Digital printing in the spotlight at PrintWeek Awards - The Noel DCunha Sunday Column

Print-on-demand (POD) was introduced in India in the late nineties. Some suggest that POD began around 1999 with Xerox’s Safida. However, it took another decade to become a staple of the industry.

According to an industry veteran who has worked with two of the most prominent digital press manufacturers, the POD business began in 2003, but the turning point was in 2018. He says, “I don’t believe 2010 or 2012 was the inflection point. Things began to come together when the Indian government put an embargo on refurbished machine imports in 2017. The jobber market exploded after that.”

In recent years, digital printing technology has emerged as a popular choice for short-run jobs and variable data printing.

According to our data at PrintWeek, the number of digital presses is set to reach 2,300 by 2023. The estimated revenue of equipment sold in 2023 is about Rs 450-crore, which is said to be the highest ever in a year. Moreover, 2024 promises to deliver even more growth.

There are four main reasons for this turnaround. Firstly, there is an increase in the number of machines. Secondly, there is an increase in volumes per machine. Thirdly, this is the year of drupa, where many new technologies and products are launched. Finally, there is an increased focus on binding.

Trends at Drupa
The shift to digital has changed the landscape, so it's no longer a matter of digital versus offset but rather digital plus offset.

Digital printing is not a one-size-fits-all solution, says Dr Andreas Plesske, CEO of Koenig & Bauer, in an interaction with PrintWeek. “Each printing method has its own strengths and weaknesses. When customers ask us what to do, our response is tailored to their needs and circumstances. We assess their business model and recommend the printing equipment that best suits their requirements.”

For businesses with a production model focused on ultra-long runs and high volumes, offset printing is likely the best choice. On the other hand, businesses with a mix of short runs, long runs, and unique projects might benefit from a hybrid system that includes both offset and digital printing. This approach allows for more flexibility in production and can optimise overall costs. For example, adding a digital press alongside offset presses can help manage short and medium-run projects efficiently.

A Appadurai, country manager, HP Indigo and Inkjet presses, India and Sri Lanka, opines that one industry trend observed was evident. “There were discussions about analogue versus digital printing in the past, but those conversations have now been put to rest. It's widely acknowledged that it's not a matter of analogue versus digital, but rather analogue and digital. Everyone in the printing trade who attended Drupa agrees that every player needs to invest in at least one digital press. The focus has shifted to how to make these digital investments, and everyone is already contemplating this.”

And, this industry transformation is further evident in the shift of major analogue players such as Heidelberg, K&B, and Komori, even Bobst, to digital printing. “This shift signifies not only the industry's recognition of digital printing as the present and future but also the need for print service providers to adapt. They are now focused on planning their print shop investments and identifying the markets to target.”

Digital printing and PrintWeek Awards
Highlighting the importance of digital printing and showcasing the capabilities a seasoned digital print service provider with creativity and passion can achieve, the annual PrintWeek Awards has three distinct categories — Digital Printer of the Year, Digital Photo Album Printer of the Year, Fine Art Printer of the Year and Book Printer of the Year (Print on Demand - POD). Besides these, digital print samples have won other categories such as Innovative Printer of the Year and Packaging Printer of the Year.

Digital Printer of the Year
This accolade awards the company that best demonstrates a combination of good quality colour results, with innovative applications printed digitally. Besides digitally printed cut sheets, digitally produced applications such as POS/outdoor or indoor signage are also accepted as entries under this category.

In 2023, Ahmedabad-based Letra Graphix won the award. The company was recognised for its quality labels on PP clear on clear, PP white, and PE clear substrates. The company also digitally printed a special colour on foil to generate a copper colour. It produced labels that used both digital and flexo. Its labels boasted gloss and matt varnish, and vignette effects.

Letra has been winning national and international accolades for its labels printed using flexo technology. But, in 2023, the company won awards for its digital printing capabilities. For a company which has been a flexo bastion, this digital award marked a shift in the perception of digital printing technology. “This award highlights the growing importance of digital printing as a viable option for businesses looking for high-quality, efficient, and cost-effective printing solutions,” says Nirav Shah, managing director of Letra.

