COMMERCIAL PRINTING
Interview – Klaus Nielsen
34 Indian Printer & Publisher
IPP : How do you see the Indian
“Printing is mushrooming
everywhere in India”
After Klaus B Nielsen,
managing director,
Heidelberg India, took
charge at the Chennai
headquarters of the
company about three years
ago, the company has
expanded the number of its
offices in the country and its
customers no longer come
only from the major metros. In
recent years, Heidelberg
India has set up new
residential offices in Kochi,
Ahmedabad and
Hyderabad.
Ahmedabad, Coimbatore,
Guwahati, Kochi and a host
of smaller cities and towns
have now become important
markets for Heidelberg India.
Nielsen tells senior editor
Sashi Nair that a new spirit of
entrepreneurship is boosting
demand for presses in these
towns.
IPP : How has it been for Heidelberg
in India the past few years?
Klaus Nielsen: In 2005, we took the
decision of setting up a print media
academy in India. We saw that one of
the factors holding back the Indian
printing industry was a lack of training
opportunities. Many printers and
operators venture into a print shop to
learn various functions and in a span
of four or five years, graduate to
become head printers or a lead
supervisor. They don’t really have the
essential theoretical background or a
formal education and their knowledge
about printing is something they have
picked up from only one
15 January 2011
Klaus B Nielsen, managing director,
Heidelberg India
environment, which to some extent is
restricted. That sometimes causes
problems while producing high
quality and also while overcoming
various printing-related issues.
We moved into this building (GST
Road, Chromepet) in April 2008 and
had the inauguration in September
2008. We’ve been running a lot of
courses, and until a few weeks ago
we’ve had just about 3,000 people
going through various training
programs. In the long term, our
programs will benefit all those related
to the Indian graphic arts. Indian
printers are competing with printers
outside the country and if they can
enhance their skills and product
knowledge, they will be able to go out
and get more export jobs.
IPP : Have you ever thought about the
prospect of setting up a manufacturing
facility in India?
KN: In order to establish a
manufacturing facility, you need a
certain critical mass. At this point of
time, India still has some way to go.
COMMERCIAL PRINTING
market in terms of growth?
to provide after-sales service in a timely
manner is increasingly important. We
IPP :Any specific plans for the coming
two to three years?
KN: The Indian market is offer annual maintenance contracts KN: We are constantly looking at how
undoubtedly growing. If you consider
printed material, the last two years
and we are seeing a huge surge in the
number of AMCs we have been
the market develops and what
opportunities there are.
have seen growth in terms of volumes.
However, because of the hesitation of
providing to customers. Customers
today want to plan maintenance and
Establishing the Print Media
Academy in India was a milestone and
banks to provide finance and certain don’t wish to face breakdowns. When I it turned out to be a huge success.
events in the international market, look at the turnover in our spare parts Besides PMA courses, we have also
there has been some hesitation in and service departments, we are started offering other services like ISO
making investments. From the time of seeing a growth in line with certification of Heidelberg printing
the Lehman Brothers collapse, until equipment sales. There is an increased presses. Keeping our customers
approximately twelve months ago, we awareness about the benefits of benefit in mind, several plans are in
saw a drop in our equipment sales in professional after-sales support. the pipeline including the expansion
India. But in the last 12-months of our consumables business. u
business has started picking up and
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I’m positive about the coming 12
months. I’m confident that India is
poised for good growth.
IPP : Which are some of your faster
moving products in India?
KN: Besides our printing press, we
have been seeing a growth in the
number of installs of CtPs and Polar
equipment.
In India today, we are selling quite
a well balanced product portfolio
from pre-press, press, post-press to
consumables, training and consulting.
Additionally, I would say that our
customer is no longer located only in
the big metros; they are located in the
smaller towns because that is where
the economic growth is coming from.
The volume of high print quality in
smaller towns is now reaching a level
where a printer can, for instance, buy a
Speedmaster 74 four-colour machine.
IPP : So, it’s a whole new market out
there?
KN: In the past, the small-town
customer went to the nearest metro to
get commercial jobs done. A vast
majority of our customers are family
run businesses with a high level of
entrepreneurship. We are seeing a lot
of small commercial printers setting
up their operations with new
equipment. Some of them are doing
extremely well — and this may be an
indication that economic growth is
reaching smaller cities and towns.
IPP : You offer after-sales support.
How demanding is the Indian
customer?
KN: All of our customers are in a very
competitive environment. They face
pressure from their customers for
timely delivery and they have
deadlines to meet. As a capital
equipment manufacturer, your ability
Indian Printer & Publisher 15 January 2011 35