Indian Printer Publisher

  INMA announced 40 first-place recipients during its 2024 Global Media Awards competition, with Helsingin Sanomat’s 'Counterstrike of the Free Press' taking the global 'Best in Show'. During the awards ceremony at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the winners were unveiled across 20 categories aimed at surfacing innovation and best practices in news brands, optimizing the use of media features, subscriptions, products, advertising and commerce, Artificial Intelligence, and newsroom innovation. Winning the coveted 'Best in Show', the top award of the evening, was Helsingin Sanomat in Finland for 'Counterstrike of the Free Press,' a playable map that hid a secret room where independent information was provided by the newspaper in both Russian and English languages. Judges said this campaign showed an exceptional strategy and creative use of journalism to ensure the delivery of accurate news — an example of how media must think beyond its tradit...

  Beverage major Parle Agro has launched out-of-home (OOH) campaigns for its popular brands – Frooti, Appy Fizz and Smoodh. Designed to grab attention during the scorching summer months, the campaigns aim to maximize brand impact, reach and consideration across all corners of the country.   Each brand's campaign has its own unique theme, tailored to its specific target audience. The Frooti campaign, under the theme 'WOW Frooti’ has been launched in 74 cities. Featuring brand ambassador Alia Bhatt, the campaign’s attractive visuals capture the fun and wow factor associated with every sip of the mango drink.  Similarly, the outdoor 'Oh So Smoodh' campaign for dairy brand Smoodh featuring ambassador Varun Dhawanhas gone live across 90 towns. Appy Fizz’s ‘Get Fizz’ campaign is aimed at reflecting its energy personified by brand ambassador Kriti Sanon. The Appy Fizz campaign have been splashed across 94 towns in India.   Each campaign has been launched with ove...

  Tecnau will preview its broad showcase at drupa 2024, highlighting collaborations with leading printing and finishing technology providers. Under the theme 'Tomorrow’s Finishing, Today. Connect with the future,' Tecnau is set to demonstrate the synergy between its  finishing solutions and the technologies of established as well as new partners. Tecnau Revolution 50   At the Canon booth (Hall 8A), visitors will witness the integration of Tecnau's Revolution 50 Stack 5251L with Canon's newly announced ProStream 2000. This powerful combination addresses a wide spectrum of commercial print applications, from B2 posters to A6 flyers, showcasing versatility and efficiency. The variable sheet length feature of the Stack 5251L introduces unprecedented flexibility in application changes, enhancing productivity and short-run production. Additionally, the setup includes Tecnau’s Unwinder u50 and Rewinder r50, offering roll to roll processing for versatile offline finishing poss...

  Siegwerk , a leading global provider of printing inks and coatings for packaging applications and labels, recently announced the establishment of a new business unit dedicated to functional coatings for the realization of sustainable packaging innovations in the sense of a circular economy. With this extension of its organizational structure effective April 1st, 2024, the company not only underlines its increasing strategic focus towards functional coatings but also boosts its position as an enabler of circular packaging solutions across all business units. “In addition to our broad portfolio of renowned printing inks and varnishes, we have also been focusing on the development of functional coating technologies for various substrates, processes, and performance requirements for a long time now,” says Nicolas Wiedmann, CEO at Siegwerk .  Especially in light of the sustainability trend, functional print coatings offer a high potential for the future of packaging. By providin...

  In the industry for over 45 years, Charu Digiprints, a subsidiary of Charu Apparel, is now one of the leading manufacturers and exporters of digitally printed and quilted home furnishing products and garments. Currently exporting to the United States, Canada, Australia, and European countries. Karan Khandelwal, director, of Charu Apparel and Charu Digiprints shared some of his insights into the digital textile printing industry . Charu Digiprints possesses the latest machines in automated multi-head quilting and embroidery as well as digital printing. With a large range of computerized embroidery machines ranging in capacity from 6 to 34 heads, Khandelwal says these are capable to quilt and embroider the most intricate designs. The company offers digital textile printing solutions using both reactive inks for direct printing and dye-sublimation printing including a Mimaki and Colorjet, and a pair of Konica Minolta’s Nassenger inkjet presses with 32 heads. Referring to these, Khan...

  Line O Matic will be showcasing its recent innovations at the drupa trade show  to  be held  between 28 May- 7  June,  Dusseldorf, Germany.  The company is to reveal its latest offerings that could redefine the landscape of  the stationary, converting, packaging, and printing  segment . [caption id="attachment_85133" align="alignleft" width="315"] The company's Folio Size Sheeter will also be displayed[/caption] "At the drupa trade show, we are not just showcasing machines , we  are showcasing a vision of the future in our largest stall to date  having 760 sqm—a future where efficiency, sustainability, and innovation converge to create unparalleled value for our customers. We will be showcasing our flagship fully automatic Exercise Book machine accompanied by an array of machines — an inline Shrink-Wrapping machine (Bolt RB104 Max+ SWM 100), a   Folio Size Sheeter (APEX RS165), an   Automatic Binding machine for singl...

