converting processes with its state of the art presses has recently expanded its global presence with a new plant in Thailand. The plant based in Chon Buri in the lovely Amata City Industrial Park, is strategically located to serve a wide spectrum of customers. The plant houses the most modern label printing machines and will provide highend products and services to buyers in Thailand. The plant will cater to different segments of the industry and deliver value added products, methods of decoration and specialized solutions that are different and demanding. “Though we would do the regular jobs but our focus will remain on top of the line labels,” says Chandan.

Local service for Thai & international manufacturers “Investment in this unit is part of our vision which is to become a world class label supplying partner to our esteemed clients.” – Chandan Khanna, Ajanta Packaging

Key Notes : > The plant based in Chon Buri is strategically located to serve a wide spectrum of customers. > To cater to different segments of the industry, deliver value added products, methods of decoration and specialized solutions. > Iwasaki and Nilpeter for the new plant.

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Ajanta had to target Thai and international manufacturers and was finding it difficult to practically and feasibly serve them from their existing overseas units. “We are a global group in the making, and want to be part of Thailand’s vibrant economy. It is a beautiful country and we are happy to be here. We have to be local to serve our Thai & international customers,” explains Chandana.

The Thai plant of Ajanta has a strong team led by their dynamic General Manager Mr. Ramesh Raju with many years’ experience working in Thailand. A significant number of local people also work at key positions in the unit. “We plan to recruit more local people in the unit who will play a key role in our growth story in Thailand,” informs Chandan. “We always customise our investment based on the market we intend to serve. The same principal has been followed in Thailand. Our flexible operations had been our main strength which has been replicated here as well. We can deliver high quality labels in quick time and quantities being low or high are never a barrier for us. We invest in such assets which makes our company a very customer friendly one,” he adds.

Reinforcing a winning combination rather than changing it The new plant has been equipped with high-end machines including the recent installation of the state-of-the-art machines from Neilpeter and Iwasaki. The company intends to grow in the market and consolidate its market position in Thailand in coming years, says Chandan adding that the aim is to be in the top 5 in coming 3 years.

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interesting reply, “The best you could ask for…. from total inspection from print to finish… it couldn’t get better!” “At Ajanta we strongly believe in relationships and like to reinforce a winning combination rather than changing it,” this is how puts it when asked about Iwasaki and Nilpeter scoring over other options.

The vibrant economy called Thailand

Ajanta had been working with these suppliers for many years. They have grown with these presses and the company’s team is happy with the performance of these machines. “We get excellent support from both Iwasaki and Nilpeter and years of experience with these presses brings the best out of them for us,” claims Chandan. With an Offset and a Combination press installed at the new Thailand plant, Chandan considers that every segment is demanding. “Our choice is to cater to the short, mid, and high quantity market, but with best quality throughout,” he asserts. When we asked him about the finishing options at Thailand plant, we get an

Thailand being one of the most vibrant economies of the emerging markets, the per capita consumption of labels is one of the best for Asian economies. According to Chandan, it is an investor friendly country and provides opportunities for sustainable growth. “Its friendly people only make it better to be there,” he perceives. Speaking on the growth areas of the global printing industry, Chandan says, “Technology and emerging markets will play a key role in the growth of this industry.” Though there are cross cultural challenges of expanding in foreign locations, yet Chandan finds Thailand a different ground. “We find these markets more organised and the country investor friendly,” he says adding that they are looking to employ local people which would further help them to blend locally and contribute to the local GDP.

Chandan’s countries of choice for expansion are emerging markets in Asia. However, he also looks to Eastern Europe with keenness. “We look to invest in strategic market location and acquisitions to consolidate our position. We are also looking to increase our packaging offerings beyond labels,” he adds.

The Ajanta Way! Ajanta has seen strong growth in last 5 years and all set to multiply its turnover in coming 5 years. The company wants to make it possible through strong organic growth and new investments and acquisitions. “We aim to be a 1000 Crore Group by 2020,” envisages Chandan. All Ajanta units fall under the umbrella of Ajanta Packaging and operate as independent profit centres. These profit centres are led by General Managers who report to the CEO and the MD. They have common reporting for various parameters. It is a proud organisation that operates like any professionally managed multi-national company. Chandan sums up Ajanta philosophy in these simple words, “Do what your heart sets out to do, work extremely hard to reach your goals and always believe in God! This, he says, is just a personal thought which he sincerely believe in, however, it is also the AJANTA WAY…

