The key findings

It’s official - things are getting better. Well, they are according to almost three quarters (73.63%) of the 201 UK/Ireland-based large-format PSPs that look part in the 15th annual Widthwise survey conducted by Image Reports earlier this year. In fact, 31.34% went as far as saying they were ‘very optimistic’ about their businesses over the next couple of years despite all the difficulties of readjusting to continued global, national and more local pressures. Only 11 companies (5.48%) said they were pessimistic.

That’s not to say all has been, nor is expected to be, wall-to-wall sunshine. The depressing, but hardly unexpected, fact is that half (50.25%) of those questioned had seen a drop in turnover in the 12 months to the start of 2022, but that’s fewer than the year before when two-thirds of respondents had. And this time around 36.82% said they had actually seen a rise in turnover, with more than a quarter of all those polled (26.37%) having logged an improvement of more than 10%.

Again, these are much better figures than those thrown up by the 2021 survey. 40% of the respondents to the 2022 poll said they had suffered a drop in print margins since the start of last year. Yet a similar proportion said they had stuck at about the same levels, and a fifth (20.40%) of the sample said they’d seen an improvement.

The findings come from a cross-section of those in the digital inkjet large-format focused domestic professional print sector.

Off the 201 PSPs that took part in this independent exercise more than half (114 companies or 56.72%) have five or fewer employees, though eight firms (3.98%) have over 100. 42.79% turnover less than £250,000 while 8.46% turnover more than £1-2m, and the same proportion turnover more than £5m. The full Widthwise survey dataset is analysed within this report, but for your quick consumption we’ve here highlighted some of the other key findings.

One of the those findings is that though almost 1 in 10 (9.45%) expect the UK’s wide-format print market to shrink over the next two years, two-thirds (66.17%) expect it to grow!

That’s not necessarily leading to investment in new kit however. Asked ‘how much are you expecting to invest in new hardware/software across your business in 2022 compared to 2021?’ over half (58.21%) said less, though almost a third (32.34%) said more.

Asked how much they expected to invest in wide-format technology specifically over the next two years, the majority (69.65%) said under £20,000, and when asked if they would be buying a new digital wide-format printer in that period more than half (58.21%) said no to that too. Where investment is planned, more than half (51.74%) said it was to increase capacity. To improve efficiency was cited next (22.89%) followed by a requirement to move into new applications/markets (15.42%).

That tallies with what the respondents had to say about their priorities for 2022 and their strategic development. Over half (55.72%) said growing turnover was the main focus. Reducing costs was perhaps not as highly listed as expected - 11.44% put this top - nor was focusing on sustainable practices, which 6.47% put top.

Don’t let that latter figure fool you into thinking environmental concerns are unimportant however. A massive 91.04% said it was now more important for their company to be seen as environmentally friendly than it was two years ago, and almost two-thirds (62.19%) said their use of recycled/recyclable print materials had increased over the last year. But tempering the situation was the feedback that almost two-thirds (62.19%) said few clients ask for their environmental credentials/policies. Only 7.46% said most ask.

Asked ‘what is the biggest technological issue you face in wide-format?’ many said there are none! 22.39% noted ink and media reliability as continuing issues, 15.42% said machine reliability, 14.93% cited workflow/system integration issues and 11.44% colour management.

So, what else is eating the UK/Ireland’s large-format PSPs? Take a guess - the cost of supplies topped the list of fear (88.56% cited that), the cost of energy came second (81.09%) and the state of the UK economy came third (48.26%). 79.60 said they had experienced supply chain disruption to their business over the last year so that continued to be a downer, and 40.80% said they thought Brexit would prove bad for business in the medium- to long-term.

There’s obviously an acceptance that the game has changed, that it’s not going to change back to what it was, but that if you get involved in creating a new game it may be even more rewarding as a player - however large or small.

Q2. Number of employees in your company

1 – 5 6 – 10 11 – 20 21 – 51 More than 100 51 – 100 17.91% 11.94% 5.97% 3.98% 3.48% 56.72%

Q3. What is your company’s total turnover?

