Market is forecast to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 6.6% through to 2029.

Packaging, labels, books, and graphics all provide major growth opportunities for commercial inkjet printing, according to the latest exclusive data from Smithers. A host of the latest inkjet technologies will be on show when drupa 2024 opens on May 28.

Detailed data modeling in the latest Smithers market report – The Future of Inkjet Printing to 2029 – shows that in 2024 global sales from inkjet printing will reach $117.7 billion. Positive market conditions mean this is forecast to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.6% through to 2029. This will push overall market value to $162.1 billion in 2029, at constant pricing.

Across the same period, the volume of publications, graphics media, packaging and labels printed on inkjet will increase from 1.61 trillion A4 print equivalents to 2.29 trillion.

As a digital technology, inkjet can interface more rapidly with online resources, such as web-to-print portals. Furthermore, inkjet can be integrated with conversion processes more readily than competing systems.

As the technology and new applications develop, print manufacturing workflows are increasingly being optimized for inkjet, making the process even more cost competitive. This is happening in book manufacture, for example, where web presses deliver book blocks in a single pass, with flexible finishing allowing formats and paginations to be varied at full press speed.

Multiple machine innovations are delivering finished print products, labels, and packaging more efficiently – and inkjet is steadily increasing its share across all print and printed packaging. The fastest growth across 2024-2029 will be in packaging, labels, and books.

This market report is available from Smithers, priced $6,750 (€6,350, £5,475).

Author:Ink World