200-page Anniversary Issue with hundred case-studies - The Noel D'Cunha Sunday Column

It is by no mean the first print magazine to produce magazines for nine years, but what is important is that PrintWeek India has been doing so successfully without missing a deadline.

The 200 pager will be closed by Dibyajyoti Sarma (Delhi), Sriram Selvam (Chennai) and Priya Raju (Mumbai).

Rushikesh Aravkar is in Interpack in Dusseldorf. Rahul Kumar and I will be in Beijing for China Print.

This is the way of the print world.

The first issue was published on 16 May 2008. The copies were distributed at Drupa 2008. The industry was a different beast, nine years ago. The entire PrintWeek India team will be celebrating the ninth Anniversary issue in different corners of the world.

2008 was the Drupa year, but it was also the year when the world economy was deemed to be doomed to irrelevance. India survived the scar, so did the print industry and PrintWeek India. From a 48-pager to consistent 80+ pagers, PrintWeek India has been doing what it knows is the best – explaining the print world to its readers.

The Indian print industry, post Drupa has been going through a print blitz to convince brands and spenders to send the rupees back to print and highlighting the influence and engagement that the medium produces.

A lot has changed.

As Kirit Modi, chairman and managing director, Horizon Packs says in his big interview with Ramu Ramanathan, "About two decades back, one of our top customers asked me as to why the corrugated box industry lacks professionalism. What he meant was that most of these businesses were primarily driven by owners. Taking a cue we started inducting professionals in our group to run the operations on remotely."

Kirit Modi: The corrugation industry suffers from 'Watching the Parade' syndrome

Furthermore, old timers say, there was a time when a Drupa or an Ipex launch machine would arrive on the Indian shore a good 10 years later. Not anymore. Sakal, the newspaper giant, which forayed into packaging with Wikas Packaging, recently installed the Drupa launch, KBA Rapida 75 Pro. Likewise the The first-in-India, seven-colour B1 press with an inline coater is a combination of the XL class with the platform of the Speedmaster CD 102 has been installed at Parksons Packaging.

Wikas Packaging, recently installed the Drupa launch, KBA Rapida 75 Pro

The CX-102 seen in the picture is the first-in-India, seven-colour B1 press with an inline coater is a combination of the XL class with the platform of the Speedmaster CD 102 at Parksons Packaging

The good news is, there are more than 100 print companies who have invested in expanding their existing plants or replaced an existing machine with upgraded kit.

These companies have become the creators of a new order in the last 12 months.

We celebrate their growth.

In this Ninth Anniversary Issue, PrintWeek India will feature case-studies print companies and their CEOs with their investments who have laid a strategic groundwork for managing their businesses successfully.

An online poll on the PrintWeek India website asks, "Recent print survey says print is bouncing back, do you agree?"

Yes - 47%

No - 18%

Are they talking about the same print industry I'm in? - 9%

Print will not survive Google, Facebook and Twitter - 10%

Print is more alive than at any other time in its history - 16%

More than hundred votes have affirmed their faith in print; and half of that are more than enthusiastic about its future in India.

In the May Anniversary Issue, more than 200 pages celebrate this.

PRINT ZINDABAD!