Founded in 1947, Pune-based K Joshi & Company has opted for major changes in pre and postpress in an endeavour to automate their existing operations. Speaking to Packaging South Asia, Anil Joshi, owner of K Joshi & Company says, “Presently, the market demands quality jobs within a limited time frame. To meet these requirements, automation is the best option. We are involved in producing cartons, sheetfed labels and commercial printing jobs. At a time when the competition is stiff, it is difficult to expect loyalty from customers. We have to look at ways to retain our customers.”
Thus, the company has launched its services in package design. By meeting the demands of food and agro companies in Pune, they have procured orders for premium cartons. The company supplies the printed cartons on MetPet laminate with Spot UV, drip off and other tactile finishing effects.
In keeping with the tradition of adopting the latest technology, the company has become one of the few entities in India to use Kodak’s Sonora plates. In order to meet the demands of customers for premium quality products, K Joshi & Company has decided to revamp the Mitsubishi Diamond 1000 press by upgrading it with UV coated rollers. In postpress, they have replaced two lamination machines with a Combo laminator suitable for thermal as well as gloss lamination, and have installed a foiling stamping machine and Excel’s automatic punching press.
According to Joshi, the reason for choosing an Excel Maxima diecutter is its ability to produce exact cuts, which improves productivity and reduces wastage. “We have also been able to automate our operations with 300 to 350 gsm cartons, which are being employed to finish sticker labels supplied by Avery Dennison and SMI coated labels. With this machine, we possess the capability to finish around 50,000 cartons a day,” he adds.
Joshi believes a print service provider must continuously upgrade itself and accordingly he plans to initiate a few changes in the unit. The existing 18,000 sq. ft unit is a two-floor building. The first floor houses a production unit with press, prepress and postpress capabilities. In the month of September, a few presses will be shifted to the second floor.
At drupa 2016, Joshi was impressed with Heidelberg’s Anicolor and Konica Minolta’s KM-1 inkjet presses. So far, there hasn’t been any installation of a digital press. Presently, the company has decided to postpone installations as it intends to get the returns on investment and secondly would like to buy machines with in-house funds. “Today, any print service provider must build a relationship with clients, assess their needs and come up with innovative solutions in design and finishing effects,” he concludes.