 New technological advancements impacting publishing such as artificial intelligence (AI), podcasts, data analysis, and OTT were the focal points of discussion at the 11th edition of the Jaipur BookMark , held alongside the Jaipur Literature Festival from 1 – 5 February 2024 in Jaipur. According to director, JBM Manisha Chaudhry, this year's Jaipur BookMark (JBM) looked at the future of the publishing industry and all important developments likely to impact publishing in the future. Sessions were also held alongside to mark the anniversaries of major publishing houses along with a Roundtable with 18 publishers from across the globe. Chaudhry referred to a session on AI and the future of publishing that had Meru Gokhale, founder of Editrix.ai and former publisher at the Penguin Press Group; Charles Collier, a film, television and literary agent, producer, lawyer, and talent manager; and Safir Anand, intellectual property lawyer and brand strategist in conversation with Marcus du Sa...

 Version 1.0 of this article, written 55 days before drupa24 , said that the German and European visa processes in India were better organized than in previous decades to handle fair participants. However, on 23 April, which is 35 days before the start of the fair, reports are emerging of visa appointments going into late June, well after the event is over. (It’s necessary for most Indians to physically visit since a fresh set of biometrics is almost always necessary, apart from the humiliating set of financial documents required.) Nevertheless, the enthusiasm amongst the Indian industry for drupa24 is high. Considered by Indian print and packaging businesses as a university – the fair is a way of learning what’s going on in the industry and about the most likely to succeed technologies of the future. Indians attend for several days with great hunger to learn whatever they can and for the pleasure of networking with colleagues from everywhere in the world at the fair. Drupa works ...

 Artificial Intelligence (AI) has found its way into almost every industry, including the media. AI is being used in multiple departments in the media space such as advertising, audience data, video optimization, and even for content suggestions. For editorial and production workflows, software companies such as ppi Media, Eidosmedia, among others, are exploring and offering AI-based automated page layouts for newspapers. Although they may differ in their approach and features, the objective of automation is generally to achieve precision and speed that can also enable variations that would require tedious iterations if done manually. The Hamburg-based ppi Media, for example, provides a subscription-based solution to its template-based software that runs in the cloud using an Adobe InDesign server at ppi’s end. In addition to automated pagemaking in the cloud, publishers can also make special pages and layouts or alterations locally, at their own InDesign workstations. Indian Prin...

  At the March pre-drupa press event in Dusseldorf, Eef de Ridder, head of commercial print operations EMEA at Ricoh Europe, offered a glimpse into what attendees can expect from the Japanese company at drupa. “One of the reasons why we are very thrilled to be here and to be at drupa is really that we are preparing a booth which will be an experience quite unlike what people have seen before,” de Ridder said. A Ricoh highlight will be the Henkakuverse, a virtual production environment where visitors can immerse themselves in the company’s technologies. This interactive experience (or perhaps a virtual exhibit) will provide insights into the latest advancements and innovations from Ricoh, including some technologies that have never been publicly displayed in Europe before. Among the featured technologies will be the Dragon – the Ricoh Pro Z75 B2 sheetfed digital inkjet press. This long-awaited press promises enhanced productivity and versatility for commercial, book, and direct mai...

  Goyal Offset Works, a large-scale commercial printer has installed a new Heidelberg Speedmaster CX92 4-color offset press to enhance the considerable production capacity of its massive plant in Kundli in the Delhi NCR. Established in 1978, the company was founded by CL Goyal in central Delhi’s Daya Basti and it has kept moving to larger plants as the business grew – first to GT Karnal Road and then to its current plant in the Kundli industrial area near Sonepat. The commercial printer is focused on book production and also produces season-based calendars and diaries for its customers. The company’s second-generation director Prince Goyal, who now heads the company’s operations, joined the family business in 1995 when production was still carried out at the GT Karnal Road plant. “When I joined, we were still growing in commercial printing with two single-color, four double-color presses and one 4-color press. I mostly learned about the market and the printing industry when I was ...

  Jürgen Otto (59) will become the new CEO of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG ( Heidelberg ) on 1 July 2024. He succeeds Ludwin Monz, who will resign from his position as chairman of the Management Board and step down on 30 June 2024. Monz has resigned at his own request and in agreement with the Supervisory Board, which passed a resolution to this effect on 19 April 2024. The chairman of the Supervisory Board, Martin Sonnenschein, says, "We very much regret Dr Ludwin Monz's decision to leave Heidelberg. He has decisively advanced our company strategically and operationally and thus strengthened our foundation in a difficult market environment. With Jürgen Otto, we are gaining a proven leader. With his experience and network, we will continue to consistently prepare Heidelberg for the future, increase profitability and further strengthen our significant technological expertise in the printing and packaging industry and beyond." Ludwin Monz says, "I really enjoyed wo...

