(For a look at a specific direct-to-shape printing system, see Richard Romano’s complementary feature here.) 

Printing company owners are seeking new markets as the pandemic affects their businesses. They are assessing the constantly fluctuating environment, one that requires frequent pivots, driven by seen and unseen economic factors. Many owners are evaluating an opportunity that leverages their inkjet printing expertise—digital direct-to-shape (D2S) printing.

The printing industry has been in decline for years with few bright spots. The pandemic exacerbated the trend with US printing capacity utilization declining from 93.9% a year ago to 72.4% in May 2020. One result is that printing companies with unfilled capacity are chasing each other’s customers just when those prospects are retrenching because their sales have declined. Rather than competing for print jobs based on price in a saturated market, D2S printing is a bright spot worth investigating.