Up to £249,999 £250,000 - £499,999 £500,000 - £999,999 £1m - £1.99m £5m+ £2m - £4.99m 22.39% 12.44% 8.46% 8.46% 5.47% 42.79%

Think Inkjet. Think Agfa.

Agfa presented its latest innovations in inkjet printing at FESPA in Berlin, Germany (31 May to 03 June 2022). If you missed the fair, please check the qr-code:

Now with varnish: Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED

One out of the three wide-format systems that run on our booth was the Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED.

The Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED is the latest member of Agfa’s 3.3 m heavy-duty hybrid inkjet printer family. It offers producers of corrugated cardboard displays the option to add a layer of glossy or matt varnish – either applied to the entire surface (flood varnish) or to selected spots (spot varnish). The varnish embellishes prints with a fine luxury look, while also protecting them to some extent. Just like its siblings, this hybrid high-end Jeti Tauro is geared to fast and reliable 24/7 print production of outstanding quality, featuring multiple automation options.

Three configurations are available for the Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED: • Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED 6C V4 – 6 colours and varnish (40 heads in total) or • Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED 6C W12V4 – 6 colours, white and varnish (52 heads in total) or • Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED 6C W8P4V4 – 6 colours, white, primer and varnish (52 heads in total) This new technology allows for a bigger colour gamut and is capable of printing 75 m²/h with varnish.

Iain Clasper-Cotte, UK Managing Director for Northern Flags and FaberExposize: “We always look at other printer suppliers when we invest in new machinery to check we are not blinkered. But we just didn’t get the same service vibe from other printer suppliers and we spoke to other Tauro customers and they were really pleased with the results from the Agfa engine. The relationship with Agfa has not been without issues, but it’s how quickly and professional Agfa has always resolved issues that has cemented our partnership over the years.”

r-l: Iain Clasper-Cotte – Northern Flags with Paul Fitch – Agfa

Improving the flow

Printing begins with fast, error-free delivery of print files to the pressroom. The ability to process jobs through a dedicated workflow saves time and money and ensures that every machine is fed with the right data at the right time. This is where Agfa’s awardwinning Asanti workflow comes into play. Asanti automates everyday tasks without restricting the operator. On the contrary, Asanti guarantees that what is sent to press is complete and ready to print. Thanks to the seamless integration any last-minute changes on press are fed back to the Asanti server avoiding conflicting versions being used accidentally. By removing the need to jump from one platform to another Agfa system significantly reduce press make-ready times giving you greater productivity day in, day out.

Asanti includes automatic media optimization and template-based production, automatic job layout and positioning, and true-shape nesting. The automatic collection of images allows you to gather all artwork for a specific press and specific media, and to optimally nest it on the print sheet or roll, taking copy count and bleed into account.

Increase your productivity by lowering media consumption, and improving communication between operator, quality management and print buyers with PrintTune. PrintTune is a comprehensive and unique print standardization solution that guarantees color consistency and ensures that printing jobs meet in-house standards or commonly known color spaces from Fogra or IDEAlliance. Wedges and color patches can be measured and thanks to PrintTune’s powerful analytics capabilities, a score is calculated. This enables the objective evaluation of printing jobs related to specific standards. By doing away with subjective evaluations, print service providers can operate in a standardized way and get more jobs done in less time. What’s more, this unique solution operates independently of printing technology and engine manufacturer.

You value quality, efficiency and reliability? Choose Agfa and get the most out of your investment, ensure consistent and continuous operations, and streamline your business with our Service & Support offerings. These are our key benefits for you: • system knowledge • ensure correct and effective system handling • customize each system to your needs • maximum uptime • skilled and up-to-date staff

Curious? Agfa UK’s Inkjet Experience Centre in Rugby, Warwickshire is fully open. To book your demo visit www.agfa.co.uk/inkjet, email icc.gb@agfa.com or call 020 8231 4027.

Jeti Tauro H3300 HS LED @Fespa 2022