March Shipments: We Got Good News and Bad News
March 2024 shipments came in at $7.24 billion, up from February’s $7.04 billion—and yet the worst March the industry has had.
Frank Gets Acrobatic
What was the most important development in the printing industry? Frank says: PDF. It became the way we deliver print jobs as well as being a publication and document format.
Around the Web: Aromatic Ads. Planted Plantagenet. Boat Brouhaha. Writing Removal. Print Preference. Gabbing Greenery. Organic Optics. Tank Trade. Waffle Wear.
The first scented billboard. Uncovering the remains of Richard III. Ordered to hide your boat from public view? Build a fence and paint a boat on it! Eliminating inaccessible graffiti using spray-painting drones. Costumed park rangers in Illinois act out the cicada emergence. Video of plants “talking” to each other. The winner of the annual Ugly Muppet Toy Pageant. The James Webb Space Telescope discovered complex organic chemicals surrounding two protostars. Red Lobster is closing locations and auctioning off their equipment. Eggo launches waffle-themed sneakers. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.
Insight You Need. Analysis You Trust.
Get the trusted insights you need to understand our evolving industry and emerging trends. Become a Premium Member.
Industry News
- Xplor Industry Award Nominations Now Open for 2024 Event
- TAPPI & AICC Now Accepting Entries for Box Manufacturing Olympics
- Labor Shortages Impact Printing Industry
- Drupa Debut: Morgana DigiFold Ultra
- Xeikon and Sappi in Sweet Collaboration
- Amherst Label, an Inovar company Adds Third Domino Press
- Ultimate Bindery 2024.1 - Supporting over 86 Devices
- BOBST’s Open Architecture Empowers ScanLabel to Create Fully Digitalized Workflow
- Customer’s Canvas Unveils Web-to-Print Innovations at Drupa 2024
- DuPont to Showcase New Innovative Artistri® Digital Printing Inks at drupa 2024
- MindFire, Inc Welcomes Mike Dudiak as COO, Charting Path to Next Level of Growth
- Printware Introduces New Affordable iJetColor 1175C New Model Inkjet Press Utilizing HP’s® Thermal Inkjet Printhead
- American Print Consultants Names New CFO and a Managing Partner
- All4Labels Hamburg Boosts Productivity with Automated Platemaking
- Racami Announces Launch of New Employee-Led Podcast: "2 Blondes and a Printer"
- Rochester Software Associates Slated to Lead Breakout Session at the IPMA 2024 Educational Conference
- Mr. Manu Choudhury Talks AI to Printing Students at Offset Printers Association (OPA) Event
- Gutenberg Festival at WBMPA
- ALPLA Strengthens Injection Moulding Business with New ALPLAinject Division
- Injectable Pharma Growth Underlines Importance of Smart Packaging and Patient Safety
The Display Graphics Evolution: Roland DG
This is the second in a series of articles that looks at the evolution of display graphics equipment manufacturers and their portfolios. Up next: Roland DG.
Market Shifts and the Impact of Behaviors/Trends on the Future of Print
In this article, textiles expert and WhatTheyThink contributor Debbie McKeegan shares insights she gained from Kristine Go, founder of Pattern Curator—a Print forecasting and design service concept based in New Jersey. This includes macro trends in fashion design, sustainability, and socioeconomic and technological trends.
Let’s Talk About Weed!
Heidi Tolliver-Walker offers some tips for how print businesses can tap into the growing market for cannabis products.
Offset Stands Ready to Take its Rightful Place at drupa 2024
Those investigating their options in offset lithography will find an abundance of progress made within the category at drupa 2024. Offset section editor Patrick Henry rounds up what the major offset press manufacturers will be demonstrating on the show floor in Düsseldorf.
3 Signs Your Print Workflow Software Is Sabotaging Your Business
Oops! You might have bought the wrong software. Or, you may have outgrown the software you are using. The right software should integrate seamlessly, provide the needed features, and include ongoing vendor support. By being proactive, you can ensure your print software empowers your business, not hinders it.
Industry Data
Printing Outlook 2024 - The WhatTheyThink Overview of the Current State of the Printing Industry
The Printing Outlook 2024 report provides detailed analysis of the latest WhatTheyThink Printing Industry Survey, the latest industry economic data and macroeconomic trends, as well as industry and cultural technological trends to look out for in 2024 and beyond.
March Shipments: We Got Good News and Bad News
March 2024 shipments came in at $7.24 billion, up from February’s $7.04 billion—and yet the worst March the industry has had. Full Analysis
Paperboard Container Manufacturing Establishments—2010–2021
According to County Business Patterns, in 2021 there were 1,895 establishments in NAICS 32221 (Paperboard Container Manufacturing). This category saw a net decrease of 15% since 2010. In macro news, early Q2 GDP predictions are bullish. Full Analysis
March Graphic Arts Employment A Mixed Bag
Overall printing employment in March 2024 was generally up—+0.4% from February—with production employment down -0.2% and non-production employment up +1.5%. Full Analysis
WhatTheyThink Magazine
WhatTheyThink Magazine is the resource for the Commercial Printing, Visual and Graphic Arts Industries. Industry experts share their ideas and technical knowledge on ways to improve operations.
