By Erwin Busselot, Director Business Innovation & Solutions, Ricoh Graphic Communications, Ricoh Europe
Ricoh Europe, London, October 18 2024 – 2024 has been a standout year for printing exhibitions. drupa towered over everything after eight long years but 2024 also saw other major events such as Printing United Expo in Las Vegas, Viscom Italia, The Print Show in Great Britain, and Sign, Print & Pack in Denmark. Each provided insights into the future of print through key topics, innovative technologies, and the trends driving change.
But what do these themes say about the evolving print landscape? How can Print Service Providers (PSPs) use these insights to align their future goals?
Across the board there were three areas of interest that were high on everyone’s agenda.
1 Sustainability driving decision making – Sustainability emerged as a central theme. At drupa 2024, sustainability, the circular economy, and resource efficiency were all explored in depth. Similarly, Printing United Expo saw sustainability as one of the most discussed topics, and Viscom Italia highlighted its importance in its theme, “Creativity, Innovation, Sustainability.”
NAPCO Research on top trends reported that 69% of North American print buyers say sustainability is a key factor in their organisation’s print buying decision making. 91% said printed materials produced by sustainable methods will be more important in the future and 62% said green/environmentally sustainable production processes are an important consideration when selecting their provider.
2 Diversification into new markets and applications – The research also found that 68% of respondents had diversified beyond their primary market segments. This is a trend also reported by FESPA’s 2023 Print Census, conducted in partnership with InfoTrends, a division of Keypoint Intelligence. It found that 55% of participants were looking to enter new markets and expand service and application offerings. These goals were driving plans to invest in large format systems that can streamline production and provide greater application flexibility. The top three technologies were UV curable inkjet flatbed (27%), eco-solvent inkjet large format (18%), and CNC finishing (17%).
3 Greater focus on automation – Many conversations at Drupa considered how end to end workflow automation could play an integral role in streamlining processes across the production environment, transforming how work is managed. In fact, drupa’s Print Horizons Report found that this was a priority for 38% of printers. The report also found 29% of the global respondents had no automation (including automated prepress colour managed workflow, automated press and post-press workflow and end to end JDF workflow). 46% had no prepress automation; 65% had no press and post-press automation and 87% had no end to end JDF workflow. Regional variations showed 46% of Asian printers had no automation compared to 24% of European printers who had none.
These events, plus those to come next year such as Hunkeler Innovationdays, provide a window into the future of the print industry. A future where PSPs adopting these trends early on, investing in the right technologies, and building a sustainable, data driven business model will thrive in this fast evolving landscape. Talk to Ricoh experts to determine how you can make the right choices now to safeguard your future success.