Wide-format graphics market matures, but could face change

by all | 9 July 2014 8:30 am

[1]The digital wide-format printing sector has grown rapidly, with a proliferation of manufacturers reaching a high level of business maturity in less than 20 years. Today, however, consolidation is shrinking their numbers, new startups are very rare and digital signage could pose a threat.

Major companies with diverse interests in the printing industry, such as HP and Agfa, have already entered the wide-format graphics market. Others have established themselves primarily in the wide-format segment, including Inca Digital and Mimaki.

Screenprinting, which for many years was the predominant technology for display graphics, continues to lose ground. The effects of the 2008 economic downturn were most marked in the screenprinting market, as shops stopped investing in older equipment.

While screenprinting is now confined to a role as ‘legacy’ technology, however, Smithers Pira—a print-industry testing, consulting and information services business—argues it will retain an important position for several decades yet, as it can still lay down very heavy ink coverage more cheaply than digital inkjet printers. The gradual decline will continue, the company predicts, but with a long tail.

Worldwide, Smithers Pira forecasts screenprinting’s share of wide-format machinery will fall from its previously recorded 30 per cent in 2011 to 22 per cent by 2017. The replacement of screenprinters has been most significant in regions with environmental sustainability initiatives, where companies are quicker to adopt ultraviolet-curing (UV-curing) and durable aqueous ‘latex’ inkjet printers (example pictured).

Other factors influencing the shift to digital printing include reduced setup times, more cost-effective short-run workflows, rapid response time and consistent output for repeat orders. In addition, wide-format digital printing has seen reliability and productivity increase and costs decrease. Perhaps most importantly, a growing number of applications have become feasible for digital printers to output.

Digital signage, meanwhile, has long been considered a potential threat to printing, but without taking away significant market share. The emergence of flexible screens, however, may be better-suited to many signage applications. Roll-to-roll manufacturing could conceivably create low-weight digital displays that are cost-competitive with wide-format printed graphics.

Source URL: https://www.signmedia.ca/wide-format-graphics-market-matures-but-could-face-change/

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