Subscription are free to qualified industry professionals or via paid subscription.
Around the Web
WhatTheyThink's weekly miscellany
Around the Web: Aromatic Ads. Planted Plantagenet. Boat Brouhaha. Writing Removal. Print Preference. Gabbing Greenery. Organic Optics. Tank Trade. Waffle Wear.
The first scented billboard. Uncovering the remains of Richard III. Ordered to hide your boat from public view? Build a fence and paint a boat on it! Eliminating inaccessible graffiti using spray-painting drones. Costumed park rangers in Illinois act out the cicada emergence. Video of plants “talking” to each other. The winner of the annual Ugly Muppet Toy Pageant. The James Webb Space Telescope discovered complex organic chemicals surrounding two protostars. Red Lobster is closing locations and auctioning off their equipment. Eggo launches waffle-themed sneakers. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany. Read More
Around the Web: Type Tome. Thames Type. Plato’s Plot. Bubbler Button. Gold Graphene. Quantum Quandary. Cryptic Creature. Cicada Swarms. Sriracha Shortage.
A new book looks at the 20th-century rise of typography. A dedicated designer retrieved the presumed lost Doves Type. A new AI-related Internet term is the new “spam.” AI helps find Plato’s burial spot. The Verge pays tribute to the water fountain button. The Australian Olympic Team will be sporting graphene-enhanced apparel at the Paris Olympics. A new image captures atoms behaving like waves, the hitherto unseen basis of quantum mechanics. NASA researchers have created an animation that takes the viewer into the black hole. The decades-long search for the Mongolian death worm. Prepare for trillions of cicadas to emerge, if they haven’t already. A pepper shortage is causing Huy Fong to cancel shipments of sriracha until the fall. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany. Read More
Around the Web: Color Caution. Kicky Keyboard. Dyed Dairy. Bread Beanie. Polaroid Poems. Domestic Droid. Mutant Mouse. New Nebula. Bison Bashing. Marvelous Moody.
The color “magenta” has been designated the “worst and deadliest” of the heat threat categories. RIP author Paul Auster. In an old movie musical, a couple dance on a giant typewriter. Just in time for Star Wars Day, dairy producer TruMoo has introduced Blue Milk. Just in time for Kentucky Derby Day, Panera has introduced the “Bread Hat.” A camera that uses AI to compose a poem based on a picture it has just taken. We’re still trying to get true 5G wireless, but over in Japan, 6G is on the way. A domestic robot capable of performing a variety of household tasks. Scientists in Portugal accidently created a six-legged mouse. The James Webb Space telescope zooms in on the Horsehead Nebula. “Man accused of kicking a bison at Yellowstone National Park,” for some reason. RIP Mike Pinder. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany. Read More
Recent Discussion
Eric Vessels on Road to drupa: CalPoly's Colleen Twomey Previews Student Trip to drupa 2024
Thanks Cliff! We think so too! Thanks Harvey! It was a bit of a "no brainer"! Reply
HARVEY LEVENSON on Road to drupa: CalPoly's Colleen Twomey Previews Student Trip to drupa 2024
My greatest hope when I retired in 2013 as head of Cal Poly’s Graphic Communication Department was that the next leadership would continue an upward spiral of growth and improvement. Well, they exceeded expectations, first with Ken Macro who followed… Full comment Reply
More info about digital product passports! https://www.globaldata.com/newsletter/details/explainer-time-to-introduce-digital-product-passports-in-fashion_179933/ Reply
Cliff Hollingsworth on Road to drupa: CalPoly's Colleen Twomey Previews Student Trip to drupa 2024
This is SUCH a great opportunity for these students!! Thank you WTT for providing this sponsorship AND this work opportunity. I look forward to the reports coming out of Drupa about this group specifically! Reply
Special Report
drupa 2024 Coverage
WhatTheyThink is the official show daily media partner of drupa 2024. More info about drupa daily programs
- Inkjet, Partnerships, and Joint Development Agreements
- More Drupa 2024 inkjet announcements – part two
- Winning in Flexible Packaging through Chem-Stack Design
- Trigger Fresh Ideas in Customer Interviews
- MEGNAJET’S FLUID MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS SUPPORT C-MARX GROWTH
- Kyocera Belharra Photo Printing on the Road to drupa
- Summary of Drupa 2024 inkjet announcements Production Print
- Inkjet driving insourcing for state in-plants
WhatTheyThink is the official show daily media partner of drupa 2024. drupa Event Coverage | drupa daily programs
© 2024 WhatTheyThink. All Rights Reserved.
Dov Isaacs on Frank Gets Acrobatic
… And I hired three of your co-author students right out of RIT for Adobe way back then! ?? Reply