In 2022, the Award went to Hyderabad-based Macro Media Digital Imaging. The company’s samples included three instances of backlit signs printed on fabric, and one wall covering. The company used customisedcolour profiles. It stitched silicone gaskets on the four edges to insert into the aluminium frame for the backlit fabric graphics.

In 2019, Antz Innovations clinched the prize, recognised by the jury for its implementation of a 3D illusion effect, and its skilful embedding of multiple effects into a single print.

Digital Photo Album Printer of the Year
This award recognises the company that demonstrates a combination of good quality colour results, substrates used, and fabrication of the album including an innovative cover.

In 2023, the award went to New Delhi’s Avantika Printers for the first time. The company submitted albums that used Adobe InDesign and EnfocusPitStop software to ensure the pictures were print-ready. It used the EFI colour profiler suite for colour consistency.

In the 2022 edition of the Awards, the Prism was taken home by Sri Sivarama Digital Press (Printonica), keeping its title from the 2019 edition of the Awards.

Its 2022 samples were designed in Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. The albums featured different emboss effects, layflat binding, cutting, chromatic cover pages, and wide-angle double-scope views. Printing was done on a variety of substrates. In 2019, the company’s samples featured chromatic cover pages, a golden crystal handle from Swarovski, wide-angle double-scope views, and special boxes to contain the album.

Fine Art Printer of the Year
For this category, judges look for prints, fine art books or art catalogues that demonstrate the highest levels of origination and print.

The 2023 edition of the Awards saw joint winners. The first was Mumbai-based Nisarga Works. The company submitted prints of Theyyam Festival by Sarin Vachal; Limited edition prints of original art by Sudarshan Shaw; print and drop ship for Indian artist, Richa Kshelkar; and The Aksa Collection for Craig Boehman.

The other winner was another Mumbai-based company - Prodon Enterprise. All the prints the company submitted were produced on the Mitsubishi Diamond 1000. The company deployed effects like hot-foil stamping, debossing, satin aqueous coating/varnish, and matt lamination. All of the samples were produced on a variety of substrates.

In 2019, the Dhanvi Rasiklal Shah Arts Company (Marvel Graphic Studio) won the award. The company was recognised for its use of serigraphs, where one could feel the tonal difference in every inch of the prints.

Printer of the Year (Print on Demand - POD)
This category was introduced in 2022 to address the growth in the segment, where a limited number of copies of a title is printed, while still adhering to all the demands of making the book beautiful. This category underlines how book and commercial printers are employing digital to create short-run award-worthy offset-quality books.

In 2023, Silverpoint Press won this award. The company was recognised for high-quality colour depth and accuracy, wave embosses, rose-gold foiling, satin aqueous coating, spot-raised UV, and gold and silver foil stamping and embossing.

In 2022, the award was bagged by Faridabad-based Thomson Press. The company produced books of all kinds, ranging from legal books and children’s books to a Bible. It deployed technologies like gold-foiling, gilding, lamination, and varnishes. It also made use of different types of paper, and various post-press operations like sewing, drilling, and hard case binding.

Digital prowess in other categories
In 2023, Mumbai’s Trigon Digipack picked up the Packaging Converter of the Year Award for Rigid Box on the strength of its samples printed on the HP Indigo 25K, using four or more colours, including opaque. Trigon submitted entries in the tightly contested category that exuded luxury and sophistication. The samples ticked all the boxes – sturdiness, protection, and a high-end look and feel. The judges were impressed with the graphic and structural design, production techniques, innovation, and convenience.

Talking about innovation, Trigon Digipack pricked up the Innovative Printer of the Year Award in 2022 for a label job with a run length of 5,000, plus variable prints per artwork being executed throughout the year. The innovation quotient of the sample was that each label was personalised and printed with VDP software, at the same time achieving fine foiling, embossing and debossing on each label. The design involved variable data printing and various post-press finishes. Pre-press involved HP Smartstream labels, packaging print server RIP powered by Esko, and database linking using VDP printing plug-ins. The job was printed on an HP Indigo WS6800 digital press on Fleur de Cotton paper.

PrintWeek Awards 2024
Are you a digital printer? Do you think your work can match the work mentioned above? If yes, apply for the 14th edition of the PrintWeek Awards.

Click here to register.