After electrophotographic (toner) copiers became printers and then production printers in the mid 1990s, there was a realization and a push to find ways to use them as a replacement for offset printing. The adoption and growth started slowly, as expected with any new technology, but as the technology improved, the industry found ways to help drive the growth. Fast forward to drupa 2008, which was to be the “inkjet” drupa, where there was some emerging technology shown but not really ready to compete head-to-head with toner or offset printing. Some of those companies that showed their production inkjet technology have become the leaders in today’s inkjet press marketplace. Now that production inkjet has finally reached the offset quality barrier as well, some believe that it is the death knell for toner. Although, as Mark Twain said, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated” and, based on recent developments in toner technology, I believe that is the case here as well. Toner presses have led the move from analog offset, flexo, and gravure to digital over the last few decades, initially by leaps and bounds but over time the toner technology evolution seemed to slow. Inkjet and even digitized offset started to develop a beachhead against toner growth.

According to the recent Smithers “Future of Digital vs. Offset Printing to 2024” report, “offset litho print will grow modestly from $183.7 billion in 2014 to $192.6 billion in 2024. In stark contrast to offset litho, the digital print sector grows strongly from $103.1 billion in 2014 to $180.9 billion in 2024. Within digital, inkjet printing drives all the forecast growth between 2019–2024, as electrophotography revenues plateau in this period.”

While toner press speeds haven’t grown significantly over the last decade, production handling and embellishment features along with better DFE and finishing integration added to productivity gains. A good example of that is the recently announced Canon ImagePRESS C10010VP. It operates at 100 ipm (images per minute) but offers increased overall productivity and versatility. Some of these enhancements include the inclusion of larger and interchangeable paper drawers, auto paper feeding of 13 x 30-inch sheets of media. Media up to 400 gsm and the ability to bond to synthetic papers without having to manually tweak the machine, in part as a result of a new PRISMAsync controller. The updated paper database including advanced automated color characterization makes achieving and assigning G7 quick and easy on any new media entry.