Boxes, labels and beyond as Astron Packaging maps its next chapter

The story of Astron Packaging’s Pune plant does not begin with a machine purchase or a ribbon-cutting ceremony. It begins with a logistical problem and a cold, hard calculation. Transporting boxes from Ahmedabad to western Maharashtra added significant cost to each unit. For a company operating at high volumes, those rupees translated into crores. Worse, the distance slowed deliveries, compromising freshness for exporters relying on quick turnarounds. The solution, according to Niraj Darji, president of Astron Packaging, was not to negotiate harder with freight carriers. It was to go there.

The Pune facility, Astron’s newest corrugation unit, is a response to proximity and volume. “Our customers were mostly in Maharashtra. 80% of them,” Darji explains. “So it made no sense to keep pushing boxes from Ahmedabad.” But this is more than a plant relocation. It is an attempt to rewire the cost-service matrix in the packaging value chain. By cutting the transit window from twenty-four hours to four, Astron is positioning itself not just as a supplier, but as an embedded logistics partner.
 
Darji is clear about the strategic stakes. Pune is not a satellite; it is a second engine. At full capacity, the plant will convert 10,000-tonnes per month. That figure, according to Darji, is unmatched by any single-location corrugation facility in India. “Yes, there are companies with more total output,” he says, “but that’s spread across multiple units. This is one site.” 

The size tells only part of the story. The other is told in speed. The European corrugation line installed in Pune runs at 350-metres per minute, a significant jump from the 200-metres per minute benchmark at Astron’s Ahmedabad plant. “The new machine reduces curing time from fifteen hours to four,” says Darji. “This means higher throughput, better shelf readiness and faster order cycles.”

Speed is also about flexibility. The Pune unit includes cassette-type flute technology, allowing Astron to switch fluting grades without downtime. This capability is not a luxury. It is a requirement for export markets demanding thinner, stronger, moisture-resistant mono cartons. At the back of the facility is a growing space earmarked for these niche fluted style packs, intended for European retailers seeking alternatives to plastic trays.

Automation has been wired in from the start. Sheets are transferred from production to storage to converting lines without human contact. Darji calls this a continuation of what they began seven years ago in Ahmedabad. But here, everything is scaled. There is less intervention, less handling, and more system control. “We want to run this plant on precision, not manpower,” he says.

If the plant was built to reduce costs and increase output, it is also a statement. Astron is not dabbling in corrugation. It is doubling down. That matters in a market where competition is fierce and rising paper prices and unpredictable demand patterns squeeze margins. With this move, Astron has not only secured volumes but also closed a crucial service gap.

Darji credits the company’s investment approach to its belief in vertical expertise. Astron is not entering every market. It is going deep into the ones it knows. For now, that means focusing on fresh produce exporters who demand quality packaging that survives temperature swings and high humidity. Later, if opportunities present themselves, the model is ready to replicate elsewhere. “We are exploring southern India,” he says. “But only if there is a clear gap and value to add.”
 
Stocking the future

If the Pune corrugation plant signals Astron’s bet on geography and volume, the labelstock facility nearby reflects its intent to own the value chain. Launched with an investment of around INR 52-crore, the plant is located seven kilometres from the company’s Ahmedabad site. But unlike the typical backward integration narrative, Astron is not building this to feed its own presses. It is building to serve a gap in the market.

“The market for labelstock in India is growing at double digits,” says Darji. “And there is a vacuum once you look past the largest player.” Astron’s offering, branded as Tackify, has entered this space with confidence. Currently, it is producing around 40-lakh square metres per month, with plans to scale up to one-crore square metres within two years. Less than 10% of this volume is used internally. The rest is sold across India and exported to the Middle East.

The manufacturing setup reflects that ambition. The plant includes a German silicon coating line, an acrylic emulsion coating unit, and a Hartmann hotmelt system. A second acrylic line is on order. The lines are designed to run at 400-metres per minute, significantly faster than many local alternatives. “This is not a small producer’s machine,” Darji explains. “We are competing with the best in quality.”

The company is especially bullish on filmic substrates. Polypropylene clear and white films are a growing segment, and Astron estimates a future split of 60:40 in favour of film over paper. These materials are more durable, better suited for weather-resistant labels, and in demand across personal care, industrial and export-oriented applications.

