Durst’s game-changing Alpha Wallpaper Edition

Durst technology for Graham & Brown's carbon neutral production

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Durst's Alpha Wallpaper Edition Photo Durst
Durst's Alpha Wallpaper Edition Photo Durst

Graham & Brown has invested in more ‘absolute game-changing’ Alpha Wallpaper Edition technology from Durst in what has become the central pillar in the international wallpaper brand’s drive to total carbon neutral production, says a press release from Durst, Italy.

The potential is enormous,” said Sam Dobson, Operations director for Graham & Brown, of Blackburn, Lancashire, UK. “Digital is an extremely important technology for the wallpaper industry. It’s really about print-on-demand, reducing print run-lengths and giving a more bespoke offering to customers. At the moment, this industrial-scale digital production has filled the gap between high run lengths of conventional printing and the low volumes on our previous digital machines.

We see the Durst as a complementary technology that has many environmental and other benefits. As one example, the main resource we need to power the machine is electricity, and all of that is renewable. For the last year all of our digital production – representing 35% of the Graham & Brown brand offer – has been carbon zero.”

Graham & Brown’s digital journey ran in parallel with its eCommerce proposition to create unique wallpaper, more flexibility and reduce its warehouse stock by becoming more of a print-on-demand brand to meet evolving customer demands. The installation of the first Durst Alpha Wallpaper Edition production printer in January 2022 was so successful that a second machine was installed a year later.

Martin Winkler, Durst Group wallpaper specialist and Business Development Manager, Textiles, said, “The move to digital production in the wallpaper industry is accelerating as buying habits change. We are proud to have partnered with Graham & Brown as it expands digital printing volumes to provide carbon neutral production, which only digital can deliver. The installation of a second Durst Alpha Wallpaper Edition is underpins our belief that wallpaper has since ceased to be just a ‘renovation object’ and has now become a lifestyle product with which customers express their individuality and create a feel-good atmosphere.”

Durst, manufacturer of digital printing and production technologies, has adapted its digital printing technology in the wallpaper printing to initiate a digital disruption. A shift from conventional printing presses to more sustainable production processes using less water and energy consumption, enabling smaller volumes to be produced inexpensively without warehousing costs is accelerating. Other important drivers are the use of new environmentally friendly materials that are odour-free and can be made from recycled raw substrates.

The Durst Alpha Wallpaper Edition is the most productive digital printing system on the market, with a production capacity of over 1,500 rolls per day or up to 1.2 million linear meters per year. In addition to productivity and outstanding color consistency across the entire print width or run length, total cost of owner (TCO) is also important for producers. This is where Durst has another advantage with its expertise in print quality and ink consumption. With Durst Alpha Pigment Inks, Durst also offers fully water-based inks in eight colors that enable “Healthy Sustained Wallpaper,” with a natural and high-quality look.

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.

– Naresh Khanna

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