Agfa Graphics supplies inkjet inks for digitally printed passports in Belgium Today’s passports are much different from what they used to be 20 years ago. Not only do they look different, they are also produced in a different way and no longer examined on a merely visual basis. Most all information needed for international passports is stored in digital format and resides on various online databases. What is physically printed must accommodate the automatic ID scanning tools used by border security personnel and therefore requires marking techniques with high resolving power for the finest details. Production of today’s passports has therefore become a sophisticated process that is taken on by specialized system

integrators. One of the leading players in this field is Zetes, a pan-European company offering solutions and services for automatic identification of goods and people. In the first quarter of 2014 Zetes will install two Bookmaster One systems at its Brussels personalization plant to print the variable data of the Belgian passports by means of a full colour industrial inkjet engine that prints the personal data on all pages of the document. Both systems will use Agfa Graphics’ Altamira Pack SUV ink set. The Bookmaster One performs the entire personalization process in one pass. This is an extreme example of variable data printing, i.e. each single passport has a content

that is different from the other. To sustain a reproducible production level a variable data printing technology is needed that can keep up with the high bandwidths currently used for streaming the data retrieved from various online sources. For such purposes inkjet turns out to be the technology of preference. In that process ink drops are ejected from a print head cartridge onto the substrate. UV inkjet inks have the capability of curing on the substrate surface by the action of UV light and render text and images as a controlled pattern of fine dots. The addressability as well as the reproducibility of this dot formation process is therefore of paramount importance for obtaining the desired image resolution.

April 2014

Esko: Full HD Flexo and CDI technology supports VEEPEE’s technology embracing ethos ‘Game changer’ digital flexo solution delivers results that rival offset and gravure for VEEPEE A ‘game changer’ investment has enabled Bangalore based VEEPEE Graphic Solutions to become one of the first Asian companies to adopt Esko “Full HD Flexo” and obtain the Full HD Flexo Certification. “The installation of Esko’s CDI with Full HD Flexo technology and the subsequent certification has put us in a select group of elite operations, globally certified to Esko Full HD Flexo,” states Jai Chandra, VEEPEE’s Managing Director.

“Working with Esko Full HD Flexo, we achieve higher solid ink densities with the existing press parameters. We can print clean solids and extend the colour gamut thanks to the microcell technology; and we can eliminate the halo around text and lines – a common phenomenon with flexo printing.” – Jai Chandra, VEEPEE.

Key Notes : > One of the earliest adopters of Esko Full HD Flexo. > Already had entire front-end on the Esko platform. > Took label and flexible packaging printing to the next level; results comparable to Offset or Gravure.

April 2014

As a longstanding Esko customer, VEEPEE followed the development of Esko’s Full HD screening and Inline UV technology. “With numerous developments in the flexible packaging industry favouring flexographic printing, there was a need for higher solid ink density and better ink lay to match the quality of gravure printing,” says Chandra. “Though there were a few competing technologies, we decided, again, to work with Esko as Full HD Flexo has proven to be a stable, consistent and reliable technology.”

Leading edge technology VEEPEE’s relationship with Esko started in 2006 with the installation of a CDI (Cyrel Digital Imager). “This was a conscious decision. Esko has a strong focus on flexo prepress solutions, both for software and hardware, and we already had our entire front-end on the Esko platform,” explains Chandra. “Following

a detailed research of all technologies available on the market, we realized that CDIs accounted for most of the CTP systems installed in the world during that period. Our trust in Esko and its technology was the decisive factor to invest in our first CDI. Going digital was the order of the day then – otherwise we would have been out of business by now. Esko helped us to easily enter the digital market.” Other investments over the past years include licenses for a raft of Esko prepress software solutions such as PackEdge, FlexRip and Plato to name a few. As the flexo printing process evolved over the years, and with lot more packaging jobs shifting from offset and gravure to flexographic printing, the challenge was to reproduce high quality graphics. This is when Esko launched their inline UV technology with HD Flexo screening. VEEPEE once again leveraged on the technology evolution by installing the first CDI with the inline UV and HD screening in the Asian region by the end of 2009. Last year, VEEPEE extended its cooperation with Esko by adopting Full HD Flexo, which enabled the company to increase production capabilities. “Working with Esko Full HD Flexo, we achieve higher solid ink densities with the existing press parameters. We can print clean solids and extend the colour gamut thanks to the microcell technology; and we

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can eliminate the halo around text and lines – a common phenomenon with flexo printing. Thanks to these benefits, we took label and flexible packaging printing to the next level and produced results that can be readily compared to offset or gravure. A lot of trials are being undertaken in corrugated post print, which is the next emerging market for flexographic printing. Our decision to invest in Esko Full HD Flexo was a game changer,” says Chandra. He continues: “With Full HD Flexo, our existing customers achieve better print quality with their existing machines and dispel the myth that flexo is unable to produce quality as good as offset and gravure. Full HD Flexo also enables to maintain predictable and sustainable print results. Today, with an end-to-end solution from workflow to plate imaging, we can handle more complex jobs, enhance productivity, increase job turnaround time and reduce errors, thereby increasing our profitability. We can be assured to expand our customer base without any compromise on our bottom line.”

