A successful premiere: at an Open House in Pune, the Times of India presented the CROMOMAN 4-1 from manroland web systems. The elite of the Asian newspaper industry paid close attention to the live demonstration and concluded that this printing system is "Made for India", in other words perfectly matched to the special space and power supply conditions prevalent in India.

"A mechanical speed of 75,000 copies per hour, low space requirements, low project and operating costs, local consumable materials" – this is how Dr. Ralf Schädlich, project manager at manroland web systems, summarized the development tasks after his analysis of the Indian market. And the right response is the CROMOMAN 4-1, as Sanat Hazra, Vice President Production & Engineering Times of India, emphasized during the Open House in Pune on 26 September 2012. He was full of praise for the excellent cooperation between the Indian and German teams during the project, the exceptionally short installation time, the compactness of the press configuration, and the possibility to use local consumable materials. In short: the new CROMOMAN 4-1 that has been in production in Pune since February 2012 is perfectly "Made for India". Not only Indian printers showed great interest in the presentation but also around 100 Asian print experts who mostly came directly from the WAN IFRA India Congress. "India is a primary market for the CROMOMAN 4-1," explains Dr. Schädlich. "However, the printing system is also suitable in general for newspapers in emerging markets looking for high productivity with high circulations and don't run collect."

The space-saving miracle
Many printing companies want to increase their printing volume and therefore grow from the 2-1 system. At the same time, these up-and-comers require low project costs. The CROMOMAN 4-1 provides this with reduced infrastructure and operating costs, plus a fast installation. Like many Indian customers, Bennett Coleman, who produce in Pune for the Times of India, use an existing building for the new installation. Additional air conditioning for the hall was not necessary.

The CROMOMAN 4-1 with a maximum web width of 1,400 mm, proved to be ideal here. With its compactness, it fits in existing pressrooms for single-width machines. The total height of 7.4 meters including superstructure can be reduced to 5.4 meters for pressrooms with a low ceiling. This was done for another CROMOMAN 4-1 that has been in production at the Kolkata location since mid-September 2012. The intelligent design of the CROMOMAN 4-1 is illustrated by the fact that the printing units are turned 90% and thus installed on a level parallel to the reel splicer. After printing, the double-width web with four broadsheet pages are divided into two ribbons at the upper side of the printing units and turned 90% with turner bars and then run to the folder. The two-ribbon concept simplifies handling and permits variable web widths.

Depending on the project conditions, six to eight weeks are scheduled from installation start of the CROMOMAN 4-1 up until production commences. This is around one month less than is normally the case, which boosts the ROI. The first CROMOMAN 4-1 in Pune was installed within eight weeks by the manroland web systems team of Indian and German engineers, helped by a crane manufactured by manroland web systems, which can be moved manually. This illustrates the well-planned project management that was ably assisted by Bennett Coleman with their experience and excellent organization.

Lower production costs and environment-friendly
The proposition of high-end products and premium print quality in an existing infrastructure – this makes the CROMOMAN 4-1 unique. An important factor for the Times of India and Bennett Coleman was the prospects of reduced paper waste. The CROMOMAN 4-1 impresses with a wide power tolerance that prevents web breaks in the event of a power outage. A generator is not necessary which saves on expensive diesel fuel. In addition, local consumable materials can be used and so, besides reduced paper waste rates and makeready time, production costs are reduced as well. A lower cost per copy boosts profits.

Contract printing – an opportunity
The CROMOMAN 4-1 offers excellent opportunities for contract printing because it can do more than classical newspaper printing. Heatset equipment expands the product portfolio. With uncomplicated UV curing systems or with conventional heatset dryers and cooling units, the CROMOMAN 4-1 can be equipped for semi-commercial production. This increased product quality along with web width variability are important factors for printers seeking new customers. Producing newspapers at night and heatset magazines during the day enhances a company's business prospects.