Printing Trade Shows Highlight Growth Opportunities

By Ivars Sarkans

Manufacturers of conventional forms have an urgent need to supplement their core business with new products that provide access to growing segments of the printing industry. What makes such diversification difficult is general lack of product development resources in today’s forms industry. Product line expansion is particularly challenging for trade manufacturers who have limited contact with end users and must rely on market intelligence filtered through distributors. Information on market trends available within the confines of the forms industry can be misleading because many of the technologies that affect demand for forms and related products originate in computer software and information processing specialties not readily "visible" to forms manufacturers.

Much of the research on new product and production process concepts in the printing industry is now performed by suppliers of equipment and manufacturing systems. The results of this research is broadly available to trade show visitors and manufacturers. Exhibits at shows like Graph Expo, Xplor, On Demand and others also provide an excellent view of trends that will affect demand for forms and other types of printing in the future. New equipment introductions by major suppliers are usually based on extensive research of markets, trends and technologies within and outside the printing industry. This review of recent trade show highlights is the second part of a BPTR article covering Graph Expo 2003. The first part on new technology at Graph Exp 2003 was published in October.

High Growth Specialties
Graph Expo 2003 had two special sections of the show floor dedicated to relatively new high-growth specialties within the printing industry. One of these was large format digital color printing of signs, posters, banners and other graphic displays, sometimes called "Big Color." The other high growth specialty was fulfillment, which has been the main function of many mailing houses and specialized fulfillment operations. Fulfillment itself is not a new specialty, but it is gaining widespread and rapid acceptance as a new value-added service provided by printed product suppliers. In effect, an increasing number of printing firms are taking over fulfillment tasks that their customers outsourced to providers outside the printing industry. Printed product manufacturers with successful in-house fulfillment programs consistently report that one of the benefits has been increased sales of printing under long term contracts or print management programs. Closely related to fulfillment of printed materials is another high growth niche, on-demand printing, that was targeted by many equipment exhibits at Graph Expo 2003.

From the perspective of a forms manufacturer visiting Graph Expo 2003, the most important aspect of the two specialty sections should not have been the actual equipment displays, but the overall indication of what is required to enter and successfully participate in these printing growth segments. Some of the exhibits provided a wealth of information on potential customers, marketing and sales techniques, support system requirements, guidance for matching equipment to customer requirements and total cost of developing competitive capabilities. Conversations with exhibitors, process demonstrations and available literature could provide interested visitors with information equivalent to a lengthy and costly market research project.

Big Color
In the "Big Color" segment, it was clear that the cost of entry can be relatively low. Most of the large-format printing devices on display used ink jet imaging technology. Equipment choices included ink jets designed for water-base or more permanent types of inks, some with up to six or eight color capability. Entry level 48" wide ink jet printers are available for less than $25,000. Prices tend to rise with greater machine width, higher speeds, and special capabilities such as flat-bed printing of corrugated board and other rigid materials.

Typical basic "Big Color" equipment configuration also includes a film laminator matched to the width of the printing device, an image preparation workstation and software specifically for large-format image assembly, editing and color correction. Some large-format ink jet printers are sold complete with a RIP while buyers of other models can purchase the RIP as a separate item from a recommended list of models and suppliers. Other components of a "Big Color" startup configuration may be a special cutter for large sheets, print mounting equipment, large work tables and print storage cabinets. Entry level investment for "Big Color" capabilities could be under $100,000.

In "Big Color", equipment to start production is the easy part. As was evident from Graph Expo 2003 exhibits, this is a very specialized market niche that is not as easy to access as typical commercial printing. Producers must form alliances with advertising agencies, designers and promotional program specialists or find direct ways of reaching the advertising, marketing and sales promotion managers in targeted corporations. Demand for "Big Color" printing is particularly strong among many retailing businesses that typically order a steady stream of displays, signs and banners. Equipment suppliers at Graph Expo indicated that users of their large-format production machines can be very profitable if they can tap the ongoing advertising programs of retailers or other applications that generate a predictable flow of orders from originators who follow consistent file preparation practices. Wide format digital color printer suppliers generally provide much less business planning, marketing and market research assistance to buyers of their equipment than the better-known suppliers of digital color presses for commercial printing.

A small number of forms distributors sell "Big Color" digital printing, but that may not be enough to support diversification into this specialty by any one forms trade manufacturer. The opportunity is real – even the most conservative projections for wide format equipment sales by Graph Expo 2003 exhibitors indicate that "Big Color" is one of the highest growth segments of the printing industry. Training more distributors in sales of large format printing could expand market access for trade manufacturers, but other means of reaching this high growth market niche will probably be more successful than dependence on traditional forms industry distributors.