Embracing emerging trends VEEPEE is now poised to embrace the emerging possibilities adds Chandra: “The flexo prepress business is expected to grow in the next 10 years, with an important part of that growth in the flexible packaging and corrugated sector. As business is getting more localized, we will be looking at a ‘spoke and wheel’ module, where prepress will be

done at a centralized location and multiple plate processing units close to our customer sites. This will help us service our customers better with faster turnaround times and also reduce investment costs on software and infrastructure. As the Esko CDIs with Full HD Flexo are very stable imaging systems, we are confident we will make this business module a big success.” Established as a design studio in 1961 by Mr Peethambaram, the Bangalore operation, part of the VEEPEE Group, supplies flexo plates to flexo converters. Among its key customers are Pragati Packaging, Sai Packaging, Multiflex, ITC, Ajanta Packaging, Positive Packaging, Kalpana, Propack and

Universal Print Systems. In the early 80s VEEPEE became the first business house in South India to introduce the water wash photo polymer plates for letterpress. In the early 80s it was also one of the first companies in South India to offer scanning, imposition and CTF capabilities. Later, in 1995 it became the first operation in the country to introduce environment friendly water wash flexo plates. Four years later they moved to a newly constructed 8000 sq feet facility which today is one of the state-ofthe-art flexo prepress facilities in the country. Today the family owned group is managed by Leela Peethambaram, Jai Prakash, Jai Chandra, (sons of founder V Peethambaram) and Nalani Jaichandra.

Bobst organises Open House at Pune On 10th April 2014, Bobst India organised an Open House at its Pirangut plant in Pune. The event attended by Packaging Printers focused on “What Drives Competitiveness – Lower Investment or Better Efficiency?”

automate their converting process, but are currently using manual or semi automatic machines. It featured live demonstrations on Bobst Novacut 106-E and Bobst universal folder gluer- ExpertFold 110 A-2.

The event showed Bobst India’s commitment towards the industry. With thousands of installations across the country, Bobst India offers a range of finishing and converting solutions to the printing and packaging industry. The solutions bring profitability for customers representing different market segments. The Open House was targeted at customers who are aspiring to upgrade and

April 2014

CorporealBrand Vs FascimileBrand = Brand Protection In this rapidly changing global economy, Gray Market diversion has become an ever-increasing issue facing many brand owners today. Protecting one’s own brand in today’s global market place is no longer a luxury to be considered, but rather a necessity for a corporation to ensure not only a level playing field in the steam of commerce but also to afford the corporation the ability to maximize market penetration realizing continual growth. Gray Marketing is generally defined as products (very likely genuine) that are transacted through unauthorized channels and/or markets whereas Counterfeit refers to a non-genuine product traded with breach of brand and trademarks; it’s a deliberate attempt to deceive consumers by copying and marketing goods.

The unauthorized distribution channels With the global value of counterfeit goods estimated to be worth around $1.8 trillion and the products representing more than 2% of the world’s total current economic output, one of the most challenging issues facing brand owners and retailers is the security, integrity and protection of their brands.

Key Notes : > Unauthorized movement of commerce through various geographies by rogue distributors and trusted channel partners. > Products worth billions of dollars being diverted to Gray Markets. > Securing a leak-proof supply chain as a measure to counter Gray Marketing.or Gravure.

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Manufacturers around the world confront new pressures with the trade of their brand name products in unauthorized distribution channels known as Gray Markets. Gray Markets primarily emerge when manufacturers offer their products in different markets at different prices. Price differentials may motivate enterprises or individuals to buy products from authorized distributors in markets with a lower price and sell them in markets with a higher price. Gray Market channels may operate in the same market as the authorized distributors, or bring parallel imports from another market. Each year products worth billions of dollars are diverted to Gray Markets. The Gray Market activity involves the unauthorized movement of commerce through various geographies by rogue distributors and trusted channel partners alike. It is no wonder that companies are now taking a hard look at their brand protection strategies to combat this everincreasing problem. Both are significantly detrimental to the industries as well as to its channels and its customers. Gray Marketing impacts the financial health of manufacturers and distribution channels through price destabilization, and it could also eventually impact the ability of manufacturers to make investments in future technologies. Counterfeiting, in addition to impacting manufacturers and channels, is also impacting customers and their infrastructure with illegally produced and possibly inferior products. With the global value of counterfeit goods estimated