Darji sees an opportunity in displacing imported stock and winning over customers who want consistency and domestic support. With legacy brands like UPM Raflatac importing and trading in India, Astron’s local manufacturing base gives it an edge on turnaround and pricing. “We are not just replacing supply; we are improving it,” Darji asserts.

Tackify’s early months have shown promise. The brand has already secured repeat orders and gained visibility among quality-focused converters. The plant’s focus on export markets is also helping diversify the customer base beyond India. Astron’s Dubai label plant is a small customer, but more significantly, the labelstock is finding its way to converters across the Gulf region.

Darji also hints at what might come next. The company is not ruling out expansion into pressure-sensitive labelstock formats that cater to industrial and pharmaceutical clients. With infrastructure already in place, the variable becomes market readiness. “We want to expand only when we are confident of sustaining quality and scale.”

There is also the question of sustainability. Coated labelstock typically involves chemicals, adhesives and waste. Astron has built effluent treatment systems and emission controls into the plant from day one. These are not just compliance measures. They are prerequisites for future export growth, especially as regulatory frameworks in Europe become stricter.

For now, the labelstock division is breaking even and on track to become a significant contributor to the group’s topline. As Astron pushes for INR 750-crore in consolidated revenue this year, Tackify’s contribution is expected to reach INR 10-crore monthly. The challenge now is to keep quality high while scaling volume, a balancing act Darji believes is well within reach.

A label that sticks
Labels were the foundation on which Astron Packaging first found its footing. Long before its bold corrugation play or labelstock ambitions, the company had built credibility supplying printed self-adhesive labels to converters and brands. That foundation has not only held firm but has also become more sophisticated. The Ahmedabad label unit continues to serve as Astron’s flagship operation, anchored by a combination of flexo and digital technologies.

The company’s growth into Dubai in 2020 marked an inflection point. “We decided to go global with what we know best,” says Darji. The Dubai plant, set up for label converting, started with a single flexo press but quickly scaled to include two digital machines. Astron’s label operations in Dubai now generate over INR 3.5-crore per month, largely from local clients. This venture allows Astron to de-risk against fluctuations in the domestic market while building a regional footprint.

The Dubai label business is not just a replication of Ahmedabad. It is tailored to the market’s structure. “Dubai is a trading hub, not a manufacturing one,” Darji explains. “We don’t see a long-term case for putting up a full labelstock plant there, but converting makes sense. We source economically and deliver quickly.”

Meanwhile, in Ahmedabad, Astron continues to upgrade its label capacity with fresh investments in Chinese flexo equipment and finishing units. The company is focused on meeting volume and compliance demands in segments ranging from pharma and FMCG to high-volume retail. There is also an uptick in demand for filmic labels, particularly for applications requiring durability and weather resistance.
 
Boardroom to boxroom
Long before the Pune site was imagined, Astron Packaging took a major leap into corrugation at its Ahmedabad facility back in 2015. That move broke away from its label‑centric roots. In May 2015 Astron became the first packaging firm in South Asia to book a six‑colour Bobst FFG 1228 NT RS inline flexo folder‑gluer capable of printing, slitting, scoring, folding, gluing and rotary die‑cutting all in one continuous run. The nearly INR 26-crore investment was bold by any measure at that time. Astron’s team believed this machine would give it a technical edge over conventional multi‑press setups.

Niraj Darji recounts scepticism at the time. Observers said Astron was buying a machine when others set up entire lines for less. He replies that Astron was not chasing scale—it was chasing capability. The Bobst line allowed production of high‑graphic export packs, wraparounds and rotary die‑cut boxes in a single inline flow, reducing handling, waste and turnaround time.

That investment became foundational. The Ahmedabad plant evolved into Astron’s knowledge centre. Automation, inline processes and operator training on the Bobst line became benchmarks. Darji explains that each subsequent addition or upgrade was based on lessons drawn from that first high‑end system.

But logistical limits soon appeared. Despite strong capacity in Ahmedabad, serving clients in Maharashtra meant long transit times and higher freight costs. That inefficiency was one of the triggers for the Pune expansion. Darji emphasises that Ahmedabad remains core, focused on premium runs, R&D, and serving as a training ground. Pune, by contrast, handles bulk operations with speed and volume.

