drupa 2008 – Keys for success in going digital
December 2007
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Going digital should be seen as an opportunity rather than an obligation
By Agustín Torres
Small print runs, personalization, speed... We’ve all heard about the numerous advantages that digital graphics technology offers for small-format printing. The aim of this article is not to tell you what you already know about digital printing, but to outline the present state of affairs with the technology and the market, along with currents trends and the potential success factors, so that you can make up your own mind. But I must emphasize that the final decision to go digital is up to each individual printer, since nobody can tell us what the best machine is or the best way to work. The printer is in the best position to take that decision—and remember the old saying: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Since the appearance of the first machine back in the mid 1980s, sales of digital printing equipment and orders for digital printing have grown exponentially. Moreover, 78 percent of four-color print work is now done in print-runs of fewer than 5,000 pages, which offers a very clear indication of how far personalization has progressed (accounting for 30 percent of all printing work). In overall terms, the world print market now has an annual output of 3,800 billion pages. Of that total figure, digital printing accounts for 230 billion pages (200 billion for black-and-white printing and 30 billion for color printing). So the growth potential for digital printing is huge. As for color digital printing, it is set to grow more than ten-fold. Robert Corbishley, European public relations manager for production systems at Xerox, describes the “tremendous potential for digital printing. In particular, we are finding the strongest points in the market in applications for book publishing, direct mail advertising, promotional/transactional printing and collateral printing on demand. The strong market for personalization and general and instant printing is generating new applications and business opportunities for our clients, as is the market for packaging and photographic products.”
The most note-worthy trends forecasted for the next three years include:
• Print on demand: 12 percent annual growth (retail)
• Lead time: 33 percent of assignments will be ready within 24 hours
• Color pages: 27 percent growth in color-printing digital production
• Brands: Choosing a digital solution
All the major brands naturally defend their own products, seeking to boost their sales just as you do with your clients. The current offerings of digital printing equipment, which was originally intended for producing short-run documents, has evolved to offer highly satisfactory solutions for special applications. Faster printing speeds and compatibility with a wide range of media have brought these technologies into the print-on-demand market, as can clearly be seen in the potential and capacity of present-day small-format digital printers. These established trends are expected to continue in the future.
By Agustín Torres
Small print runs, personalization, speed... We’ve all heard about the numerous advantages that digital graphics technology offers for small-format printing. The aim of this article is not to tell you what you already know about digital printing, but to outline the present state of affairs with the technology and the market, along with currents trends and the potential success factors, so that you can make up your own mind. But I must emphasize that the final decision to go digital is up to each individual printer, since nobody can tell us what the best machine is or the best way to work. The printer is in the best position to take that decision—and remember the old saying: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Since the appearance of the first machine back in the mid 1980s, sales of digital printing equipment and orders for digital printing have grown exponentially. Moreover, 78 percent of four-color print work is now done in print-runs of fewer than 5,000 pages, which offers a very clear indication of how far personalization has progressed (accounting for 30 percent of all printing work). In overall terms, the world print market now has an annual output of 3,800 billion pages. Of that total figure, digital printing accounts for 230 billion pages (200 billion for black-and-white printing and 30 billion for color printing). So the growth potential for digital printing is huge. As for color digital printing, it is set to grow more than ten-fold. Robert Corbishley, European public relations manager for production systems at Xerox, describes the “tremendous potential for digital printing. In particular, we are finding the strongest points in the market in applications for book publishing, direct mail advertising, promotional/transactional printing and collateral printing on demand. The strong market for personalization and general and instant printing is generating new applications and business opportunities for our clients, as is the market for packaging and photographic products.”
The most note-worthy trends forecasted for the next three years include:
• Print on demand: 12 percent annual growth (retail)
• Lead time: 33 percent of assignments will be ready within 24 hours
• Color pages: 27 percent growth in color-printing digital production
• Brands: Choosing a digital solution
All the major brands naturally defend their own products, seeking to boost their sales just as you do with your clients. The current offerings of digital printing equipment, which was originally intended for producing short-run documents, has evolved to offer highly satisfactory solutions for special applications. Faster printing speeds and compatibility with a wide range of media have brought these technologies into the print-on-demand market, as can clearly be seen in the potential and capacity of present-day small-format digital printers. These established trends are expected to continue in the future.
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