to be worth around $1.8 trillion and the products representing more than 2% of the world’s total current economic output, it should come as no surprise that one of the most challenging issues facing brand owners and retailers is the security, integrity and protection of their brands. Indeed, in some circumstances, manufacturers are finding themselves competing against their own fakes While Gray Market and counterfeit products could possibly be an issue that can never be eliminated entirely, companies and the industry can significantly contain the magnitude through constant risk mitigation efforts. Although these efforts may require some investment and cost, ignoring or underestimating the issue could certainly compound and expand the problem, eventually making it unmanageable.

Revenue Impact The Gray Market activity deteriorates the business relationships between manufacturers and their channel partners. In the end, authorised distributors may reduce their ordering from manufacturers, which ultimately reduces the profits of the manufacturer. The Channel Partner making a profit in the short term, but in long run, will be detected and may end up losing the business all-together.

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Deterioration of Brand Image In the open market customers are not aware that the product has been diverted through unauthorised means, thereby potentially creating issues with warranties and returns. The imported product from Gray Market may not have the functionality, accessories, and features that lead to the customer dissatisfaction towards the brand, creates brand equity issues, quality, packaging, instruction manual, price, and safety concerns.

Supply & Demand Imbalance Low prices as supply goes up causes the genuine channel partners to slow down in their order patterns from the original manufacturer as he gets more profit on the product from Gray Market. This results in conflict in various systems as inventory planning issues and demand problems within the prevailing distribution system that ultimately affects product pricing and availability concerns of the product.

affects the economy. It also creates factor like surplus inventories, falling of manufacturing and distribution costs. Brand owners may experience, channel conflict, inventory issues, price fluctuation, reduced profit and brand erosion concerns. Companies could start off with an initial assessment of how the problem is impacting them, and if so, how and to what extent. To achieve this, it significantly helps to have an understanding of their “product and market” profile. This includes market potential for the product, competition, specific geographic needs, distribution models and serviceability. Analyze any abnormalities (spikes in demand, sales, discounts, service claims, product failure rates) to find any questionable trends. Also ensure that the terms and conditions on channel sales contracts are well defined, and if necessary, enhance the contractual language. Monitor broker and product trading websites to monitor price inconsistencies as well.

Brand Protection Methods •

•

• Apart from these main conflicts Gray Market creates various issues as negative customer experience, health issues (Pharmaceutical and FMCG industry faces the direct impact), legal and regulatory risks and also directly

Adding to note, being a part of an industry it is our social responsibility that right product should reach to the end user, which may not affect the end-user’s faith.

•

Securing the supply chain to ensure no leakages occur across geographies and diversions as well as inclusions into the supply chain can get detected early. Basically a robust track and trace system across the chain needs to be implemented. Brand owners should identify and register both trademarks and copyrights featured on their products as part of their overall Gray Market enforcement. Thus, it is important for brand owners to examine the goods they sell, including packaging and accompanying materials, different substrates available like security inks, security substrates, security software etc. and to catalog what trademarks and copyrights are associated with their products. Regular awareness about brand among channel partners and other associated partners, as well as internal stakeholders. External expertise in brand protection and implementing different technologies available for brand protection A compete legal framework and a regular audit of the product, packaging & gathering feedback from the market

Flexo Image Graphics to expand into distinct companies Flexo Image Graphics has announced plans to expand into two distinct companies, “Flexo Image Graphics, MEA”, which will comprise the distributorship of Mark Andy and Rotoflex for the Middle East and African markets and “Flexo Image Graphics, ISC ”, which will be representing Mark Andy, Rotoflex, Kluge, Stanford, Multipess, Xeikon and T&P in India and across the Indian sub-continent. These two companies will run autonomously in the two regions. Thomas S. Andersen, FIG, CEO, said, “FIG has proactively managed its portfolio during the last 13 years through one company with its main base in New Delhi. Our decision to restructure into two independent companies is a natural progression of our strategy to cover a larger area for our partners. We believe that creating two companies will enable the management of each company to have a greater focus on the success factors in the different territorial areas”. The creation of two independent companies