Periodic refurbishments continue at Ahmedabad. The existing corrugation lines are maintained and new converting lines are considered to enable shorter SKU runs. Experimental flute profiles and paper substrates are trialled here. Engineers trained in Ahmedabad mentored new Pune teams. Standard operating procedures and quality protocols are replicated across both sites.

This dual plant structure deepens capabilities. In peak seasons or during breakdowns one plant can support the other. Ahmedabad’s more central location helps all‑India distribution, while Pune delivers proximity advantage to western Maharashtra.
 
The fine flute
While corrugation is often associated with brown boxes and bulk supply chains, Astron Packaging is nudging the format into niche, high-value territory. At the Pune plant, the company is now producing mono cartons with ultra-thin F-flute profiles aimed at replacing plastic packaging for fresh produce. These are not just boxes. They are engineered containers built to withstand sub-zero storage, high humidity, and the exacting expectations of European supermarkets.

The first shipment of these export-grade mono cartons is due to leave for Portugal this month. The customer is a distributor based near Porto, working with a network of retailers across Western Europe. “If this first container lands well, the volumes could scale very quickly,” says Darji. “The demand for sustainable alternatives to plastic packaging is growing. We are positioning ourselves to meet it.”

Astron is not new to fluting. But the F-flute format is a significant departure. It requires greater precision, different liner characteristics, and higher resistance to deformation. The cartons also include ventilation features, hot-melt glued joints, and proprietary coatings to ensure moisture resistance. All of these attributes are critical when the product spends hours in cold storage and still has to look good on the retail shelf.

To make this possible, Astron has invested in cassette-type corrugation systems that allow for flute changes on the fly. The process is integrated and inline, unlike many Indian producers who still rely on manual lamination and pasting for specialised boxes. “We are not patching the board after making it,” Darji points out. “We are creating it in one flow. That gives us consistency and cost control.”

The focus on exports has also brought a new level of scrutiny. Cartons must comply with European packaging standards, including grammage, strength, and recyclability. Astron has responded by sourcing nearly 70% of its Kraft paper and liners from Finland, Scandinavia and the United States. These include virgin high-performance liners and semi-chemical flutes not readily available in India.
 
Darji admits this dependence on imports increases input costs, but argues that quality makes the business viable. “If you want your carton to survive minus-two degrees with 96% humidity, you need the right raw material. Indian paper mills are not yet producing to that spec.”
 
Sustainability, too, is more than a buzzword. The mono cartons are designed to reduce plastic waste in the fresh produce supply chain. Ventilation holes cut during production are sold as virgin scrap to paper mills, fetching a premium price and creating an additional revenue stream. “The more waste we generate from die-cutting, the more profitable it gets,” Darji says, only half joking.
 
The company is also preparing for regulatory audits. European customers demand compliance with multiple certifications related to packaging materials, adhesives and emissions. To stay ahead, Astron has installed laboratory testing facilities at both Ahmedabad and Pune, where prototypes undergo stress testing, humidity simulations and glue performance checks.
 
The mono carton segment remains a small percentage of Astron’s output for now. But its potential is significant. As more countries restrict single-use plastics and shift to fibre-based alternatives, the demand for smart paper packaging will rise. “We do not want to become a mass producer of mono cartons,” Darji clarifies. “We want to be a specialist.”
 
Balancing the books
Capital expenditure in the packaging industry tends to follow one of two arcs. Either it is gradual and cautious, or it comes in waves of bold bets. Astron Packaging is firmly in the second category. In the span of two years, the company has launched its Tackify labelstock business, commissioned the Pune corrugation facility, and invested in new converting lines in both Ahmedabad and Dubai. Together, these moves have stretched the balance sheet, but also redrawn the company’s growth trajectory.

The impact on margins has been immediate. EBITDA, which hovered between 12% and 13% in recent years, has temporarily dipped to around 11%, according to internal estimates. Yet Darji remains unfazed. “The percentage may dip, but the value of profit will go up,” he says. “We are talking about a significant expansion in turnover, that will put us in the top echelons of packaging converters in India. The pie is bigger, so even the same slice is worth more.”

