Tamil Nadu’s first Heidelberg Speedmaster CX 75 5-colour press installed at Abarna Colours

Tirupur-based, Abarna Colours has installed Heidelberg Speedmaster CX 75 5+L, the first press in Tamil Nadu. AP Murugan, Managing Director at Abarna Colours, said, “The Heidelberg CX 75 is the latest addition into our kitty and the multi-talented press will enable us to move to the next level of quality assurance and to expedite deliveries on time as per our commitment to the clients. Our average production ranges from 2 to 3 lakhs impressions daily.”

The company owns a handmade paper board manufacturing unit from recycled cotton, which is accompanied by a buying house for trims and garment packing materials. The sole reason for investing in Heidelberg Speedmaster CX 75 is to fulfill, their in-house requirement for printing, and bring in quality printing on paper boards where they had a tough time due to the thickness of the board.

Murugan added, “We began our journey with a Heidelberg single-colour SORM press and then added a Heidelberg SM 72 five-colour press in our arsenal based on the business volumes. The questions about the improvement of quality and how to bring in machine intelligence on this aspect had pushed us to go for a brand-new Heidelberg press. Also, the guarantee given by team Heidelberg on the less environmental impacts has resulted in adding the Speedmaster CX 75 into our list. We are growing as an organization and are still on the learning curve and have a lot more arenas to taste and adapt to. We consider learning from our partners, who are our suppliers and customers as we believe in quality and timely delivery.”

Abarna Colours, started its operations in 2017, and the brand Heidelberg Speedmaster CX 75 five-colour equipment was installed at their 30,000 sq/ft plant in August 2021. The organization also installed screen-printing equipment for labels and tags and die-cutting equipment for post-press operations. Currently, they produce garment packaging cartons, paper covers, hang tags, packaging boxes, folding tags, hangers, band rolls, etc., for garment manufacturers all using their specialty paperboards.

“We have started production with the Speedmaster CX 75. One of the key reasons for investing in Heidelberg Speedmaster CX 75 is to explore special packaging jobs for our clients and create wonders for them. The production quality is exceptional and the job setting times have come down considerably. The service and installation were done on time by the Heidelberg service team, and we are happy,” added Sumith P Nair, Head – Production at Abarna Colours.

The double-diameter impression cylinders facilitate gentle sheet transport while accommodating diverse substrates, from paper to cardboard up to 0.8 mm in thickness. Even at a top printing speed of 15,000 sheets per hour, the CX 75 is completely noise-free.

The inking and dampening units of the CX 75 offer colour stability and remote-controlled functions ensure short path inking with minimal ink consumption. A maintenance-free, fully foil-lined ink fountain allows quick and easy ink changes, while precise inking and fast ink control response is supported by digitally controlled ink zone motors.

On the installation of Speedmaster CX 75 at Abarna Colours, Venkataraman, DGM Sales of Heidelberg India, said, “Abarna Colours handle thick paper stock from 300 GSM onwards, made from garment surplus, and they also looked at an eco-friendly printing process, after going through their complete requirement we offered them the CX 75 five-colour press configuration, also we are supplying our Saphira inks and pressroom consumables.”

For better finishing standards for diverse applications, the coating unit of the CX 75 is fitted with a chamber doctor blade system and a wide range of coating supplies and anilox roller technology. Coating plate changes are automatic, quick, and easy for the Speedmaster CX 75.

The beauty of Speedmaster CX 75 is that it can take a maximum sheet size of 605 mm × 750 mm. The Speedmaster CX 75 is a confined press designed by Heidelberg in the B2 format.

“Our vision is based on a step-by-step growth strategy with a focus on having less impact on nature. We aim to have 50% growth every year and try environment-friendly ways of printing techniques and with more focus on sustainability and growth,” concluded Murugan.

Abarna Colours has already secured the FSC certification and is currently working towards securing ISO and other printing certifications to cater to wider clients.