will deliver meaningful benefits to each of the businesses, the markets in which we operate, and all our customers. Our customers will continue to have a collaborative relationship with a financially strong organization that is focused on meeting their needs, and our employees will have expanded career opportunities.” Flexo Image Graphics, MEA will have I. M. Shelvam as its Managing Director. This new realignment will inject specific focus to the territory as I M Shelvam assumes the responsibility of handling sales and customer support in FIG MEA. Plans are currently underway to open an FIG office in Dubai. Shelvam has been with FIG for many years, serving in various roles. “In this new role, I will be responsible for all FIG business in the Arab Gulf, as well as in East and West Africa, including sales and after-sales of Mark Andy presses and Rotoflex finishing solutions, both in a direct sales role as well as through the company’s strong distributor network. I

know the challenges are huge but we have strengths and proven capabilities on which we will draw,” says Shelvam. Flexo Image Graphics, ISC will be led by Gourav Roy, Managing Director. Gourav has been handling sales since FIG’s inception and now will be focusing on customer support and service also. Previously, customer support was coordinated from FIG’s base in Chennai. ISC customer support will now be centric to Delhi. However, support staff will continue from the existing regional bases of FIG. “In over a decade of our operations, we’ve come further than we could have possibly imagined. The impact we have collectively made in the labelling industry has been undeniable, and I am inspired to even better streamline our services so that our customers can be even better equipped to offer superior and faster services to their customers. This is what we do today, and that is what we’ll do tomorrow,” added Gourav Roy.

April 2014

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The ink in LEIBINGER inkjet printers does not dry out

Marking & coding specialist Paul LEIBINGER will be presenting its series JET3 and JET2neo of industrial inkjet printers with integrated automated “Sealtronic” nozzle seal at the Interpack trade show in Düsseldorf. This unique technology prevents the ink in a printer from drying out even during prolonged breaks in production. Visitors to the Interpack trade show can see how “Sealtronic” works in live demonstrations from May 8th to 14th, 2014. The booth will also feature information on the LEIBINGER camera system LKS 5, which checks printouts and creates job logs. The automated “Sealtronic” nozzle seal allows Paul Leibinger GmbH & Co. KG to meet the high standards of reliability for industrial inkjet printers. Using the Sealtronic system, the nozzle and gutter form an airtight circuit whenever the printer is not being used for coding. No ink can leak out of the circuit and no air can get in. This keeps the ink fluid at all times – just like a sealed paint can – and the CIJ printer is always ready to go. Just a single push of a button starts the LEIBINGER printer, and it is ready to print in less than a minute. All LEIBINGER small character inkjet printers from the JET3 and JET2neo series come standard with the

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automated “Sealtronic” nozzle seal! The LEIBINGER JET3pro is particularly well-suited for the food and beverage industry. The printer features the IP65 protection class, making it ideal for wet or dusty production environments. In addition to the “Sealtronic” nozzle seal, professional visitors at the LEIBINGER trade show booth can learn about the specific benefits inkjet printers can provide for the packaging industry. LEIBINGER recently brought four new inks onto the market for its inkjet printers: Two MEK-free inks in red and blue and two inks that meet the strict requirements of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The first FDA-compliant ink is specifically suited for coding eggshells. The second FDA-compliant ink can be used for coding foodstuffs directly, e.g. for promotional activities. The ink is also ideal for applications that contact foodstuffs directly, such as coding the insides of food

packaging. Consuming the ink is completely safe. LEIBINGER inkjet coders can print on any conceivable products such as carton, plastic, metal or glass and materials, no matter whether the surfaces are flat, rough or convex. Imprinting is based on the continuous inkjet principle: No contact during ongoing production while using quick-drying inks. Sample patterns and patterns brought by customers will be printed at the trade show booth. The LEIBINGER camera system LKS 5 is a versatile verification system for a multitude of uses and is also being presented at the Interpack trade show. The LKS 5 reads and checks both fixed and variable data, text segments and barcodes. In addition, variable data can be calibrated using a database. Job logging, which can serve as verification during production, is available as an option. For example, the LKS 5 can detect register deviations or changes in parallelism based on preset reference values. The system also checks the presence and precise positioning of dispensed products like cards or samples. The LEIBINGER controller is used to reliably activate ejection devices. The LKS 5 image processing system excels at checking inkjet labels with the utmost reliability. Close cooperation by Research and Development within the company while further developing LEIBINGER camera systems and inkjet printers makes this possible.

