The event's theme was ‘Innovating Tradition: Navigating Technology Adoption in Print.’

The first speaker of the day was Dr Anil Lamba. He delivered a presentation titled ‘Romancing the Balance Sheet.’ Dr Lamba is an author, a financial literacy activist, and a corporate trainer. He is a chartered accountant with degrees in commerce and law; and a doctorate in taxation.

During his presentation, he said that the mantra of financial management is, “Less is bad, more is worse.” He said this in terms of a company running in profit or losses.

The first panel discussion titled ‘Make in India’ Superstars at Drupa 2024 was moderated by Ramu Ramanathan, editor of PrintWeek and WhatPackaging?

The panellists included CN Ashok,  managing director at Autoprint Machinery; Datta Deshpande, founder and president of Pratham Technologies; P Sajith, managing director at Bindwel Technologies; Ranesh Bajaj, managing director at Vinsak Group; and Amit Khurana chief executive officer, TechNova Imaging Systems.

(l-r) Ramu Ramanathan; P Sajith; Datta Deshpande; CN Ashok and Amit Khurana

Notably, this was the first conference for the Indian print fraternity after Drupa. The panellists discussed the performance of Indian companies at Drupa, investing in international companies, and India's growth on the world stage.

On his Drupa experience, Sajith said, “The highlight of Drupa was showcasing our machines. One of our company directors is a German who used to be the CEO of Kolbus, a major manufacturer of post-press machines worldwide. Many of his old friends approached us at the show, asking where we were producing these machines in Germany. That was the most memorable part of the event.”

The discussion turned to one of the biggest challenges facing print companies — the disinterest of the next generation. Notably, Ashok listed three rules for the inheritance of the second generation. He said, “For the second generation to be interested, the first generation has to get home early. At the dining table, talk about the exciting parts of the business. And please listen to the second generation, don't suppress the ideas of the next generation with the experience tag.”

The second panel discussion — ‘Big Ideas at Drupa — What Next for India?’ — was held after lunch. Ramanathan moderated this discussion as well.

(l-r) A Appadurai, Manish Gupta,Venugopal Menon and Samir Patkar

The panellists were A Appadurai, country manager for HP Indigo and Inkjet presses for India and Sri Lanka; Manish Gupta, head of marketing for Konica Minolta India — production and industrial; Venugopal Menon (zone business director — Indian subcontinent for the printing and converting business using at Bobst India; and Samir Patkar, president of Heidelberg India.

During this discussion, the panellists spoke about how Drupa 2024 went for their companies. They also discussed the state of investments in India.

Gupta said, “Lots of people adopting digital to have process efficiencies. The adoption rate of digital is increasing, which is a positive sign.”

Appadurai said, “The curse of the industry, and why you are unable to attract the next generation is because five to ten customers give you 80% of your business. Print production investments are fine, but unless you decide to service more clients, you might not be able to stay afloat.”

The next speaker was Priya Kumar, an acclaimed motivational speaker, author, and corporate trainer. During her talk titled, Dream, Dare, Deliver, she spoke about the importance of fostering a legacy to be able to attract the next generation.

Finally, the keynote speech was delivered by SN Venkataraman, the SBU Chief of the ITC Printing & Packaging Business. 

SN Venkataraman of ITC Printing & Packaging Business

His talk revolved around navigating the adoption of technology in print. He spoke about ITC’s printing and packaging journey. He said, “Every organisation goes through an evolution. You have to reinvent yourself every ten years. In our business, we have reinvented ourselves six or seven times.”

He also spoke about disruption, saying, “You don’t know how disruption hits you. Sustainability is being spoken about everywhere.”

The highlight of the keynote address was the introduction of intelligent design. During this segment, Venkataraman said companies must ask themselves what they want to sell to the person in front of them, what the source of their advantage is, and how they can sustain that advantage.

What is intelligent design? Based on understanding the DNA of the business, which seeks to run the printing business actively and intentionally to achieve a balance between growth, investment, costs, efficiencies, complexities and customer demands and preferences, with the sole aim of improving competitiveness.

He said that there are tangible factors to measure here, like infrastructure, specialised machinery, operations excellence, customer relationships, and supplier partnerships. On the other hand, there are intangible factors to measure too, like organisational culture, supplier partnerships, and team skillsets and know-how.

He also highlighted how it is important that all parts of the product you are selling are operating in tandem — essentially, getting the act together. He said that this means that the focus will have to be on quality, cost, delivery, innovation, flexibility, service, product superiority, customer intimacy, and operational excellence.

The PPOA was established in 1919, focusing on education and support for print professionals. Adoptech 2024 sought to empower stakeholders with the knowledge and tools necessary to navigate technology adoption, ensuring the print industry’s relevance in an increasingly digital landscape.

Beyond Adoptech, the PPOA has several initiatives planned for the rest of the year. It has a two-pronged approach. The first is initiatives related to education including workshops on topics like financial management, cost analysis, quality standards, and so on.

The PPOA is also committed to promoting sustainable practices within the printing industry. Its initiatives include a focus on reducing waste, promoting the use of eco-friendly materials, and adopting green technologies.

At the beginning of the event, Rahul Marulkar, president of the Poona Press Owners Association (PPOA) announced the plan for the construction of the PPOA Centenary House (PPOA Shatabdi Bhavan). The is upcoming seven-storey building will feature 4,000-sqft of columnless spaces on each floor with ample parking. With this establishment in Pune, the PPOA hopes to foster more collaboration among print owners.

Raveendra Joshi, past- president of the All India Federation of Master Printers (AIFMP) and PPOA, followed. He reminisced the progression from traditional printing methods to the current era of digital printing. He recalled the significance of typewriters, cyclostyling machines, and the transition to offset printing. 

Joshi said that one of the objectives of the PPOA was to impart printing education with its printing school in Pune. “Unfortunately, we could not continue with the programme, and we had to close the school.,” he said. However, He Joshi outlined an alternative approach of hosting engineering seminars to continue imparting education and knowledge to fellow professionals in the industry. 

Next, the event's chief guest, Dr Suhas Diwase, (District Collector, Pune), addressed the attendees. He stressed the importance of adapting to and embracing technological innovations in managing the challenges presented by the rapidly evolving world over the past 25 years. 

While acknowledging the value of technology, he underscored the need to complement it with the human touch, cautioning against the potential pitfalls of prioritising technology at the expense of human involvement.

Dr Diwase shed light on the positive aspects of disaster management, portraying it as an opportunity for innovation and problem-solving. He encapsulated his views through three Cs – context, capacity, and collaboration – emphasising their significance in understanding the changing landscape, building the necessary capabilities to cope, and fostering collaborative efforts to achieve common goals.

Raghbendra Dutta Baruah, the president of the AIFMP, said that Drupa is going through a seminal change. He spoke about how the emphasis on digitalisation and sustainability was palpable at the event. He said, “Books are the beginning and books are the end. Books are ultimately knowledge. The day you start learning, your life begins. The day you stop learning, your life ends.”