WICMA’s recipe to change and thrive in the industry

Pankaj Shah, CEO, Supack International and chairman of Western India Corrugated Box Manufacturers Association(WICMA) emphasized on why change is crucial to thrive in the corrugation industry.

Shah’s focus was on three points, technical upgradations, coDex and research and development(R&D). “There is constant pressure of costing for any corrugators or a printer in the marketplace,” said Shah.

“Technical upgradations are the key to any growing organisation. Automisation of the process from semi automatic systems would not only save time but also save key labour and space,” added Shah.

CoDex, the index for costing was developed by WICMA in January 2010 and the indexing happens every quarter of a year. “This is a price indexing structure similar to SENSEX which tracks cost which is similar to the tracking of stocks in the BSE,” said Shah.

As for the price front, CoDex serves to guide, point-out or otherwise facilitate reference. Steps to develop a codex value involves; preparing a list of components to the cost of the corrugated box, to assign a weightage, to assign a definite limit for each cost item, obtain a reliable source for cost updates, evolve a counter- checking mechanism.

Finally in the quality front WICMA has established an R&D laboratory to serve the needs of industry ranging from testing services to projects and educational programmes.

Shah concluded saying, “To enable change and thrive we have embraced recent trends by developing codex and setup state of the art research and development centre.” Recently 250 corrugation machines have been installed in India. 

Trends and opportunities in the self-adhesive label segment in India

In the second-half of the Masterclass, Ajay Mehta of SMI Coated Products presented  opportunities that lie ahead for the self-adhesive label industry. “The current per capita consumption in India is 0.25sqm, as compared to the 15sqm in US,” he said, adding that “the demand is bound to multiply with the opening up of the retail market.”

According to Mehta, the beverages, food, pharmaceutical and personal care segment will drive the demand for labels in India. However, the question remains, is India prepared to address these demands. “At present, 25-30 label presses are installed each year in India.” Mehta projected, “Over the next 15 years, if the Indian label industry grows at 10%, the per capita consumption and number of machines required will grow by four times; at 15%, it will grow by seven times and at 20%, it will grow by 13 times.

“Considering the few self-adhesive players in the Indian market, the opportunities for growth are galore. Adhering to the market trends, the failure to meet the growing demands will result in more mergers and acquisitions in the Indian label industry,” he concluded.