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Joint venture for sustainable packaging solution German-based ACTEGA DS and the US company Dayton Systems Group (DSG) bridges the gap between traditional drinking cans and the demands of the “generation on the go”. They present drinking products that are tailored to meet the requirements of increasingly mobile lifestyles. It makes drinks available at any time – always fresh, always safe. Thanks to the advanced resealable, non-breakable, recyclable DSG Beverage Cap Can™ which provides quick-twistoff recloseability that was previously only available on glass. Resealable Can Closures for Beverages provide, added value and convenience for consumers and greater shelf appeal as well as performance for the customer. This patented two-piece can and dome design is engineered to attach to standard can sizes utilizing existing seaming technology and it can be made from new or recycled aluminium material. The patented DSG Cap Can production™ system is comprised of three pieces of equipment: a dome production system, a cap production system and a seal liner system to line the cap with seal material. The seal liner system takes unlined closures

and permanently attaches plastic material to the inside of the caps, thereby making it capable for pasteurization, hot fill, cold fill, retort, and aseptic filling. To attain best efforts, especially when pasteurization is required, an extremely flexible and soft plastic is requested. With decades of experience in handling thermoplastic elastomers and developing the most demanding formulas, Actega DS had the solution on hand: SVELON® 520 L, free of PVC, conforming with FDA and EU regulations, supplied as granulate to closure manufacturers. With SVELON® Actega DS offers very well accepted and established compounds for Mineral Water, CSD, Fruit Juice, Tea, Beer, Wine/Sparkling Wine and Milk/Diary Products. The majority of high volumes fillers and Brand Owners already use one or more of the SVELON® variants as their specified sealing material for their filled products. SVELON® 520 L is characterized by it’s excellent elastic properties, thus guaranteeing sealing to the highest technical level, especially with high concentration of carbonation and up to 60 percent alcoholic resistance. It is also suitable for cold filling, pasteurization up to 85 °C and hot-fill up to 95 °C. These compounds are based on thermoplastic elastomers. A group of materials whose enormous flexibility and high

degree of thermal and media resistance has displayed major advantages in processing and recycling in practically all areas when used as an alternative to vulcanized rubber, PVC and silicone. What’s more, it also largely complies with the requirements concerning efficiency of resources and energy as well as safety and health for customers and consumers. The Dayton Systems Group Seal Liner machine extrusion takes Actega DS supplied dried blended thermoplastic SVELON® 520 L, which is provided in pellet form, melts it, and inserts it into the cap. It then cold molds it into the fixed gasket utilizing the DSG patented sealing profile. The machine is equipped with an extrusion nozzle, cooling system, PC Interface operating system, defective cap reject device, and a cap output counter. Both companies emphasize that they are excited about this collaboration and that they invite new opportunities in packaging. Actega DS will present the cooperation and solutions at Metpack, May 6 – 10, Essen and at Interpack in Düsseldorf, May 8 - 14, 2014.

Ajanta Packaging to add new-age Weigang at Sharjah After a successful installation of Weigang ZM320 semi-rotary/rotary die-cutting machine at their Baddi factory post-Labelexpo India 2012, Ajanta Packaging has now ordered for a similar but feature-rich converting equipment from Weigang. The machine will be commissioned at their Sharjah factory next month.

tension so as to minimize the waste matrix breakage. Available in web width of 320 mm and 450 mm, it is an ideal converting and finishing line for serving the multifaceted applications of the label converters as well as giving the right converting and finishing solution for users of digital presses. Chandan Khanna, Managing Director, Ajanta

Weigang ZM Series Converting Machines are driven by Bosch-Rexroth servo systems with repass function, so one can do UV flexo printing, cold foil stamping, UV varnish, intermittent die-cutting and sheeting in reregister, while lamination and slitting also can be done in-line. The die-cutting unit works in semi-rotary mode, but for large runs requiring higher speeds it can be operated in the full rotary mode as well. The waste rewinding system is designed to provide excellent

Packaging says, “We’ve been using Weigang machines across our different locations. We want our machine suppliers to be our partners and Weigang has just been doing that as they provided us the right solution for our current needs.” Ajanta Packaging with its head office in Mumbai, is a multi-location Indian company with state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in India and Asia which are equipped with most modern and sophisticated printing, converting and finishing equipments. Ajanta uses varied printing processes like waterless offset, conventional wet offset, flexography and silk screen with combination presses as well, which propels them as the only Indian label converter to adopt such leading technologies under a single roof and giving an edge in printing higher quality labels.

