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With drupa 2024 in the rear-view mirror and PRINTING United on the road ahead, here are some of the major announcements that came out of Düsseldorf, and a hint of what will be on display in Las Vegas.
Monday, August 19, 2024
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This issue of the WhatTheyThink Quarterly is all about labels, which are seen as a high-growth part of commercial printing, driven by e-commerce, food/beverage demand, and regulations. The market has surpassed 1.2 trillion square meters of label production volume per year, and is moving toward high-mix, low-waste production rather than only high-volume throughput. While flexo is still used for high-volume label production, digital label printing often complements it—or in some cases replaces it. But labels are about more than printing technology. Read More
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Commercial, direct mail, and publishing printers accustomed to producing jobs over several weeks can now print them in days with the SCREEN Truepress JET 560HDX. The press can accommodate 120 lb. coated or uncoated paper up to 560 mm wide. Read More
A sign-writer created the visual style of music festivals. The “2026 Milky Way Photographer of the Year” winners. AI appears to be catching on among the Amish. Sony has upgraded its wearable air conditioner. How to easily reuse produce bags. A complex digital water clock. A Nobel Prize–winning technology is able to extract water from dry air. Yes, it is possible to be allergic to water. Laser-induced graphene on Kevlar enables multifunctional structural composites. The “most desired” place in each of the 50 states. “The rise in plastic surgeons asked to create ‘AI face.’” K-pop band BTS has teamed with Oreo to release limited edition OREO x BTS Cookies. Welcome to WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany. Read More
April 2026 saw printing industry employment overall generally flat, down 0.4% from March. And while production employment was up 0.6%, non-production employment was down by 2.5%—basically the reverse of what we saw in March. Read More
