Sathis Abeywickrama Recognized as “Flexo Avenger” at Flexo Summit Asia 2026

Sathis Abeywickrama, Managing Director of Flexiprint (Pvt) Ltd, was recognized as a “Flexo Avenger” at the prestigious Flexo Summit Asia 2026 held in Bengaluru, India, recently.

The “Flexo Avenger” is a special recognition conferred on individuals who have made a significant impact on the development of Flexographic printing.

He was featured and recognized at the Summit’s “Flexo Avengers: Converters who Changed the Game” session alongside other leading personalities from the region.

“While being recognized as a Flexo Avenger is indeed an honor and prestige, it is also an acknowledgement and recognition of our continued commitment, innovation, and customer focus over a long but successful journey of over four decades.

This journey has been marked by significant milestones and goes back to the time when specialized packaging required by our export industry, including tea bag tags and tags, were sourced from overseas,” said Sathis Abeywickrama, Managing Director of Flexiprint (Pvt) Ltd.

Having entered the printing industry in 1978 and established PrintUSA in 1989, Sathis Abeywickrama founded Flexiprint in 1994 to fulfill the requirement for Sri Lanka’s important and booming tea export industry in terms of supplying tea bag tags, tea envelopes, tagged pyramid mesh tea bags and specialty labels.

The journey of fulfillment was not an easy one, as he identified that traditional flexoprinting was using solvent and dye-based inks in tea tag production.

As the tags and packaging sit close to the food product itself, leading to food safety concerns, he explored the availability of a safer and environmentally friendly option.

“This thinking led Flexiprint towards using water-based inks, making us one of the pioneers in Asia to adopt the technology for tea packaging.

Food safety, quality and environmental responsibility subsequently became central to the company's approach,” added Sathis Abeywickrama.

Flexiprint developed into a manufacturer of tea bag tags, tea envelopes, tagged pyramid mesh tea bags and specialty labels, supplying customers across Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and North America, signifying an important opportunity for the Sri Lankan manufacturing industry and led Flexiprint to be a pioneering manufacturer of tea bag tags, tea envelopes, tagged pyramid mesh tea bags and specialty labels.

The country has long possessed strengths in sectors such as tea, apparel and agriculture.

The next level of value creation, however, lies in developing the specialized technologies, components and services that support those industries.

The story of Flexiprint illustrates how an apparent dependence on imports can become an opportunity for domestic industrial capability and export growth.

Photo caption - Sathis Abeywickrama, Managing Director of Flexiprint (Pvt) Ltd. (On Right).