A Wide Open Opportunity

But all of that has changed recently; prices for wide-format printers now range between $10,000 and $13,000, and the technology has matured, states Wise.

"The quality is stunning now and the price of the device has come down significantly," he adds.

Another benefit is that today's wide-format machines are more flexible in their ability to accept different substrates, says James Brouse, prepress manager at Wal-Mart's Print Mailing and Distribution Center, in Bentonville, Ark. The $25 million center, with 329 employees, uses a ColorSpan 7100.