How to deal with the challenge of digital printing

How to deal with the challenge of digital printing press for small offset press

in recent years, with the continuous acceleration of the digitalization of the printing industry Digital printing CTP and other new technologies are developing in full swing, and the goal of digitalization has penetrated into every corner of the printing industry Of course, the traditional small offset press market is no exception. Well Facing the increasingly fierce competition in the market, how should the traditional small offset press cope with the challenge of digital printing press? Small offset printing began to develop in China in the mid-1980s In the middle and late 1990s, it entered a stage of rapid development. Small offset printing initially appeared in the printing market as light printing This kind of equipment is characterized by small investment, fast return, low cost, excellent quality and simple operation and maintenance. In the general field of fast short edition commercial printing The demand for live print between 500 ~ 5000 copies is the largest. At present, the traditional offset printing method has obvious advantages in printing quality, printing cost, cost performance and so on. Therefore, some experts predict In the future, the traditional small offset press will still occupy a dominant position in the field of short edition printing

the digital printing machines we discuss are generally divided into several categories: one is the plateless digital printing machine The advantages of this kind of equipment are mainly manifested in the variable data printing, which can realize one piece of printing and personalized printing; the other is the direct plate making digital printing machine on the machine Their advantage is that they can optimize the process flow, which is very suitable for businesses with 300 ~ 5000 prints. There are also digital printing machines using inkjet technology Contrary to the results of the initial article, it is mainly used to print a large number of bills, commercial bills, etc Its advantage lies in its low printing cost. thus it can be seen. The advantages of digital printing are mainly reflected in its fast speed, variable information and layout, simplified process, short cycle and so on

one advantage of digital printing over traditional printing is that it is economical and efficient when the printing volume is about 5000. Nowadays, digital printed matter is roughly divided into books (accounting for about 6%) Catalogues (about 16%), trademarks (about 12%), leaflets (about 6%), brochures (about 16%), political propaganda materials/security printing/identity cards (about 5%), and so on. Almost all printed materials printed in the traditional way can be completed by digital printing at present

now Digital printing technology continues to grow It has become an irreversible mainstream development technology in today's printing industry. A variety of digital printing machines compete to form the main melody of modern printing development. According to the survey data of relevant departments, the installation of digital printing machines will increase by 14% - 19% every year, and the prospect of digital printing is promising. At this time, the traditional small offset press is being hit by different aspects of the digital printing press. On the one hand, the world's major printing equipment manufacturers have increased the research and development of digital printing machines A number of models have been launched, which is undoubtedly a heavy blow to the traditional small offset press market

at present, the most widely used digital technologies are machine-made plate technology and computer direct plate making technology. Heidelberg company is one of the first companies to set foot in the field of digital printing. The machine-made version is the technology first introduced by Heidelberg company. In Heidelberg company 1, create XPS official website and wechat platform; QM and gtolj small offset press can now be configured in the machine version system. At the same time, Japan's leyoubi and Hamada companies also began to develop their own digital technology. The v-color48 launched by Hamada company is a new model with certain digital technology content. In addition, the truepress printing machine launched by big Japan screen company should also belong to the small offset printing machine in the machine-made version

the greater impact on the traditional small offset press comes from some enterprises that have nothing to do with the production of small offset press, including indigo company in Israel, Xerox company in the United States, Agfa company in Germany, Ricoh company in Japan, Canon company and Xeikon company. The digital printing machines with different performance and principle introduced by these enterprises directly threaten the survival of traditional small offset press production enterprises

of course, it is the color digital printing press that poses a threat to the multi-color small offset printing press. The first enterprise to launch a true color digital printing machine was indigo company. In recent years, indigo has been continuously improving its products, but also committed to reducing costs. At the same time, the price of expensive consumables for digital printing machines is also falling sharply. It can be seen that digital printing machine manufacturers are trying to lower the threshold and expand their market share

on the other hand, from the perspective of the market, with the continuous improvement of the printing quality and economy of digital printing machines, they have entered the traditionally considered restricted area of small offset printing machines. Its quickness, convenience and flexibility make them an absolute advantage in the field of ultra short edition, that is, the market with a printing number of less than 500 copies. For example, various digital printing machines represented by Indigo's digital printing machine can realize on-demand printing and variable data printing, which is more suitable for the personalized ultra short version commercial printing market

the development of digital printing press with such a strong momentum has broken the pattern of traditional small offset printing machines dominating the world in the field of short edition printing. So, will digital printing replace the traditional small offset press? Judging from the technological development in recent years, digital printing technology is indeed booming, and a variety of digital printing machines are blooming. However, the outstanding performance of digital printing machine is that it can realize personalized printing or variable information printing. "Fast" is not its outstanding feature or advantage. At the same time, for the current printing industry, a large number of prints are not variable information. It should be pointed out that the digital printing press has its own market space, and there will be rapid development in the field of ultra short edition printing in the short term

first, speed up the development and production of heavy-duty multi-color small offset press technology, improve the technical content and automation control level of multi-color small offset press, improve the printing quality of equipment, strengthen the stability of the whole machine, and constantly adjust to meet the changes of market demand

second, carry out digital transformation of traditional small offset printing machines, especially the automatic digital technology transformation focusing on reducing costs and improving printing efficiency, so as to realize the convenient and fast printing of small offset printing machines. in other words. To realize the user's need of "accelerating the preparation of industrial plans in the shortest time, preparing for adjustment with the simplest and rapid printing, minimizing the waste of paper and materials of China's first C919 large passenger plane independently developed, printing the best high-quality prints, and ensuring timely and rapid delivery"

third,

March to digital printing press. To develop and improve the digital printing system based on fast printing and form a complete digital printing solution around small and medium-sized printing plants, breakthroughs should be made in the following three aspects:

① through the combination of simple CTP technology and small offset printing technology, a non integrated digital printing system and an integrated digital printing system should be formed

② realize the digital printing system through the combination of direct plate making technology on the machine and small offset printing technology

③ through the combination of high-speed inkjet technology and small offset printing technology, a cheap digital printing system is realized

to sum up, the development momentum of digital printing press is unstoppable. It will occupy the market share of traditional ij and offset press, and seriously threaten the survival of small offset press manufacturers. In the face of such fierce competition, small offset printing machine manufacturers should keep a clear and calm mind. On the one hand, they should constantly improve the technical content of small offset printing machines to meet the needs of the market; on the other hand, they should pay close attention to the development of digital technology and organically combine digital technology with traditional small offset printing machines to meet the challenges of digital printing machines

source: China Industrial Equipment