contact us     help    login  

CAP Ventures Study Estimates Total Value of Print for In-Plant Sector to be $15.6 Billion

(Weymouth, MA) April 20, 2004…According to CAP Ventures’ research, there are currently 10,425 in-plant printing establishments in the United States producing $12.4 billion in retail value of print. These facilities look and act like commercial printers in terms of services offered, equipment, and software. This study identified an additional 40,151 sites that are smaller in size and have fewer capabilities but that are staffed and primarily copy/print work for others. These in-plant “small copy/print” sites generate an estimated $3.2 billion in retail value of print. The total retail value of print for the “in-plant” sector is estimated to be $15.6 billion.

The combined resources of this segment account for 33.7% of the installed base of black & white copier/printers producing 70+ ppm, 23.5% of all color copier/printers, and 23.9% of all offset presses. The average in-plant printing establishment plays an important role in procuring external print and related services, purchasing slightly over $600,000 a year. These same establishments attract about $150,000 a year in print and related work from outside their organizations.

To offer a deeper understanding of the beliefs, brand preferences, and future intentions of in-plant printing organizations, CAP Ventures has released a new multi-client study entitled Corporate Print Services: The In-Plant Printing Opportunity. This study determines the current penetration and volume of digital printing and the expected future share of monochrome and color volumes and reveals what is really transpiring in the world of corporate printing services.

Key findings of this study include:

• Most work produced internally is black & white (75%)
• Over one half the work is received electronically
• Market penetration of facilities management is relatively low and more common in the small copy/print sites
• The in-plant print shop specifies 62.3% of all paper used in the facility
• The vast majority of in-plant print shops have offset presses
• Over 63% of in-plant print shops have plans to migrate work from offset to digital and anticipate moving a significant percentage of that work in the next two years
• There was widespread agreement to the statement, “PDF-based workflow will gain importance to me and my clients” (77%)
• 29% of the in-plant print shops offer departmental copier fleet management

The study examines the various segments of the corporate printing services market and probes the investment intentions, brand preferences, and current practices of this important and misunderstood market segment.

Research for this study consisted of desk research exploring existing market information on the corporate print services market, surveys with 401 professionals within the corporate print sector, and personal interviews with medium-sized and large companies with extensive internal and external print requirements.

The report contains best practices for Equipment Manufacturers and Distributors, Paper Companies and Merchants, and In-Plant Print Shop Management. The report is 670 pages long including data tabulations and is accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation with 120 slides.

To learn more about the study or to make a purchase, please contact Alison Hipp at , ext. 175 or via e-mail at .

CAP Ventures is a strategic consulting firm for providers and users of business and visual communication technologies and services. We deliver key research, analysis, forecasting, benchmarking, and strategy recommendations to make a competitive difference in our clients’ businesses. Additional information about CAP Ventures is available on the Web at www.infotrendsresearch.com.