Uflex inks rotogravure deal in Bangladesh

Sanjay Malik Sabharwal, executive vice-president, engineering business, Uflex, said, “We manufacture CI Flexo and rotogravure printing presses, with speed ranges from 100 to more than 400-m/min, in ten models, two in CI flexo and eight in rotogravure.”

In rotogravure, the company has two categories — electronic line shaft and mechanical line shaft. The electronic line shaft is easy to changeover with more output, and with better machinery, and the mechanical line shaft is old technology.

“We have done some innovations in mechanical line shaft to print up to 8-microns. This particular press is going to print aluminium foils. Handling aluminium foil is challenge. Our press can print from 6 to 20-microns,” Sabharwal added.

The company installed the machine in Greece at TS Converting around three years ago, and the second machine is going to Kalyar Replica in Bangladesh. It’s a four-colour rotogravure press with 800-mm web width.

Sabharwal said TS Converting is doing blister packaging for pharma industry in the machine. It can be used for aluminium foil printing for cigarette industry as well. Another unique feature of this machine is that the company is using electric heating system in this machine. Usually, hot air is needed to dry printing ink. The machine has different processes for heating — thermicoil, hot air generator and the electrical heating. Thus, a customer has different sources. “Use of electrical heating is the most economical,” Sabharwal added.

Uflex sells around 15 to 20 printing presses per year. The most commonly used configuration is eight-colour with 1.3-m web width and speed of 250 to 300-m/ min.

Mohammad Yasin, general manager of Kalyar Replica, said, “We are making one to five layer laminates for our mother company Acme Group, which is well-known in the pharma industry. Recently, we have started to develop laminates for pharma industry.”

He added that there’s a huge scope for pharma in Bangladesh. “We are one of the top three pharma companies in Bangladesh,” he said.