Bengaluru sees saturation in CTP installations

The city of Bengaluru has seen a slowdown in the number of CTP systems installed. The total number of CTP devices in the city is 121. This includes: 66 thermal units, 34 violet units and nine UV CTCP systems. The surprise in the pack is 12 iCTP systems from the TechNova stable for book print firms in Bengaluru.

30 Mar 2013 | By Samir Lukka

Chandrashekhar of EssCee Enterprises with the new acquisition

Three years ago, Bengaluru was touted as the fastest growing CTP city with the following numbers to its credit. 53 new thermal units and 11 violet units which had been installed. This had excluded 16 platesetters for newspapers and five refurbished units.

Experts says, the CTP market has saturated; and the market has been sluggish since 2010.

In spite of which growth continues. Rajajinagar-based packaging printer EssCee Enterprises has moved from their older premise at Ramaih Estate to a new premise of 20,000 sq/ft which boasts of a Heidelberg five-colour press with a coater. Two months ago, EssCee invested in a new CTP kit.

Chandrashekar who heads the press along with his partner, Shashidhar said, the firm is targetting Rs 60-core by 2017. Presently, the 120 staffed unit converts 250 tonnes of paperboard. This caters to sectors like: agarbatti, retail, real estate. Last quarter the firms rendered one lakh personalised calendar for a visual aid company. Also it created a book with a unique bar-code on various pages. Both jobs earned laurels from the market.

All eyes are on the state elections next month. Many printers who spoke to PrintWeek India felt, the new government which will be formed post-elections will be able to strengthen the fundamentals and build momentum for Karnataka's industry through a rousing financial package.