Niraj Darji, senior vice president at Astron Packaging, said the company primarily caters to the printing and packaging needs of the pharmaceutical sector. “In the face of rapidly growing customer demand for high-value printing applications, we felt the need for a second digital press to boost printing capacity and better optimise existing resources.”

Astron Packaging started off with manufacturing corrugated boxes in 2002. The company is equipped with multi-colour flexo printing machines, rotary die-cutting machines, and complete finishing lines for the manufacture of corrugated boxes, folding cartons as well as self-adhesive labels. In 2010, the company installed the first HP Indigo WS4500 to take on short-run work and introduce value applications such as variable data printing to its labels and packaging operations.

The newly installed web-fed Indigo WS6600 has a top speed of 130 linear feet per minute and can print on a variety of labeling substrates ranging from 0.18mm to 6.35mm (0.5 to 18 points) thick and is equipped with the HP SmartStream IN 100 labels and packaging server version 4 powered by Esko.

Darji added, “The WS6600 offers us flexibility in speed, size and printing substrates, which in turn will result in better turnaround times, reduce waste and deliver cost-effective solutions. “We will also have a state-of-the-art colour management capability which will help us run simple automated jobs and save on time. All this will help increase and enhance our production capabilities.”

A Appadurai, country manager, Indigo and inkjet press solutions, HP India, said that HP is focussed on helping printing companies offer innovative and better solutions to their customers. “Today, Astron Packaging enjoys a large pharmaceutical customer base, which they have painstakingly built over the years as a result of the high value labels and packaging printing capabilities they are able to provide. The new feature-rich HP Indigo WS6600 Digital Press, will help them drive further efficiencies and build new business.”