NEW YORK - June 12, 2003 -- TrendWatch Graphic Arts today released a new report analyzing the market for binding and finishing for digital presses. According to the report, the key to success in digital printing is the services offered after the press, and not the press' capabilities alone. To accommodate the "just-in-time frames," higher job changeover, and shorter runs typical of digital printing, providers have had to automate their binderies, change their methodologies, and devise innovative solutions to a variety of unique finishing challenges. The just released report from TWGA analyzes several critical issues born of a new and evolving digital services model. The report, "Digital Postpress: The Convergence Is Underway" is available for online purchase at the TWGA eStore in PDF format. For more information about this and other TWGA reports, go to the main TWGA website page (http://www.trendwatchgraphicarts.com). Researcher's Quote... "Today's "digital print factories" include postpress as an integral part of the equation, notes Vince Naselli, Director, TrendWatch Graphic Arts. "Consider the impact of today's more powerful, higher-quality digital copiers being installed at customer locations. Many customers now have the capability to produce many short-run applications in-house [and do]. It is only the finishing requirements that keep many short-run projects on the floors of commercial shops." According to the Report... -- The press (including the digital variety) may not be the profit center it once was, but with the addition of an efficiently configured bindery, it retains the power to help printers differentiate their services and distinguish themselves from the competition by demonstrating the full power and flexibility of digital workflows from prepress through finishing; -- While commercial offset lithography continues to suffer from overcapacity, driving commoditization up and prices down, the digital side is experiencing a surge in demand that threatens to outstrip bindery capacity; -- The use of toner- and inkjet-based devices is growing as digital technology creates a market for new applications (VDP, books-on-demand, etc.). The good news is that the growth in, and the proliferation of applications for, digital printing have created new opportunities for press manufacturers and vendors of postpress equipment. About the Report... "Digital Postpress: The Convergence Is Underway" offers readers a look at the state of the market for binding and finishing for digital presses. The report further analyzes business challenges and sales opportunities that affect digital printers' bindery decisions, and recommends strategies to promote the peaceful co-existence of traditional offset and digital services within a single plant. The new report addresses several issues critical to success in the digital printing segment: -- Have we arrived at a workflow that keeps up with today's digital printing applications, business models, and customer demands? -- How could improved products and service offerings further stimulate the market? -- What should suppliers be doing to capitalize on this market opportunity? The information in this report is of significant importance to press and postpress manufacturers, digital printers, commercial printers, trade shops, and the graphic design community. In addition to bindery-specific data, the report includes chapters on the installed base of digital presses, the impact of the bindery on the digital press market, and addresses issues of vital importance to this once-neglected area of the production workflow: productivity, scheduling, formats and substrates, the cost-benefit repercussions of the in-line/off-line decision, and much more. Methodology... Data for this report was generated from recent TWGA Printing Surveys and Historical Databases, as well as from the Graphic Arts Blue Book. Commentary is based on survey data and TWGA analyst insights, based on years of industry and market experience. Information was also gleaned from a variety of industry resources on the subject including trade associations and publications, newsletters, industry insiders, and experts. Availability... The 107-page TWGA "Digital Postpress" report is available for purchase by visiting the secure TrendWatch Graphic Arts eStore online at www.trendwatchgraphicarts.com or by phone at 866-873-6310. The price for the report is $1595. TrendWatch Graphic Arts eStore customers can download this report in PDF Acrobat format immediately after purchase.