Manufacturers and their mantra: Anil Kant of Wifag-Polytype India

Anil Kant of Wifag-Polytype India

“Wifag has a market share of over 10% in the large newspaper printing press business”

Wifag is much more than a printing press manufacturer. In addition to the “heavy metal”, Wifag has a dynamic team of automation, engineering, offset and digital print process experts as well as world class project management. In India, Wifag has a large, modern, high performance installation at ABP Publication in Kolkata. Worldwide Wifag has a market share of over 10% in the large newspaper printing press business.
 

In 2011, Wifag Maschinenfabrik fully acquired the Solna Group (Sweden) and Ekpac Graphics, Hong Kong. Solna is a manufacturer of predominantly single-wide printing presses for the newspaper and book printing market. In industrial printing, new Wifag S-Line generation of presses and the Solna single-width printing machines have been designed in view to achieve optimal results in terms of output, quality and performance at a competitive price. Newsprint, ink and other consumables have kept pace with the developments on the equipment side; and it does seem to be a constraint. They become a constraint only when purchase cost, instead of total cost, outweighs other factors.
 

At the World Publishing Expo 2012 in Frankfurt, Germany, Wifag launched the new S-Line range of smart presses. Mechanically, the S-Line presses are well equipped and optimally automated in view to be run by a single operator. Standardisation is a key component of the S-Line. The four-high tower press is based on a single modular n-type printing unit design. As future requirements change, the modular press can be reconfigured. Apart from obvious advantages of automation, the possible shortage of qualified operators and increase in costs on these accounts would lead to more automation. Wifag’s S-line (operated by a single-operator), incorporates these thoughts. 
 

The  Wifag  machine  controls  “Platform”  stands  for a  standardised  and  modular  framework  which  controls the many automatic functions. With over 10 years of  industrial  printing  experience,  the  “Platform”  solution  has  been  implemented  on  all  Wifag  presses  since  2003.  New  functions  have been  added  and  new  technologies  such  as  real  time  ethernet, powerful and safe VPN-based remote support concepts as well as touch-based user interfaces adopted.
 

The norms set out by the International Standard Organization (ISO) are our benchmark and guideline. In last two years, apart from Solna, we have acquired number of other companies like Mechatronica, Luscher, OMV Machinery and couple of trading companies in Europe. In many countries the Berliner type format has become very popular and to read in public transport (bus, train and plane).
 

Statistics in many countries show that local and regional newspapers have best faced the adverse business climate for print and advertising in recent years. As long as print and packaging machines are needed, WPG will be a leading supplier offering brainware, software, automation, services, machines and whatever the market needs. Wifag is in the process of becoming a competitive partner to companies seeking innovative solutions for their specific applications. We have already launched Digicube, a high-speed digital printing equipment for book publishers, having capability for roll-to-roll or roll-to-cut sheets.