Looking at the development of the printing industry from Drupa Exhibition

The printing industry is experiencing an unprecedented boom, and the printing industry has a better future than ever before.

When Drupa2004 was held in Dusseldorf on May 6th this year, publishing experts and printing entrepreneurs from all over the world gathered here, and they saw an almost incredible variety of color printing systems here. Prepress production, color printing, and post-press processing are all integrated solutions that show how modern printing can be done simply, quickly and with high quality. At Drupa2004, the most intense feeling of visitors is that the printing industry is experiencing an unprecedented boom and the printing industry has a better future than ever before.

Need to print in the future

A variety of printing products can meet the basic needs of people's lives. The following perspective, although sounding old, is very important:

The first is that printed matter can express and transmit information at any time and any place;

The second is that printed materials do not require electricity or energy sources.

Of course, there are tasks and solutions that use computers, networks, and electronics more effectively than print. However, this should not be a threat to the printing industry. In contrast, IT technology forms the basis of modern printing industry solutions.

Printing as a complex information system is still very attractive. Although market needs and priorities have changed, books are still indispensable for culture, science, work and leisure. Commodity packaging is elevating its value and importance, and it has become more attractive from past "dumb salesmen" and can "transmit" more information. The value of packaging can be optimized through post-processing, diversification, personalization, and mass customization. Digital printing is rapidly developing on a large scale, but it is mainly used in short-run, personalized markets. Of course, just as everything is changing all the time, the total market for digital printing also shows an upward trend.

The exciting thing at the Drupa 2004 print media exhibition is that the printing industry will recreate, that is to say, there will be more printing needs than ever before.

We do not need to speculate on who is creating the market demand. We better treat the whole situation as a tennis game; tennis is the development of things, people serve these changes (sometimes technology, sometimes the market), The pace and direction of development can change. Therefore, short-term technological innovation is not a bad thing, but it is actually a turning point, and it makes the market full of vitality and vitality.

The technology of printing media production in 2004 "only" one focus: the optimization and automation of the production process. This "unique" focus actually represents a variety of practical technologies. Behind it is epoch-making technological advancement. Especially in the broad workflow and information management system market, these technologies will achieve remarkable performance while achieving progress. . In the field of prepress, printing, and postpress equipment, electronic control devices control the operation of equipment and the quality of products. People can no longer rely on manual control of highly sophisticated equipment. In short: people are responsible for thinking about what to do, and then controlled by the computer to complete. If users want to do their job cost-effectively and continuously, they must network internal production processes and applications.

The printing industry is a high-tech industry

The combination of measurement and testing in modern printing, process control and optimization, printing of “office software” and printing technology is a central issue for Drupa 2004 in Düsseldorf. Many things that are not noticeable are very important. The super-fast servo motor on a large press looks very small and very small, but it is a very big improvement; it is exquisite and able to work with users. " "Thinking" software can be installed on a regular computer...

We must learn to accept these new things and re-evaluate our past prejudices and habits. The “things behind things” is a “treasure house of knowledge” that Drupa 2004 exhibitors need to pay attention to.

Electronic products and printed products are not competitors. Instead, they are symbiotic. Modern printing is a high-tech application. Almost no other industry has been able to achieve successful development for centuries. It can now be computerized like the printing industry. In this case, the "digital technology drive" is just one aspect, and the optimization of the printing production process (digital workflow) will form a more attractive focus of Drupa2004. Another noteworthy point is the interconnection of print production companies with customers, equipment suppliers, and service providers. This kind of interconnection at the level of instant information exchange and the change of organizational structure and administrative structure toward the network are rapidly moving forward. development of.

The Importance of Print and Postpress

Print is more dynamic than any previous training. All kinds of information and suggestions can only be two basic points when it comes to print; post-press processing has the potential to realize people's various ideas.

The chapter that combines printed and electronic products has just been uncovered. Here are a few examples:

(1) Electronic chips are embedded in prints so that they can be used for identification or positioning;

(2) Paper can communicate with computers;

(3) Image processing is no longer limited to just copying a beautiful image. Various codes can be embedded in the image, and then used for organization and recognition, so that a brand-new application field can be formed.

The printing company is no longer just a pure product production distribution center. Now it has more functions. People can connect it to any place through the Internet. The connection between the office field and the printing industry has actually been established, but it is not. Get enough use; the text and image database was established early on as a standard in the field of plastic printing.

All of this belongs to the potential of the printing industry in the future. If we can accept and utilize various changes, we can conclude that the printing industry has a bright future. Because adapting to change is survival, change means continuous existence, and re-creation is necessary.

Therefore, the questions for people visiting Drupa 2004 should not be "What can these changes do for me?" Instead, "How can I use these changes to promote my development?" Similarly, "Is these technological innovations useful to me? "" is also a wrong question. "How can I use this innovation to maximize my profits? How to ensure my market share or how to open up new markets?" is the way entrepreneurs see the problem. Various technology demonstrations, whether hardware, software, organizational structure products, or knowledge products represent an opportunity. With their diversity, they can enable companies, entrepreneurs, and investment decision makers to make their own decisions. Blindly following a popular technology is no longer a good choice. It is right to make a unique choice that suits you.