At Packplus 2019, at the Multigraph stand, were a range of products from Kohli Industries, Manugraph-Carraro from Italy, Perfect Printgraph and Multitech. “We have got a range of products under one roof. We also have the extrusion lamination machine from Rajoo and Kohli that we are promoting here. Both the companies have a proven expertise in this field and they have already supplied two machines in Rajkot which are successfully running,” says Hiten Mehta, president of Multigraph.
Mehta says the response at the show is good which has kept the entire Multigraph, Manugraph and Kohli teams busy on all the days of the show. In FY 2018-19, he says that the company performed extremely well. “For example, let’s talk about Kohli, he’s booked till March 2020. There’s no looking back for Kohli. It has grown to become the number one company in Asia. Even the biggest European companies manufacturing their machines in China have cut down their price in order to compete. Kohli has shaken up the market in Asia.”
There is an economic slowdown that has sort of created an alarming situation in the country and has shaken up various industry verticals. “There are some companies who are affected but as I told you earlier, Kohli is booked till March 2020. This shows that flexible packaging converters are continuing to invest their capital in order to grow. I’d say that the slowdown is a boon to the people in this industry that would help them analyze where they’re going. This will provide an opportunity for many to give direction to their companies and act in a planned and careful manner.
“As of now converters were expanding in a haphazard manner. The current situation will prove to be an eye-opener for all. Now they can now see their wastage, analyze their profits and become more aware about their customer’s needs. Now is the time, according to me, to visualize and analyze the future course of action,” explains Mehta.
The Manugraph-Carrraro Manuflex CI flexo press is doing extremely well, according to Mehta. The press was demonstrated live at the IndiaPlast 2019 show with full demonstrations thrice a day. The CI flexo press engineered with Italian technology from Carraro is currently being manufactured at Manugraph’s plant and has entered series production against orders. Manugraph is organizing open house events at several locations to demonstrate the capabilities of the press over a period of time. It has already received orders for 3 presses in FY 2019-20. “Of these three presses, one will be ready by 10 September 2019 to be dispatched in October, while another press will be ready by 15 October 2019 and dispatched in November. Our target of selling four presses in the current FY till 31 March 2020 has already crossed the halfway mark with more than half a year left,” Mehta concludes. More details about the customers and installation of the Manuflex CI presses weren’t disclosed by Mehta at this time.
