FIG celebrates 25th anniversary

Flexo Image Graphics Pvt Ltd (FIG) has been celebrating its 25th anniversary of providing flexographic presses and associated equipment from leading brands in the Indian subcontinent.

Gourav Roy, managing director at Flexo Image Graphics Pvt Ltd, established the company in 2000 after working for nearly seven years in three different companies, including MSL Graphics, M&M Graphics and EAC Graphics, where he specialized in flexography and represented Mark Andy.

'In the year 2000, when Heidelberg acquired EAC Graphics and shares of Gallus, there was no reason for them to continue representing Mark Andy in India,' Roy recalled. 'It was a turning point for me and I was really lucky to pick up the readymade asset to represent Mark Andy in the subcontinent with my newly formed company.'

At the beginning, FIG's core vision was to promote flexography for label printing with in-line converting systems. 'As the years passed by, we continuously worked in the market and realized the fact that it's not only about setting up a flexographic converting system but to focus on optimization with quality and speed,' Roy explained.

Key milestones in FIG's journey include selling several Mark Andy 830 presses in 2001, opening its first office in Delhi in 2002, and establishing branch offices in Chennai and Mumbai in 2003 and 2004. The company has since installed numerous Mark Andy presses, including Scout, 2200, Performance Series and Evolution Series models.

'I still remember the time when there was no clue about flexo printing and inline capability in India. It was only offset or letterpress,' Roy noted. 'I must also give credit to many of our industry partners like Avery Dennison, Gerhard Schubert, Incowax, Harper Corporation, Creative and others with whom we worked together to educate the market and convince some of the enterprising printers to opt for new technology.'

Roy emphasized the importance of his team in building the company's reputation. 'Without a good team, you cannot run a company. Hiring and developing have been my top priority with empowering every staff member that brings value,' he stated. 'Starting from sales, order management, installation process and after-sales support processes, our team plays a very important role.'

Looking ahead, Roy sees significant opportunities in hybrid printing technology. 'There was a reason why inline flexo became popular in the label printing world; however, it took time to understand the benefits. The same holds true for hybrid in which converters will realize value addition is necessary in an environment where product mix and supply chain management being a crucial factor,' he added.

For the next five to 10 years, Roy aims for FIG to become the first call for every customer's need, from pre-press to finishing in the subcontinent's labels and mid-web packaging industry, with service being the company's defining characteristic.