Matbaa & Teknik Aralık 2018

The 2018 Print Applications
Mix Points to Infinite Possibilities
One of the unquestionable trends in the speciality
print sector in the last decade has been applications
diversification. Speciality print service providers
(PSPs) have embraced the potential of digital printing
technology in combination with analogue processes
to print an ever-increasing range of products. This
evolution has been accelerated by developments in
media and inks, making it possible to produce an array
of increasingly customised products that go far beyond
the conventional signage and graphics portfolio that
historically characterised the FESPA community.
The latest FESPA Print Census results published earlier
in 2018 vividly highlight the development of the wide
format product mix, and the gradual decline of certain
more traditional visual communications products
such as billboards and simple posters in favour of
contemporary preferences (though they remain resilient
among the top four applications).
Inevitably in a community that brings together so
many different types of business, the picture varies
across the landscape of wide format PSPs. Commercial
printers and creative businesses using digital wide
format technology still name posters as their most
popular product, reflecting their enduring potential
for communication and – increasingly – as an interior
décor application.
In the sign and display product mix, banners are
growing notably in popularity, with more than two
thirds of PSPs regularly producing these, and half of all
printers who completed the Census seeing continued
growth potential from banners. With the proliferation
of high-performance banner media and their suitability
for so many indoor and outdoor settings, from retail
and hospitality environments to events, that trend is
likely to continue. It’s also clear that PSPs are applying
their skills and expertise in promotional applications
to develop new and creative executions using banner
media, from branded barriers to tents and gazebos.
POS/POP graphics are ‘bread and butter’ applications
for many PSPs, but this area is also showing sustained
growth for 59% of businesses, no doubt reflecting the
pressures on retail brand owners to increase the visual
appeal of physical stores to combat the trend to online
shopping, and the need to use all possible tactics to
push consumers towards higher margin purchases.
Continuous developments in flatbed print-and-cut
workflows are making it easier than ever for PSPs
to offer creative printed POS solutions working with
media ranging from corrugated board to material
with an even longer lifespan such as MDF, wood and
even glass, to the point where retail displays become
more permanent decorative installations. Of course,
we at FESPA have channelled this growing interest
in digital printing on corrugated board with the
well-received 2018 launch of our Digital Corrugated
Experience event feature.
Self-adhesive applications also feature heavily in the
contemporary applications mix. More than half of
all the respondents to the FESPA 2018 Census told us
they are producing more self-adhesive applications,
including wraps, vehicle graphics and decals, which
may explain the continued enthusiasm for our
global FESPA Wrap Masters competition.
Undoubtedly the sustained development of digitally
printable self-adhesive media and continuous
innovation in adhesives to make application and
removal easier both have a role to play in this,
extending the potential of these materials beyond
more traditional signage and vehicle applications,
to decorative and functional floor and window
graphics, as well as surface décor.
Another clear growth trend in the 2018 Census
findings is the sustained rise of printed décor
applications, as reflected in the FESPA Printeriors
showcase and in the visible presence of interior décor
applications across the majority of FESPA exhibitor
stands today. Three out of four FESPA Print Census
2018 respondents indicated wallpaper and interior
décor as a growth area for their business.
I won’t do more than touch on the growth of textile
printing here, as it is such a significant area of
development and investment that we specifically
expanded the scope of the 2018 Census to dive deeper
into this topic, and it will merit its own blog!
From my perspective, the optimism that was so
apparent in the 2018 Census findings is a consequence,
not only of the financial stability and growth that PSPs
are now enjoying as a result their digital investment
strategies, but of PSPs’ irrepressible determination
to move with the times and devise new product
and service offerings that reflect the dynamic retail
marketing and visual communications landscape.
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ARALIK | DECEMBER | 2018