Drupa has published its Eighth Global Trends Report after a two-year hiatus caused by the pandemic with high hopes for industry in 2023.
In the report – which covers a number of topics including trends over time, financial performance, and investment plans – shows that while investment fell inevitably during the past two years, printers and suppliers both reported robust plans for capital expenditure noting that despite the economic shocks, drupa said that the survey shows that print remained a central means of communication in all markets and regions “and that while there are challenging times ahead, the industry has both the confidence and the determination to succeed”.
According to Messe Düsseldorf Director of Print Technologies – Ms Sabine Geldermann: “Printers and Suppliers know they must innovate to succeed in the longer term. The shocks of the last two years pegged back investment, but the survey indicates that the industry expects recovery to start in 2023. All regions and markets forecast higher investment in the coming year.”
Looking at each sector, drupa said the packaging market was “thriving” with publishing and commercial printers “facing structural changes from digitisation but with signs of confidence returning”.
Summarily, the report tapped into the views of more than 500 panel members made up of senior decision makers at printers and suppliers. This was a lower number of participants than the previous survey carried out in 2019 because a fresh panel could not be convened at drupa 2020. Full report costs €499 but a free executive summary is also downloadable via drupa.com
The next drupa takes place from 28 May – 7 June 2024, at Messe Düsseldorf in Germany.
