In-plant Market Study Released

A new report on the in-plant industry shows a 2.5 percent decline in establishments between 2006 and 2007, and estimates a grand total of 52,078 in-plants in the U.S.

The report, released in February, was based on research conducted by InfoTrends, a market research and consulting firm for the digital imaging and document solutions industry. It points to a large growth in digital printing at in-plants, particularly digital color printing. In a 2004 InfoTrends survey, 63 percent of respondents offered digital color printing services; in 2008 nearly 86 percent said they offered it. Black-and-white digital printing has grown from 71 percent of respondents offering it in 2004 to more than 85 percent last year.

Also growing is the integration of in-plants and data centers. In 2004 only 6.2 percent said they were integrated. That has now jumped to 16.2 percent in the current study (though there has been a decline in the number of data center establishments, which the study says is due to flat or moderately declining digital black-and-white volumes, as well as the impact of electronic alternatives to print).

In-plants plan to continue investing, according to the study, but most of this will be in software rather than hardware. Examples include desktop design/layout software (38 percent plan to acquire it), variable data design/composition software (19 percent) and Web-to-print software (18 percent). On the hardware side, the top planned investments will be black-and-white MFPs/copiers faster than 70 ppm (14 percent) and color MFPs/copiers faster than 45 ppm (13 percent).

For more information on the InfoTrends report, titled "In-House Production Printing—Critical Trends for Corporations, Government, Education, and Non-Profits," visit www.infotrends.com/public/Content/Multiclients/inplants2008.