Page 28 - Widthwise Magazine

Widthwise 2020
The Findings: Technology
Depending on your
point of view, investing significant sums in new wide-format equipment amid the present uncer- tainty either takes a lot of guts or lack of wisdom.
With the British economy breaking all the wrong kind of records in 2020, many print service providers (PSPs) will choose to play it safe. Indeed, even before the pandemic and lockdown, the 2020 Widthwise poll showed that only 33.8% of respondents ex- pected to buy a new printer in the next two years, marginally lower than in 2019. More than seven out of ten did not expect to invest in any ancillary areas, such as design software or web-to-print either.
The obvious rationale for this conserv- ative investment strategy is pessimism about the future of the economy, but the explanation may be a bit more complicated than that. Almost half of PSPs said that their business faced no major techni-
cal problems. If production is running smoothly, the need to invest in new kit
is less compelling. The case for ROI then comes down to more specific opportunities, such as product innovations, attracting
new customers or diversifying into new markets. Having invested heavily in the past five years, many PSPs feel they have all the capacity they need, especially given the uncertainty about levels of demand from certain sectors (notably retail, exhibitions and architecture). Many of the people who own/manage PSPs also cannot foresee a
significant technological breakthrough that will make their existing equipment uncom- petitive in the next five years.
The structure of British wide-format print has always had a profound influence on capital investment budgets. The vast majority of PSPs are SMEs and nearly seven out of ten respondents to the 2020 Widthwise survey expect to invest less than
£20,000 in the next two years. As this poll was conducted on the eve of the pandemic, many PSPs have probably scaled back their investment plans since. With that kind of money to spend, companies will probably be less inclined to take risks, opting to replacing like for like in the pressroom
or make incremental investments (11.4% planned to purchase design software).
Q22. In 2030, will large-format digital inkjet business still be your core business?
Yes No
Q23. Do you invest in in-house research and development?
No Yes
Q26. What type of printers do you own? Wide-format digital only
63.16%
36.84%
Wide-format digital and narrow format digital Wide-format digital and production digital Wide-format digital and screen Wide-format digital and litho Wide-format digital and flexo
5.26% 3.95%
1.75% 1.32%
0%
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50.88% 49.12%
87.72%