April 2014

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VINSAK starts manufacturing AB Graphics’ label finishing equipment VINSAK has now started manufacturing label finishing equipment under the license agreement with AB Graphics, at its new facility in Navi Mumbai. VINSAK has been distributor of AB Graphics solutions in India for around two decades. “We are manufacturing equipments such as slitter rewinders that have a larger domestic market and will soon expand the portfolio with the launch of up to five new products this year under the same agreement. The products previously manufactured in the UK will now be cost effectively manufactured in India,” says Ranesh Bajaj. VINSAK LSR330, the successful machine with over 2000 installations globally is manufactured at the state-of-the-art facility in Navi Mumbai. The plant became operational a few months ago and has a team of well trained staff which ensure the highest production standards comparable to any in the global marketplace. Already 5 machines have been delivered to customers, all based in Africa. “We have got repeated orders for this and hoping to sell more machines in this

current fiscal,” informs Ranesh. The design of this label slitting and inspection rewinder includes a quick make ready rotary scissor slitting unit with knife separation and lateral adjustment. A colour touch screen HMI operator interface enables quick job setups, control of various counting facilities, automatic web advance, taper tension control and end of roll features. VINSAK has also delivered two LVPI 250 and shipping a couple of more in next few months. The equipment is a dedicated machine for printing personalized security labels with variable data printing inspection systems and slitting. The components of this press are imported and final assembling and testing are done in India. “This made-in-India product has a global market. We are confident of generating good sales across Europe and other developed markets with it,” believes Bajaj.

security printing applications. The addition of special features such as embedded images within a design is a great tool against counterfeiting. The best part is the image is hidden within the design and doesn’t interfere with the design or aesthetics of the labels.” “With a little initial investment, Label printers can add value to the brands and get a better ROI on the end products. VINSAK solutions make it difficult for the counterfeiter to break into the security features as we keep evolving the solutions for easily verifiability,” says Ranesh. VINSAK has also recently launched its Semi-rotary and Fully-rotary Intermittent Offset Shaftless Press, LIO 350. It is an Inline Combination machine with an integrated control system. The press offers printer maximum precision and stamping quality. The machine designed in Europe is manufactured in China. The First LIO has been sold to a customer in the Middle-East.

Speaking further on VINSAK solutions he says, “Our solutions are mostly used for

4th edition of the ETS International Cartoon Contest The European Tissue Symposium (ETS) is launching the fourth edition of the ETS Cartoon Contest. ETS regularly invests in scientific research but additionally it also reaches out to young talented artists to help them convey their message through the creation of cartoons or illustrations. This year, the contest will be organised through a dedicated Facebook page. Last year’s cartoon contest resulted in 71 entries from 37 countries worldwide. A selection of these entries together with the

winning contributions are being exhibited during ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam, that will be held 6-9 May. “We will be celebrating the Global Hand washing Day later this year,” says Roberto Berardi, President of ETS. “That is why the title we have chosen for this year’s ETS Cartoon Contest - Hands, wash’em with soap, dry’em with paper’, makes immediate reference to the importance of washing your hands. Along with washing them, drying them is equally as important and plays a fundamental part in promoting hand hygiene and controlling the spread of infections,” Roberto Berardi concludes. Participation to the ETS Cartoon Contest is now open to all and free of charge. The

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deadline for submitting the entries is June 6, 2014. Three prizes worth € 1000 each will be attributed to the three categories: a student of the Academy of Fine Arts, one of the Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften and the third one to an international participant.

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signage printing

Agfa Graphics adds primer option to Jeti Titan S and HS flatbed inkjet printers The Jeti Titan HS was showcased at the recent International Sign Association’s Sign Expo in Orlando, making its North American debut. In May, it will be shown at FESPA Digital in Munich, Germany. Its newly added primer option improves ink adhesion and extends the durability of prints. Incorporating the latest generation 1,280-nozzle Ricoh Gen 5 print heads, the Jeti Titan S (speed) and HS (high-speed) combine exceptional print quality and high productivity with an attractive price point. They are ideal for high-value work like POP/ POS viewed at close range or for the highlevel art, fashion and cosmetics markets. A new digital primer makes the Jeti Titan S and HS even more versatile. Digital primer is typically used to print outdoor signage and displays on low-cost yet more difficult (in terms of adhesion) materials (e.g. fluted polypropylene) with the objective to extend the durability of the prints. Agfa Graphics’ digital primer solution can be applied to the entire image or ‘spotwise’ only. It is subsequently cured by the printer’s UV curing system. Digital primer vastly improves adhesion without sacrificing either the maximum density or the ink colour gamut.

Recently, Atlanta-based marketing services provider Phase 3 Marketing & Communications became the first company in the USA to install a Jeti Titan HS. The company had been using a 36-head Jeti Titan 3020 successfully for years. “Compared to our other flatbed equipment, this machine uses far less ink to obtain the same, if not better, quality. The Jeti Titan HS will bring faster speeds, better quality and more output. It will be a great complement to our existing machinery for digital POP printing,” said Gail Turner, Senior Vice President, Operations & Purchasing, Phase 3 Marketing & Communications. “On top of that, Agfa Graphics does an outstanding job with their service and support. We feel that they set the bar for service performance.” Jeti Titan S and HS come with Agfa Graphics’ Asanti workflow for the sign and display market, which adds colour management and automatic pre-flighting. This not only provides consistent quality but also minimizes errors, thus increasing productivity and saving time. Asanti is completed by the Asanti StoreFront cloud-based web-to-print system, which comes as an optional low-investment SaaS solution.

