Book publishing on a mass scale has been a “thing” ever since Gutenberg’s printing press changed the world in the 1400s. In the late 1800s, offset printing technology was developed and has remained the leading production method for book publishing since then.
However, digital printing technologies — digital inkjet in particular — are quickly taking on a larger role in the book publishing and manufacturing industry. IT Strategies estimates that 25% of all book pages printed in 2022 were created using digital inkjet presses and that figure is on pace to reach 39% by 2028.
Digital inkjet printing presses offer book publishers the advantage of speed. This gives a publisher the luxury of being able to respond to demand, rather than trying to predict it. The speed and flexibility of digital inkjet is ideal for back catalogs and reprints of books. It also allows a publisher to get a book onto the market quickly while slower, high-volume offset print runs are still being manufactured.
With an offset printing press, economies of scale are only realized at high volumes as fixed setup costs are spread over more printed pieces. Digital inkjet printing presses have virtually no setup requirements, making them economical for even low-volume print jobs.
Offset printing technology is great for producing massive quantities of exactly the same thing. However, if you wish to vary the content in any way, offset presses are at an extreme disadvantage. Digital inkjet presses open the door to personalization, customization and variable content in printed books. Authors and publishers can bring a layer of creativity to printed books that simply isn’t possible with offset printing.
Closely related to fast turnaround times and cost-effective short runs is the advantage of scalability. Publishers can “take a chance” on a book title they might not have otherwise. They can start publishing via digital inkjet and shift to offset if a book becomes a surprise New York Times bestseller. They can economically issue reprints of books that would not be economical using offset technology. With digital inkjet printing, the scale is whatever the publisher needs it to be at that moment.
Three printing technologies make up the bulk of book publishing and manufacturing volume: offset, toner-based digital and digital inkjet. Entire blogs could be devoted to each of these three technologies but the relative strengths and weaknesses can be summarized as follows.
As noted up front by IT Strategies, digital inkjet technology can be expected to take on a much larger share of book publishing in the next few years. The speed, short-run flexibility and scalability are highly attractive to publishing companies. Meanwhile, the variable print capability of digital inkjet is a wildcard option that enhances the creative process itself. Watch for the following trends to emerge in the book publishing and manufacturing industry.
Technically, no book ever needs to go out of print when economical short print runs are possible with digital inkjet presses. Expect to see more old titles reappear on shelves as publishers mine the value of older content.
Rather than commit 100% to any one production method, watch for book publishers to engage printers who offer the various technologies described above. For example, hit the market fast with digital inkjet, ramp up production using offset, and then issue reprints economically down the road via digital inkjet. Book publishers are wise to view them as complementary printing technologies rather than competing technologies.
Watch for authors and publishers to collaborate on new ideas that tap the variable print capabilities of digital inkjet printing to enhance the creative process. Imagine books that incorporate “special edition” illustrations or artwork. Books that have variable plot twists and endings, randomly assigned during the printing process. Books that include unique login IDs and passwords to rich content online. All of these, and more, are possible with digital inkjet production.
Corporate Graphics (CG), a Taylor Corporation company, has been serving the book publishing and manufacturing industry for 30 years. A comprehensive publishing solution is available through a single partner including:
However, the diverse printing technologies available under one roof sets CG apart. In addition to traditional offset printing presses, CG has invested heavily in the type of digital inkjet printing technology described in this blog. Books manufactured by CG can benefit from fast, economical, four-color, two-sided output at any print volume — plus the game-changing freedom of variable data and personalization.