Recent Report Calls Large Format a "Bright Spot"
According to a recent report by TrendWatch Graphic Arts, large-format printers are one of the bright spots in the graphic arts industries, showing consistent and steady growth as a planned investment. The report presents a detailed summary of trends affecting the graphic arts industries in the last seven years, a time of tremendous technological evolution and change in the marketplace. The report compares, contrasts and charts data to illustrate key market trends in the graphic arts, and how they've developed.
Highlights of the report also include:
Prepress-related processes are declining as opportunities, thus these services have become commodities, causing printers and service bureaus to now look elsewhere and create new profit centers and competitive differentiators.
Concern about "increasing plant productivity" is on the decline, thus suppliers trying to sell equipment on the basis of incremental productivity improvements need to change their message;
Concern about "keeping up with technological change" is also on the decline, so shops no longer see the need to acquire the latest and the greatest in order to be competitive;
Prepress-related processes like preflighting, working with PC files, and PDF workflow are sharply declining.
"Increasing sales personnel" is decreasing as a sales opportunity at the same time that "working with print brokers" and "partnering with other graphic arts firms" is on the rise. When it comes to increasing sales, printers are starting to adopt the "no overhead" option.
For more information visit: www.trendwatchgraphicarts.com
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