Vitesh Sharma of HP India at Media Expo Mumbai 2020. Photo IPP
At the recently concluded Media Expo Mumbai 2020, HP India showcased Latex R Series – the first hybrid latex technology that merges HP’s flexible printing capabilities into rigid printing. The Latex R Series also pioneers white ink capabilities with the HP Latex White Ink. On display at the HP stand were samples of applications performed on the R Series.
“With the Latex R series, HP brings high speed and quality to a wide range of rigid materials, such as foamboards, foam PVC, cardboard, fluted polypropylene, solid plastics, aluminum, wood and glass among others,” said Vitesh Sharma, country manager, Large Format Production Business, HP India.
According to Sharma, the Latex R series will help commercial printers in delivering a glossier and smoother image apart from reducing the turnout time. The variety of creative options tagged with these innovations will also help customers in delivering over-the-edge results, he said.
“This is the first time we are showcasing Latex printing on rigid substrates in such depth with a variety of samples on display along with an R Series press in action at the stall. This technology opens a wide variety of opportunities for our customers,” Sharma said.
Dye-sublimation printing for soft signage
Along with the R Series, HP India also promoted its Stitch S series printers which offer dye sublimation printing for soft signage applications.
“At present in India soft signage is mainly used for backlit applications but we see its usage growing to more segments. The most popular technology for printing soft signage in India is UV but we feel dye sublimation is a better technology. That is why we are promoting the Stitch S series printers at Media Expo Mumbai,” Sharma said.
Sharma said that soft signage will move beyond backlit to frontlit, banners, and decoration, among others. “Sustainability is now a huge issue in the Indian printing industry and usage of green media will only increase as we go forward,” he said.
Talking about the response at Media Expo Mumbai 2020, Sharma said that the show was very well received by the industry.
“Media Expo Mumbai 2020 was a very good show with big footfalls. We are very happy with the turnout,” Sharma said.
2023 promises an interesting ride for print in India
Indian Printer and Publisher founded in 1979 is the oldest B2B trade publication in the multi-platform and
multi-channel IPPGroup. While the print and packaging industries have been resilient in the past 33 months since the pandemic lockdown of 25 March 2020, the commercial printing and newspaper industries have yet to recover their pre-Covid trajectory.
The fragmented commercial printing industry faces substantial challenges as does the newspaper industry.
While digital short-run printing and the signage industry seem to be recovering a bit faster, ultimately
their growth will also be moderated by the progress of the overall economy. On the other hand book
printing exports are doing well but they too face several supply-chain and logistics challenges.
The price of publication papers including newsprint has been high in the past year while availability is diminished by several mills shutting down their publication paper and newsprint machines in the past four years. Indian paper mills are also exporting many types of paper and have raised prices for Indian printers. To some extent, this has helped in the recovery of the digital printing industry with its on-demand short-run and low-wastage paradigm.
Ultimately digital print and other digital channels will help print grow in a country where we are still far behind in our paper and print consumption and where digital is a leapfrog technology that will only increase the demand for print in the foreseeable future. For instance, there is no alternative to a rise in textbook consumption but this segment will only reach normality in the next financial year beginning on 1 April 2023.
Thus while the new normal is a moving target and many commercial printers look to diversification, we believe that our target audiences may shift and change. Like them, we will also have to adapt with agility to keep up with their business and technical information needs.
Our 2023 media kit is ready, and it is the right time to take stock and reconnect with your potential markets and customers. Print is the glue for the growth of liberal education, new industry, and an emerging economy. We seek your participation in what promises to be an interesting ride.
