New Packaging Industries in Dubai have a strong presence in two verticals – corrugation for over 25 years and flexible packaging, which it entered 8 years ago. We present edited excerpts of an interview with the company’s Business Development manager, Niranjan.
What are the specific industries that you supply flexible laminates to?
Niranjan: For flexible packaging we have several machines like rotogravure printing, lamination, slitter rewinders and pouching machines, all conforming to the current market trends and technologies. The industries that we cater to include milk powder, ketchup, water-labels and many more.
SP machines are priced significantly higher than its nearest competitors but you still invested in a slitter rewinder from SP. Now, after having seen the performance of the machine in your plant, do you feel that the premium is justified? Can you elaborate on the areas where the machine has delivered additional value?
Niranjan: We explored many options from India and also from Europe to fulfill our requirements but SP always had the advantage over others, having supplied a basic front-loading slitter Primaslit FL about seven years ago, around the time that we started our flexible packaging business. Our experience with the machine performance and after sales support has always been positive and this experience played a vital role in our decision in favor of SP.
Besides our good prior experience, we were also encouraged by the local support available in the form of Fotedar Engineering Services, the team of which is very supportive, technically sound and available at short notice. This ensures a smooth after sales support experience for the customers in the Middle East.
Finally, as you may be aware, all the reputed converters in Dubai have machines from SP and there is a good reason behind that.
Faheem, MD, New Packaging
During my long career in the industry, I have worked with many European machines but am happy to share that after running the recent machine from SP, I see many features that stand out in favor of SP Ultraflex. These include the horizontal lay-on arrangement that is a standard feature in SP machines and plays a vital role in the rewinding quality as compared to other machines in its class. Some of the other plus points include operator friendliness and safety features which have been given due attention while designing the machine. In fact, I can say without any doubt that it is a machine that ticks all the checkboxes when it
comes to a perfect slitter rewinder.
The UAE is a hub for flexible packaging, with a high density of converters. In this highly competitive scenario, how do you differentiate your company to stand apart from other converters in the region?
Niranjan: As you are aware there are more than 30-40 converters in Dubai, and to stand out in the face of such neck-to-neck competition, one has to invest in the right technology with the right machinery at the right time. For example, if you are running a machine with an output of 4 tons and you invest in a superior machine which can give you an output of 9 tons, the labor cost per kg would be cut to half, making you that much more competitive.
I am happy to say that this is not just an illustration. This is what actually happened with us on the new slitter rewinder from SP. The same job is run regularly by us on two different machines. We are able to get almost double the output on the new slitter, primarily because of larger rewind diameters, reduced changeover times and last but not least, higher speed of 600 mpm.
I firmly believe that while buying machines one should never decide on the basis of price alone. A higher price should always be viewed in relation to the technology platform and the additional value received in the form of better output, efficiency, wastage control, all of which determine the ROI. This will help you to stand out in the long run.
To what extent did SP Ultraflex meet the expectations of New Packaging in terms of output, quality, operator friendliness and safety standards?
Niranjan: The machine we brought from SP is very operator friendly and does not require a highly skilled person to operate it. This further reduces the manpower cost. As far as the quality and output goes, it has beyond a doubt exceeded our expectations. Finally, with regard to safety standards, I would say that SP is in line with the latest regulations and trends.
Do you have any plans of expansion in the near future? Can you share some details with us?
Niranjan: We plan to install more machines in the near future. One lamination machine is already ordered and will be installed by early next year. Next in line would be a rotogravure press. We at, New Packaging, are focusing more on new technology which can get us good quality, high productivity and can delight our customers. We also intend to move some of our old machines to another location and have only the latest machines with advanced technology at our main plant.
