With continual improvements in digital technologies, digital printing is becoming more and more popular. In fact, within the next three years, it is expected that changes in economics, electronic replacement, and shorter runs will drive traditional offset processes to digital print even further.
According to InfoTrends, the digital color page impressions segment is expected to show a 14.2% compound annual growth rate between 2012 and 2017. The expected increase in overall print volume growth for the same range of years is only 1.2%. That’s a lot of digital printing!
So where will we see these increases?
In the book market, we see the largest gains with an expected increase of over 40 billion pages during a five-year span.
Direct mail, magazines, catalogs and brochures are expected to make substantial gains in digital production.
Traditional bills and statements are predicted to decline in favor of “enhanced trans promotional statements,” which are simply bills that feature offers and promotions (in color) in addition to the billing information. The idea is that if companies are spending the money to print and mail statements or bills, they should take advantage of the “ad space” and advertise while they’re at it.
Another reason for the increase? Digital is not just for short runs anymore. Check out the bar graph above to see how digital is taking over.
FORMost has the resources and technologies available to help you embrace these changes and to find the most efficient press for your next print job. Call us at 301-424-4242 for an estimate.
Source: Infotrends, U.S. Digital Production Printing Application Forecast, 2012–2017