  From a mere reprographic shop to a full-fledged commercial printing corner, Dhingra Photostat, based in Panipat, Haryana, got a new avatar as Dhingra Prints in 2017. The company's transformation led to the continued expansion of its machine portfolio, with the latest addition being a Ricoh Pro C9500, a first in Haryana. This Ricoh digital colour production press, successor to the ever demanding Ricoh Pro C9200, at Dhingra Prints has been supplied and installed by Monotech Systems . “Ever since we took a big turn in business in 2017 with a new stature, our overall activities have also been drastically changed. Our reprographic jobs like photocopying and such tasks have been a bit sidelined as we are now focusing more on production printing. Around 80% of our current activities are of job works while the rest we still engage in our traditional reprographic tasks to serve local walk-in customers who have been closely associated with us for years and still trust the quality of works...

 At the pre-drupa press meet held in Dusseldorf from 25-27 March, Landa Digital Printing announced that it would launch the next generation of its B1 digital print technology, the Landa S11 and S11P nanographic printing presses. The new Landa models offer a print speed of 11,200 sheets per hour (SPH).  “We’re delighted to announce the launch of the Landa S11 and S11P. Following the success of our customers with the current Landa S10 and S10P models and based on a deep understanding of the industry’s future needs, we are taking Nanography to its next level,” Gil Oron, CEO, Landa Digital Printing said.  Oron said that Landa Digital Printing has managed over 55 installations already with a large number of these customers having placed repeat orders. Half of these installations happened in the past year.   “After decades of innovation, patents, and investments of over one billion Euros, we are now experiencing rapid growth with a very, very strong ramp-up. And act...

 Signtec, a Badarpur-based provider of printed signage , recently installed Mimaki’s UCJV300 5-feet roll-to-roll signage printer at its plant. The company, which provides outdoor and indoor signage commodities and printed wallpapers to mostly the northern markets with some customers from different parts of the country, plans to expand its production capacity and market reach by installing another Mimaki machine, a UJV55 10-feet roll-to-roll printer. Air India Express is a frequent customer of the company established in 2014. [caption id="attachment_84877" align="alignleft" width="240"] BYD's printed signage by Signtec[/caption] Situated on the route from Delhi’s Tughlakabad metro station to the nearby railway station, the neighborhood surrounding the plant is often bustling with commuters and students from a school right across the road. As one approaches the plant , huge print-outs of IPL-themed advertising welcome you. Director Akhilesh Pal, who ha...

  ACTEGA, a manufacturer of specialty coatings, inks, adhesives and sealing compounds for the print and packaging industry, has announced its participation in drupa 2024. ACTEGA experts will be based at various touchpoints across the show to present the company’s extensive range of product and technology solutions developed for printers and converters seeking more sustainable solutions and high-value embellishment options. Its representatives will be located on numerous partner company stands and in the Touchpoint Packaging Forum, showcasing the benefits of its latest barrier coatings, high-quality finishing solutions, coatings for digital printing and its pioneering mindful metallization technology, Ecoleaf.  Jan Franz Allerkamp, head of Business Line Paper & Board, ACTEGA, said, "The ACTEGA team will be exactly where they're needed at drupa 2024 – strategically positioned at various touchpoints, around almost every corner of the show. Our experts will provide visitors w...

  Following the successful completion of Flint Group’s debt restructuring last September and the establishment of a new board of directors, chief executive officer Steve Dryden has decided to leave Flint Group later this year. The Board will make a further announcement regarding a successor to Steve in due course. In the meantime Steve will continue to perform his duties as chief executive officer executing Flint’s successful strategy closely supported by the board of directors and the executive committee. “Leading this company through the challenges of a restructuring and change in ownership has been a privilege. I’m extremely proud of what we have accomplished together, despite the headwinds that we faced in these past years. With the restructuring process complete, a new Board appointed and at a time of strong operational performance, I believe it’s the right moment to hand over to the person who will lead the business through its next chapter,” said Steve Dryden. Jason Clarke,...

  Life is too short to read a bad book. – James Joyce Hardly four weeks after the London Book Fair, it was Bologna’s turn to open its doors in front of a large demonstration for a cease-fire in Gaza and the liberation of all hostages, both those in Palestinian and those in Israeli custody. The Bologna Children’s Book Fair was again configured in three co-located sections – the main children’s book fair, a generalist (non-children’s) extension under the heading Bologna Book Plus, and the Bologna Licensing Trade Fair/Kids. New features in the program were the TV/Film Rights Centre in collaboration with the United Nations and the Society of Illustrators in New York, and the Audio Forum, added to the existing Literary Translation Forum in partnership with app developer Beat Technology. Also new for 2024 was the Licensing Portfolio Review, an opportunity to bring together consumer goods and audiovisual companies with illustration and design talents to create new business opportunities...