New Printing Direction: Online Printing Growth

The market drivers that drive the development of the printing equipment industry tend to change over time, such as market competition and customer diversity. In different areas of the printing equipment industry, the potential for growth and profitability also varies. In the past few years, the application of digital computer-to-plate technology has surpassed traditional analog technologies. This trend will continue as more small and medium-sized printing companies implement digital prepress technology.

On the other hand, the high demand for print and the ever-increasing production capacity of fast print shops will push the print media industry to invest more. Including corrugated cardboard and solid packaging printing, flexible packaging, carton printing, label printing, they together constitute the largest global terminal printing market share. In addition to packaging, magazines, newspapers, catalogues, books, brochures and pamphlets, direct mail, inserts, business forms, and office printing together occupy the other market share of terminal printing.

In the past 10 years, digital printing has successfully grabbed most of the market share from traditional sheetfed printing. Even during the financial crisis, the trend of digital printing continues.

From 2008 to 2009, it is undoubtedly the most difficult period in the history of the global printing industry. Both print service providers and printing equipment suppliers have faced unprecedented challenges. During this period, printing equipment sales experienced a 7%-8% decline, and many companies implemented a series of plans to ensure that they survived the worst recession in the history of the printing industry. While online printing and other digital printing methods have grown, this trend has also deepened the already existing crisis in the printing industry. Many large-scale equipment manufacturers have closed down one after another, and some smaller companies have either cooperated with other companies or have been acquired by large companies in the industry. Sheetfed offset presses, commercial web presses and newspapers have all come to the lowest point in many major revenue indicators.

However, with the remarkable improvement in the global economy, the global printing industry also recovered in the first half of 2010. Demand for sheetfed and commercial rotary presses has also gradually increased and it is expected that they will gradually return to the previous development speed.

At present, Europe is the largest regional market for printing equipment and services. The United States and the Asia Pacific region are other major markets. Market demand in the Asia Pacific region has been rapidly expanding driven by markets such as Australia, China, India, Singapore and Thailand, and it is expected that by 2015 it will maintain the fastest overall compound growth. Among them, sheetfed printing equipment will maintain the fastest compound growth rate from 2007 to 2015.