The Artize Die Makers stand at PrintPack 2017 was buzzing with activity all through the 5 days of the event as Mukul Luthra was busy attending to customer queries at their stand. “We have introduced our pre-rubberized dies and male-female stripping tools at this event; these are utilized on automatic diecutting machines like Bobst, Maxima, etc. Our pre-rubberized dies help increase the efficiency of an automatic diecutter. We have also introduced a substitute for Matrix—the Pertinex Counter Plate—which brings down the makeready time on the press from 2 hours to 15 minutes. This means in case of a couple of changeovers in a day, one can save almost half a shift and thereby increase machine efficiency by half a shift,” said Luthra.
He further informed that the dies are manufactured in-house and they are customized designs.. For instance, the tool for a whiskey box is different from one for a cigarette box; also cigarette boxes of different sizes have different tools that go into their making. “We can’t keep all these tools in stock since each customer has a different set of requirements; so we get the raw materials and fabricate them as per customers’ requirements,” Luthra said.
Talking about the response that Artize Die Makers generated at the event, Luthra sounded quite upbeat. “I think the biggest advantage of having an event like PrintPack in Greater Noida is that you get very focused people visiting the show. This is one of the biggest exhibitions I have ever been to in India and I would love to call it the ‘mini drupa of India,’” he said.
“The interactions were very good, especially since our stand was located right across Bobst’s. So, most of the customers visiting the Bobst stand also visited us. The discussions were very productive and we were able to successfully explain the breakdown of downtime spent on the machine to do the makereadies of the dies.” he further added. When asked about customers’ compatibility with the product, he said, “We have also received a few orders during the event. Since this process requires integration with workflow automation, our technical team visits the customers’ plants to install the product on their machines and also provide process training in use of the product.”
Summing up the growth of the company and the journey so far, Luthra pointed out that Artize has presence all over India but right now the main focus of the company is the northern part of the country. “Artize began operations six years back on a small scale with a capacity which was about one-fifth of what we have today,” Luthra shared.