Fulfillment
In recent surveys of commercial printers, 70% of participants indicated that they have or plan to add fulfillment and mailing operations. The growing importance of fulfillment and mailing as value added services offered by printed product suppliers was clearly evident in the Graph Expo section dedicated to these specialties. This parallels the strong presence of printed product assembly, preparation and mailing equipment suppliers at Xplor and previous Graph Expo shows. Close to half of all printed products are distributed through the post office, and many printers have targeted mailing services as a growth opportunity. Fulfillment of orders for printed items is another service opportunity that more printers want to bring in-house and the capability to fulfill orders for printed items can easily be extended to many other products.

The fulfillment section of Graph Expo 2003 had the typical array of document and kit assembly, folding, merging and envelope inserting equipment. Ga-Vehren Engineering, Vijuk and several other suppliers showed equipment for forming mailers around products at high speeds or inserting products into mailers. The show had a variety of gathering and binding equipment used in literature fulfillment operations. Streamfeeder and several other firms demonstrated innovative wrapping machinery. Exhibits included software for inventory management, control of fulfillment operations and individual document or product tracking from personalization to mailing. Particularly significant as a trend indicator was the addition of fulfillment modules to printing plant management software available from Print Café and other suppliers.

Is fulfillment a major diversification opportunity for forms trade manufacturers? Graph Expo definitely signaled that demand for fulfillment services exists and is growing. Fulfillment of many products has similarities to traditional forms management programs. A sizeable number of forms distributors and direct-selling manufacturers today sell document and other printed product fulfillment programs and are extending their services to advertising specialties and a growing range of other items. A few trade manufacturers have formed alliances with distributors to sell and manage fulfillment programs but most have not been able to take advantage of this diversification opportunity.

Graph Expo and Xplor exhibits have consistently shown that the barrier to adding fulfillment services is not so much acquisition of equipment as the complexity of the process itself, the need for extensive and reliable controls, flexibility to accommodate special customer requirements and intolerance of errors. Kit assembly, frequently part of fulfillment services, adds more complexity and process control difficulty. Online ordering and customer-specific product catalogs have become a common fulfillment program requirement. Investment in equipment and software for a credible and competitive fulfillment operation can easily exceed a million dollars, but an even greater barrier to entry is the requirement for high skills in information processing, inventory management and marketing. If fulfillment involves use of the post office, special skills are needed for mail preparation. Forms trade manufacturers face the additional barrier of competition from their customers. Many distributors have developed their own internal storage and fulfillment capabilities based on their expertise in forms and print management. Some of the latest software versions for managing distributorship operations can support at least printed product storage and fulfillment.

The barrier to entry should not discourage forms trade manufacturers from seriously considering fulfillment as a business growth opportunity. Alliances with distributors will provide an entry path for some manufacturers. Many others, to survive, will have to restructure their businesses to depend more on sales of commercial printing, direct mail, labels or other printing specialties. This restructuring will also force trade manufacturers to look at other distribution options, which may include greater access to end users of printed products and along with that easier entry into becoming a supplier of both products and services, including kit preparation, fulfillment and mailing.

On-demand printing
This has been a growth segment within the printing industry since introduction of the Xerox Docutech in 1990 and a sizeable number of forms suppliers now participate in this specialty. Graph Expo 2003 exhibits suggest strong continued growth for on-demand printing, which justifies development and introduction of new equipment. In the past, on-demand printing has been frequently defined as digital printing, but at Graph Expo 2003, some of the highly automated small offset presses for very short runs make that definition appear too limited. A more appropriate definition that reflects what is actually produced on demand may be short runs completed within 24 hours from receipt of request or order. Equipment suppliers at Graph Expo 2003 indicated that many of their on-demand printing customers operate both digital and small quick-setup offset presses.

The following were some of the on-demand printing equipment highlights at Graph Expo 2003. Most of the digital printers/presses in this group can be equipped with multiple feeders, sheet interposers and in-line finishing or binding units. A run can be one complete manual, book or digitally collated set of documents. The two offset presses in this list are designed for very short run (200-5000 impressions) fixed-image process color printing.

On-demand printing is closely linked to printed document fulfillment and has replaced a large number of pick-and-pack facilities. Many distributors and direct-selling manufacturers have taken advantage of new on-demand printing technology to update and expand their forms and print management programs. Advances in on-demand printing equipment and support systems demonstrated at recent shows by Cannon, Delphax, Heidelberg, Nipson, Oce, Xeikon, Xerox and others should continue to present new printed product supply and document services opportunities to both distributors and trade manufacturers.

Ivars Sarkans is president of consulting firm Sarkans & Associates of Los Angeles, California and a long time contributor to DMIA publications. He can be reached by telephone at (323) 221-7791 or by e-mail at isarkans@sarkans.com. His Internet web page address is www.sarkans.com.

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