Daily Thanthi Group has achieved significant time and waste savings at five sites of the leading Tamil language newspaper, following the installation of QuadTech’s Register Guidance and Ribbon Control systems with MultiCam. Improved print quality is also credited with contributing to increased circulation and readership.
“Until the installation of the QuadTech Register Guidance and Ribbon Control systems with MultiCam, we were measuring color and color register manually,” says S Balasubramanian Adityan, Daily Thanthi director. “The biggest
challenge came when the number of color pages increased; it was very difficult for operators to control register on our high-speed, double width and double circumference presses. The installation of the QuadTech systems benefits us in five ways — we can shorten makeready times, reduce start-up waste, achieve consistent color, optimize labour and press usage, while also contributing towards a better product and increased readership,” adds Adityan. The technology has been installed recently at four of Daily Thanthi’s plants — in Cuddalore, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli and Nagercoil in Tamil
Nadu. Two additional QuadTech systems have been in operation at the group’s headquarters in Chennai since 2010-11.
Better overall quality
“Since installing the systems, we have seen a 20% reduction in the time taken to achieve good register, and a 10% reduction in waste. Our ability to maintain consistent color throughout the run has also increased, giving us better overall quality,” says Adityan. “We used to face a challenge after each auto-pasting cycle, with variations in register, but that has been completely eliminated.”
The QuadTech Register Guidance System with MultiCam offers unmatched color register performance with operational flexibility. With lateral and circumferential register control, MultiCam searches marks as small as
0.36 mm (0.014 inches) up to 30 times per second, even during makeready times and upsets in web tension. The QuadTech Ribbon Control System with MultiCam provides a high level of ribbon control tasks including cut-off, print-to-cut, print-to-fold and crossover register.
Both systems are operated from QuadTech’s Icon platform with a user-
friendly interface that facilitates quick and easy job setup, minimizes waste and integrates with downstream equipment such as UV coaters, perforators and rotary cutters.
Speaking for QuadTech, Vinodhkumar Balakrishnan, regional sales manager, QuadTech, says, “The Daily Thanthi Group has been carrying out an investment programme, renewing its press and ancillary technologies in its print centres. This has contributed not only to better print quality but also to a notable increase in the paper’s circulation. We’re very pleased that the Daily Thanthi Group has chosen QuadTech as a partner to bring about the changes that are contributing to this growth.”
