Big movers in packaging: Adding value

The NDA government's first full-year budget, for 2015/16, envisions a boost to infrastructure spending, an improved business environment and a wider social security net, even if details are missing.

Basis on sentiment, Indian printing firms are pledging a “return to growth” with investments for the future.

In the last 18 months Komori has notched up 60 printing presses and Ryobi-MHI has notched up 42 machines.

Talking to PrintWeek India, Aditya Surana, managing director, Indo Polygraph Machinery, the Indian representative of KBA, said that it has been “one of the best years for KBA in India”. The company shipped six machines until May 2015, each of these being seven or above colours, fully loaded and highly configured. The company is also expecting five more machines to land in India this year.

In the last two years some of the big ticket investments have been at TCPL’s Haridwar plant, Silvassa plant and setting up of the Guwahati plant.

Then there is Parksons Packaging’s Rudrapur plant, Daman and Chakan plant, plus ITC’s Chennai and Haridwar plants.

After the extensive cost-cutting or restructuring measures of the past three years, it seems the growth story is back.

A spotlight on investments in the folding carton space.

TCPL – launched its Guwahati operations on 29 January 2015.

The keystone of the factory is the KBA Rapida 106 seven-colour plus coater press. Plus there are two Bobst Novacuts and two Bobst folder-gluers-Ambition and Visionfold and a Brausse 1050 FCA automatic foil stamping machine supplied by Suba Solutions, Heiber + Schroeder window patching machine, a single-colour ZHL gravure machine from SLKCG, a three-camera carton inspection system from Sergusa and YiiLee film laminating machine and Paktek flute lamination machine for corrugation.

With this fully loaded packaging arsenal, TCPL’s Guwahati plant will convert 750 tonnes of paperboard per month.

The eight-acre campus with 85,000 sq/ft build-up area, which is located in the Industrial Growth Centre of Chaygaon in the outskirts of Guwahati, is spacious enough to accommodate multifold expansion and addition to the production base.

During the year 2014-15, the gross turnover of TCPL has increased to Rs 517.40 crores from Rs 412.43 crores for the previous year. This represents a growth of 25.45%. TCPL has converted 48917 metric tonnes of paperboard as against 43360 metric tonnes in the previous year.

Any Graphics – invested in a Heidelberg press, Bobst machines, Emmeci rigid box making machine

Any Graphics is a mid-size packaging firm which converted three lakh pieces of mono cartons last year. Now these figures would reach 5-6 lakh mono cartons every day.

With the Heidelberg seven-colour press which has some nifty customisation the press hopes to create a new kind of opportunity such as FDA approved food packaging, finer print quality, the ability to add a strong hit of opaque white, and able to print on virtually any substrate.

Initially, Any Graphics was a typical trade printer with bespoke designs. But now innovation holds the key. This could be Fresnel Lens packaging, natural feel effect on mono cartons or labels, an extra fifth panel for a mono carton or velvet finish or even combination of various print processes.

Surya Fresh Foods – a new plant equipped with a KBA press and Bobst die cutter and folder gluer

Surya Fresh Foods, Noida, affiliate of the Surya Food & Agro, owner of the flagship brand Priya Gold biscuits, has announced that it is expanding its operation with a new investment towards the backwards integration that will give it better control on supplies, cost, and maintain occasional confidentiality during new product launches.

The company has invested in Bobst converting equipment, the Novacut and Lila, and a KBA six-colour coater UV press, which will integrate biscuit and confectionary manufacturing with in-house packaging.

Most of the Surya’s packaging material requirement is either in flexible laminates, litho laminated flute three-ply boxes and few premium products in solid board. The machines for the new packaging plant have been configured to handle litho laminated three-ply board and solid board.

The packaging printing company is planning to invest in to in house CTP solutions and an offline lamination machine.

Rave Packaging – entirely new set up for packaging and equipped with Heidelberg foil star, Emmeci, Bobst and other equipment

Rave Scans, with facilities in Delhi, Gurgaon and Manesar, announced the installation of the country’s first Speedmaster CD 102-6+LX with Foilstar from Heidelberg to announce its arrival into the print packaging segment in a big way. The company also revealed its diversification plans for the packaging segment, with a focus on high-end rigid boxes. For this, the company has also invested in rigid box-making machines from Italy-based Emmeci.

Currently, 68% of the company’s business is commercial and the rest 32% is packaging. It has a capacity to print one million impressions per day. According to Shiv Bhatnagar, the company’s packaging arm is a growing segment and this is the reason why it decided to invest in future-ready technologies. The Speedmaster CD 102-6+LX with Foilstar, which is India’s first and the world's 59th machine, installed at the company's Manesar plant, dedicated to Rave Packaging.    

A&A Labels – invested in to India’s first Lombardi press

Gurgaon-based A&A Labels shall install India’s first Lombardi Synchroline 430 press.

The three-motors servo press will open up new vistas for the company. It can enable A&A labels to produce labels on flexible film as well as begin the production of mono cartons.

The manufacturers and exporters of a wide range of industrial labels and stickers, A&A is optimistic about doubling its production capacity with this latest addition on its shop floor. The addition of this line will double its capacity in terms of converting self adhesive materials. The company expects a growth of more than 100% in topline in the financial year.

Kumar Labels – The first generation label printer Kumar Labels has invested in a Gallus narrow web flexo printing press, the press is under installation. Kumar Labels’s new investment Gallus ten-colour EM 280 is equipped with IST UV system.

According to Anuj Bhargav of Kumar Labels, the company has invested in to new narrow web flexo press to meet its increased production demand of labels and consistency. Bhargav also expects 100% growth in his exist number.

Kumar Labels has also shifted its facility from Noida to Kasna Industrial Area, Greater Noida. The newly established facility is much bigger than earlier one and owned by Kumar Labels.

There is more.

There is DJS who have invested in a Bobst die cutter. They are eyeing a printing press. They have set up a corrugation plant through a greenfield expansion. Presently, they cater to clients in food chain and manufacture cups, buckets and other packaging materials for them, export as well.

Also, there is Galaxy in Naraina and Manesar who have invested in a die cutter and folder gluer from Bobst, taking the total tally to five Bobsts. Plus there is a Ryobi investment for its commercial operations.

Nova Publication in Jalandhar, a text book publishing house has established a packaging plant in Faridabad which is equipped with Bobst and Heidelberg, and other ancillary equipment. Likewise there is PR Packaging which has invested in a brand-new Heidelberg press plus diversified in to lamitubes.

Earlier in March, Mumbai-based Parksons Packaging received Rs 200-crore capital injection from Kedaara Capital. The private equity fund has thus purchased a significant minority stake in the packaging major.

Kedaara Capital acquired the entire stake of the existing investor, Chrys Capital and an additional stake from the promoter group.

Parksons Packaging has also embarked on expanding its infrastructure with investment in a slew of new offset presses. The packaging converter signed up with KBA, Heidelberg and Komori for installation of four highly configured offset presses. This is also part of the overall upgradation which Parksons is implementing at its Daman facility with the replacement of its existing two six-colour presses.

PrintWeek India is hopeful that with inflation stabilising as well as decline in interest rates, it will boost the purchasing power of the consumer, which would have a multiplier positive effect on packaging items.

There are several opportunities for future expansions. And from the buzz we are picking up many plans are being finalised as capacity utilisation at most units are quite high.