The 3x2m (122x79 inch) six colours plus white Jeti Titan S is equipped with one row of print heads and is field-upgradeable to two rows to increase productivity. The Jeti Titan HS comes with two rows of print heads. Reflecting market demands, the default setup for both models is six colours plus white (CMYKLcLmWW). White printing supports different modes including overprint, underprint, spot, under-spot, fill and over-spot for rigids and pre-white for roll media. The “flat-to-roll” option on the Jeti Titan S and HS give users the ability to print flexible media with the same high quality and resolution as rigid materials and this at the full maximum media width (3.2m).

Thin ink layer technology Thanks to the ‘thin ink layer’ pigment dispersion technology, Agfa Graphics’ large gamut of UV-curable inks enable printing on a broad range of durable indoor and outdoor applications on flexible materials, including top quality banners, self-adhesive vinyls, and front- and back-lit graphics. These inks deliver the highest quality prints with the lowest ink consumption per square meter in the industry.

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Esko has ‘Racing’ themed stand at Fespa Digital 2014 Visitors to Esko stand at FESPA Digital 2014 (Munich, Germany, 20-23 May) will have a fast-paced experience full of innovative ideas for business growth. “FESPA Digital is always a high-energy show,” says Armand Gougay, Esko Vice President EMEA, “and we will add even more enthusiasm with a racing theme that fits perfectly with our ability to speed up sign and display graphics production – from prepress through finishing. Both cutting machines and software solutions will be on display in

our stand, demonstrating the breadth of our offerings and our leadership position in this market. The racing theme also highlights the unique capabilities of our newly launched Kongsberg C Series cutting tables, the fastest digital finishing solution in the market for the widest range of materials.” At FESPA Digital 2014, Esko will show the Kongsberg C64 cutting table for the first time in Europe following a successful launch last fall at SGIA in the U.S. This first-of-akind super-wide digital finishing system is

a brand-new platform designed for 24/7 production and semi-industrial environments. Another family of cutting tables that Esko will showcase for the first time in Europe at FESPA Digital is the Kongsberg V-series. Available in two configurations, the V-series tables are ideal for sign & display as well as packaging applications. In addition to market leading digital finishing equipment, Esko also offers highly innovative prepress, workflow and finishing software specifically developed for this industry. Visitors to the Esko FESPA Digital stand will be able to view first-hand the new developments in layout functionality within the i-cut software suite – Esko i-cut Layout+, a re-developed 64-bit application that runs on both Mac and PC platforms and makes nesting and layout preparation extremely intuitive and productive. Esko will also be demonstrating ArtiosCAD and Studio structural design software for design of displays and other structures in 3D; workflow automation with Esko Automation Engine to streamline and automate high volume production; and exceptional colour management capabilities with Esko Color Engine.

Events Calendar Interpack 2014

Eurasia Packaging Fair 2014

Print China 2015

Date: 08 MAY-14 to 14 MAY-14 Venue: Dusseldorf, Germany

AutoPack India 2014

Date: 18 SEP-14 to 21 SEP-14 Venue: Tüyap Fair Convention and Congress Center Istanbul, Turkey

Date: 07 APR-15 to 12 APR-15 Venue: Guangdong Modern International Exhibition Center Guangdong, China

Date: 09 MAY-14 to 09 MAY-14 Venue: Hilton Mumbai

Graph Expo 2014

drupa 2016

FESPA Digital 2014

Date: 28 SEP-14 to 01 OCT-14 Venue: McCormick Place,

Date: 31 MAY-16 to 10 JUN-16 Venue: Dusseldorf, Germany

Date: 20 MAY-14 to 23 MAY-14 Venue: Munich Exhibition Centre Munich, Germany

Label Summit Indonesia 2014 Date: 18 JUN-14 to 19 JUN-14 Venue: Balai Kartini Jakarta

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Chicago, USA

Labelexpo India 2014 Date: 29 OCT-14 to 01 NOV-14 Venue: Pragati Maidan New Delhi

Readers are required to confirm the dates of the exhibition from the organizers. This is a reader service provided by PRESSIdeas and the company cannot be held responsible for any error or omission. If your event is not listed in the above list, kindly write to us at info@pressideas.com with subject as event and we shall gladly be including the same as above.

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April 2014