Indian Printing Industry has undergone several revolutionary changes in the past 15 years. The industry growing at a rate of 12 per cent per year comprises more than 250,000 big, small and medium printers, according to All India Federation of Master Printers (AIFMP). This article discuss on how shift from regular printing jobs are demanding value added systems being incorporated in the industry and take a closer look over how digital technology thrives on the phenomenon of adding value. 

 

The packaged printing industry is growing at an annual rate of 17 per cent, commercial printing at an annual rate of around 10 per cent and digital printing at a robust growth rate of 30 per cent. The industry has slowly been progressing from the user of heavy machinery to a more software-centric and compact business. Indian printers are today equipped with the latest computer-controlled printing machines and flow lines for binding, while state-of-the-art digital technologies are used in pre-press. UV digital printing and inkjet technology are also on rise in India.

 

The digital printing industry is seeing significant transformations with new technologies & applications providing cost-effective and customised solutions. For the foreseeable future, offset and digital will not only co-exist, but will also complement each other- with offset taking the medium-to-longer jobs and digital performing on short-to-medium run lengths. The booming Indian economy, increasing consumerism, entry of global brands in the country and opening of the sector to foreign investors are bound to offer growth opportunities to the industry.

Kamal Chopra, Director, Foil Printer, observes, “We have noticed an impressive growth of the indigenous manufacturing units. The growth was pulled well by lifting import restrictions in 2017. The degree of sophistication in design and excellence achieved by Indian manufacturers was also remarkable.”

 

Global printing machinery manufacturers like Heidelberg, Windmoller and Holscher, Ryobi, Ricoh and Komori are some quality manufacturers in India, who have their share in the offset press market. Almost all have been offering solutions for automation within their ambit. Heidelberg presses are known for its longer life and are also known for its resale value. These machinery manufacturers are providing PLCs to be able to connect their machines in-sync with the workflow. 

 

Digital equipment on rise

Earlier, the industry believed that automated workflow will only help people with short job lengths or will only help control and manage work with the digital printing machines. Automated workflows have come a long way and is now able to efficiently manage a printing station comprising of a mix of digital, offset and screen printers. No doubt that the digital printing machines have highest compatibility with the automated workflows available in the market but with some small arrangements like adding a programmable logic controller (PLC) will establish control over offset and other systems as well. 

 

Digital printing is growing faster as these printers are available in full-line option. The full-line option in the digital helps a printing station to just insert a paper or substrate and get the finished output without any human intervals. This has increased the speed of the printing stations, thereby, improving the productivity. 

 

“Successful printing operations are already investing or planning to invest in digital printing to ensure they can capture the business and grow in their very owned segment, whether they are general commercial printers, transactional or packaging/labels. Runs will always be shorter, volume will inevitably be higher and delivery times will continue to be shorter. Investing in the right technology and choosing the right partners is essential for your very own business,” states, Raymond Duval, Director-Solution Sales, Ultimate TechnoGraphics.

 

CTP/ CTCP plates

Industry veterans have time and again said that there needs to be a technical knowhow among operators on the floor. Usually, the technical knowledge is possessed by the person who is not operating the machine, which may lead to losses. Mukund Bhuta, Director, Metrostar Print Solutions Pvt Ltd, observes, “We have encountered our clients using some irregular techniques in maintaining a machine and its operations. We recently came across printers using a ratio of 1:6 which should be 1:7, results in an increase in usage of developer solutions while preparing a plate with CTP. This adds on to the wastage of the material and even the plate and the time. There are no Indian Platemaker machines. All are imported in India. International companies also provide excellent training but the operator changes may affect the print quality on a large scale.”

 

CTP or CTCP plates are one of the crucial components in offset printing world. Metrostar has recently developed their violet plates. Violet plates have been dominated by Fujifilm which are used to print packaging of high end consumer products. Plate market is widely dominated by Technova Imaging Systems for all its product lines while Fujifilm has dominance with their Violet plates. 

 

Flexographic printing

In India, flexographic printing has come a long way from importing machines to now developing made in India machines. Hiten Mehta, President-Packaging Division, Multigraph Machinery Company Ltd, states, “India has widely accepted flexographic printing due to better registrations and large volumes. As Indian printing industry is moving towards more packaging jobs, flexography has a better future. Packaging requires high-quality printing and flexographic machines are known for it. We have recently launched a CI flexo machine for 

high end and volume jobs for packaging industry. “

 

According to Gourav Roy, Managing Director, Flexo Image Graphics, while the technology remains the same, automation is increasing and people are focusing more and more on short-runs. “When it comes to short-runs, people need to make money. So, they look at opportunities on how to changeover from one job to another quickly. Pre-press has grown, with features like HD flexo and specialised screening systems, which help produce good quality flexo," he adds. 

 

Components

Printing industry requires huge component base. Roller shafts, rewinders, ink tray, plate, colour management tool, colour mixer, vacuum pumps, air filters, other roller applications, UV assembly, print-friendly lights, and others. These components are generally provided by offset press manufacturers and they also provide spare support. Flexographic printer involves huge components and gives immense opportunity to manufacture components.

 

In a nutshell, digital businesses have time and again provedtheir quality, so no more concerns over quality, whichever process may be used for printing. Tier-1 and tier-2 cities have seen rise in digital print equipment but they are yet to reach the rural areas where flexographic and offset technologies have penetration. 

 

Lastly, as growth trajectory in the print equipment continue to be well over the world averages, in print volume terms; India is set to become Rs 431 billion market by 2021. Therein lays a great opportunity for the Indian and international print suppliers.

 

QUOTES

We have noticed an impressive growth of the indigenous manufacturing units. The growth was pulled well by lifting import restrictions in 2017. The degree of sophistication in design and excellence achieved by Indian manufacturers was also remarkable.

Kamal Chopra, Director, Foil Printer