Bhavik Shukla, who oversees finance at Astron, agrees. “We anticipate a recovery in margin percentages by year three or four,” he says. “For now, the focus is on absorbing the new capacity and optimising utilisation.” The company’s internal forecasts suggest EBITDA margins should return to the 14% to 15% range once the Pune plant hits steady state and the labelstock unit reaches peak output.
 
One reason Astron can absorb this dip is its deliberate approach to Capex timing. The bulk of the investments were front-loaded in FY24 and early FY25. This ensures that the infrastructure is in place before the revenue from these businesses fully materialises. The strategy also spreads the risk. With multiple units maturing at different times, the cash flows are staggered rather than concentrated.

Darji points out another dimension. “Most people look at return on investment in terms of plant output. We look at it in terms of customer control.” For Astron, proximity to clients, better service levels, and faster delivery often matter more than marginal gains in gross profit. The Pune plant, for instance, was built as much for cost reduction as for relationship strengthening.

Some gains are already visible. Freight cost per box for fresh produce packaging has fallen to 25%. This has not only improved competitiveness but also allowed Astron to expand its share of wallet with key customers. “In some cases, clients who once split volumes 60:40 between Astron and another supplier are now consolidating with Astron for both routine and emergency orders,” informs Darji.

The company is also cautious about overstretching. With six or seven machines already on order or installed this year, Darji insists there are no major Capex plans in the pipeline. “The investment cycle is complete. Now the pressure is on us to execute.”

Liquidity has not been a concern. Astron’s financial planning is structured to avoid heavy dependence on short-term debt. Vendor negotiations, staggered payment cycles, and export incentives help maintain cash discipline. There is also confidence in the demand curve. With double-digit growth in fresh produce exports and sustained momentum in self-adhesive labels, the company’s core segments remain resilient.

Long-term, Astron sees opportunity in high-efficiency production. Reduced waste, better inventory management and inline converting are expected to drive operating efficiencies. The company is also considering renewable energy integration at its plants to reduce power costs and improve ESG compliance.

Darji frames the financial strategy with simplicity. “We are not in the business of showing big numbers. We are in the business of building something that lasts. The numbers will follow.”
 
Packing for the long haul
As Astron Packaging consolidates its footprint across Gujarat, Maharashtra and the UAE, the question naturally arises: where next? The answer, according to Darji, lies in calculated growth, not geographic conquest. The company is watching the southern Indian market closely, especially cities like Chennai and Bengaluru, but no immediate moves are planned. “We do not expand for the sake of scale,” Darji says. “We expand where we see a gap we can fill.”

Meanwhile, the company is focusing on integrating its existing plants into a cohesive operational ecosystem. Pune and Ahmedabad are now linked by process, personnel and planning. New teams at Pune have been trained in Ahmedabad, and key equipment vendors are common to both locations. “Standardisation is our insurance,” Darji says. “If one line goes down, we know exactly how to back it up.”

Digital visibility is another area of emphasis. Astron is investing in plant-level dashboards that track real-time efficiency, downtime, and material consumption. These data systems are not just about accountability. They enable predictive maintenance, sharper inventory planning, and better pricing decisions in a volatile raw material market.

In Dubai, the company continues to invest in its label converting business. While the region’s corrugation landscape remains saturated and fragmented, there is still strong demand for quality label conversion, especially with fast-moving consumer goods. Astron is not planning any new labelstock or corrugation units in the Gulf for now, but is adding flexo lines to support customised regional orders.

Astron’s future also leans on export. The labelstock division is being positioned as an alternative to imported products from Europe and Asia, while mono cartons from Pune are already headed to Portugal. The company is actively exploring opportunities in other European markets and is evaluating certification pathways to meet compliance norms.

Sustainability is another axis of growth. Darji sees the industry shifting toward circular models, with virgin fibre, waste recovery, and low-impact adhesives gaining importance. Astron is developing internal R&D capabilities to design packaging formats that balance performance with recyclability. Initial trials in Ahmedabad have shown promise, and the Pune unit is equipped to run pilots in this space.

Above all, Astron’s next phase will be defined not just by plants or products but by philosophy. The company is building for longevity, not valuation. In an industry often driven by short-term targets and quick returns, this stance is quietly radical.

“Scale without control is just noise,” Darji reflects. “We are building a business that our customers can rely on, and our people can grow with. Everything else is secondary.”