According to a Statista report, the beauty and personal care market in India has been thriving amid the pandemic with a market value of USD 5,134 million in 2021. This surge in demand for personal care products has benefited a range of printers and packaging companies. For Chennai-based Multiflex, this demand rise made it invest in a new eight-colour Soma Optima 880 CI flexo printing machine, which has enabled the company to increase its turnaround time.

With this installation, Multiflex now has three CI flexo presses, adding to its range of three-layer and five-layer extrusion systems and fully automated paper bag making and finishing systems among other machines. The company installed another new paper bagging machine last month.

However, amid the Covid-induced lockdown period, the press’ installation became a challenge. But the DKSH India and Soma team made it possible. “We thank the DKSH India and Soma team for their support. The DKSH team helped us find the perfect fit, the Soma Optima CI flexo press ticks all our requirement boxes,” says Pratik Mehta, product development manager at Multiflex Polybags.

The highlight of the Soma Optima 880 press at Multiflex is that it is equipped with a few specific press enhancements such as an auto washing system, auto impression settings, dynamic thermal cooling and a PPP plate protection system among other features. Meanwhile, its eco-friendly quotient includes less solvent consumption for cleaning and optimum electricity usage.

Besides this, the company boasts the machine’s capability to handle both solvent and water-based inks. The Chennai-based flexible packaging specialist also boasts its expertise in sustainability and recyclable packaging materials. When asked about the sustainable product developments at the company, Mehta highlighted that he is proud of the PE+PE laminate structure developed by his in-house team for ready-to-use food packaging. He is bullish about the growth of flexo printing with the rise of such sustainable single-use plastic alternatives.