A revolution in the printing industry – a closer look at new business models

Book printing provides an ideal example to illustrate how industrial transformation processes unfold. Printed books still exist. But their production process has changed completely. And it will continue to do so. Full digitalisation will be the primary driving force behind this. Very soon, the book printing sector – a key segment of the printing industry – will also be gathering at drupa to exchange ideas and develop a vision for how to get the most out of printing. 

drupa 2024 is just around the corner. Many people are wondering why they should visit this trade fair again after eight years. After all, we did manage to survive without drupa 2020. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the supply industry showcased its technologies via online presentations. And following several open days, print service providers continued to invest in their solutions – despite market challenges such as paper shortages and the energy crisis, amongst others. On the other hand, developing new ideas and visions, sharing professional experiences and networking are now more important than ever. The printing market remains in flux, and the structural changes are far-reaching. In short: a visit to drupa is a must.

One of the most significant changes in recent years concerns the demand for books. According to various statistics, sales figures are rising in both Europe and the US. However, traditional bookshops and supermarkets are losing market share because customers are increasingly shopping online and favouring direct sales channels. Publishers now generate more than 45 per cent of their total turnover through these channels. The influence of ‘BookTok’ (a section of the TikTok community focused on books and literature) has propelled individual titles from relative obscurity onto the bestseller lists. Publishing houses have no choice but to rethink their marketing strategies – which applies in particular to niche literature. In order to manage demand effectively in this area, forecasts that are as accurate as possible are required. Publishers must meet market demand on time, whilst at the same time avoiding printing print runs that are too large and significantly exceed demand.

Sustainability is now one of the publishing industry’s top priorities. Technological innovations and collaboration with local printers can reduce the risk of printing excessively large print runs and retailers returning too many unsold copies. The same applies when planned print runs are aligned with the number of pre-orders. However, smaller publishers often lack the necessary technology. This can lead to supply bottlenecks for them. Furthermore, publishing houses are trying to reduce their paper consumption. For example, by making book reviews and bibliographies available online (accessible via QR codes). Or they optimise translations to reduce the character count and thus the page count of books. Another option is to use adapted formats. Here, even small changes – such as slightly smaller pages – can significantly reduce paper consumption. Finally, more efficient distribution processes and optimised transport also contribute to sustainability. All of this requires the effective integration of the systems used by retailers, publishers, distributors and printers.

Digital printing has now firmly established itself in book production. Inkjet technology is highly productive and reliable – typically with 90 per cent uptime. The threshold at which analogue printing becomes cheaper than digital printing is around 6,000 copies for black-and-white books and around 3,000 copies for colour books. As far as quality is concerned, many inkjet solutions can print on both coated and uncoated paper, delivering results comparable to those of offset printing. However, some providers of analogue printing processes, such as Timpson, have withdrawn from the market – the last Timpson printing presses were built in 2006. In short: in book printing, digital production will be the better choice in the near future.

As a result, some book printers are striving to develop new offerings and services that provide added value. The focus is on on-demand production (print runs tailored to demand) of individual books, smaller framework agreements covering everything from ordering to dispatch, and digital integration with publishing houses and the retail sector. These companies are investing in both digital technology and software-based platforms. They are convinced that comprehensive automation is the key to competitiveness and profitability.

But how should print shops get their digitalisation off the ground? There are numerous solutions available on the market across all price ranges – from budget to high-end options. Whilst many of them are excellently suited to handling specific processes (such as imposition, order management, archiving or order tracking), However, they often require significant investment in integration and customisation. Manufacturers of digital printing systems offer a number of solutions to enhance the performance of their machines. Nevertheless, the search for reliable workflows to enable end-to-end automation of the entire book printing process remains a challenge.

In practice, automation must cover a comprehensive range of functions – from sales to administration, from production to logistics, and from data security to quality management. Therefore, an all-in-one software solution for managing book printing should offer the following functions:

• Automated account and order management: Sales teams should no longer have to rely on emails and phone calls. If orders come in via web portals and quotations are also generated through these, the sales team saves time and can deliver customer services more quickly.
• Automated transfer of order data, ready for archiving and printing.
• Automated print data verification during pre-press: If faulty files are uploaded, the system should automatically issue a warning so that customers can rectify the errors themselves.
• Automated order management and monitoring, from the production of individual books right through to large print runs: the software should collect the orders and process them in batches according to paper types, print quality and finishing requirements. At the same time, worklists should seamlessly track the printed rolls through the production process. This ensures not only flexibility but also complete control over production – from individual books right through to larger print runs.
• Automated monitoring of orders and deliveries: Once production is complete, orders should be easy to track so that book printers can organise dispatch and publishing houses can monitor all processes.

Furthermore, high-performance software solutions must be compatible with various printing presses and post-press systems, whilst remaining independent of them.

However, investment in digital technologies requires extensive IT expertise and the establishment of a high-performing in-house IT department. Few print service providers have such capabilities. Typically, these companies have evolved from the transactional printing business. Yet, despite falling turnover, they often struggle to operate beyond their usual boundaries. In addition, many book printers have switched to digital printing. However, this has been within a limited scope: they focus entirely on reducing their costs – rather than offering their customers added value. And they are primarily using digital technology to replace analogue printing technology.

Other print service providers, on the other hand, are proactive and keen to innovate. Companies such as Rotomail in Italy have succeeded in establishing application-oriented solutions in the market earlier than their competitors. Essentially, they take existing ideas and turn them into reality using solutions they have developed themselves. One example is Bronte. Companies like these foster a friendly, open-minded and stimulating environment. They recognise that genuine innovation involves people both within and outside the company. They see partnerships as genuine opportunities.

All visitors to drupa 2024 will arrive at the trade fair with their own agenda. However, for letterpress printers, building relationships and partnerships will be of strategic importance. The digitalisation process will continue to gather pace, with automation playing a significant role. This applies in particular to software solutions that integrate and control systems from different providers.