Big Picture - September 2018 - 26

BY
KELSEY
JOHNSON

at the Finish Line
Above: Gym Source,
a distributor of
residential and
commercial fitness
equipment, tapped
Deco Retail to
create graphics that
champion health
and wellness.
The shop finished
the job with a
CAMaster CNC
router and Summa
F1832 cutter.

ide-format digital printers are often the
focal point in our line of work, and with
good cause: The industry as we know it
wouldn't exist without these workhorse
machines. But as anyone involved in
production will tell you, most digitally printed graphics don't
come off the press ready for installation. While manufacturers
are making some strides in the print-and-install realm, the
reality is that many jobs need some extra oomph before they
leave the print shop floor.
These printed materials require cutting, laminating,
routing, framing, mounting, sewing, grommeting, and beyond.
Finishing procedures are nearly as diverse as the substrates
PSPs image. "Across the board and regardless of application,
today's consumers are demanding finished products, and this

BIG PICTURE

September 2018

Finessing the production process between print and install.

Tasked with outputting a variety of graphics for the College Football Hall of Fame, Deco
Retail finished the prints with their Summa F1832 flatbed cutter and CAMaster CNC router.

trend will likely accelerate as the market becomes increasingly more competitive," reads ISA's 2017 "Market Opportunities
for Digital Printing" white paper by InfoTrends.
Just as PSPs are eager to keep up with the ever-growing list
of customer requests, manufacturers are keen to address the
growing demand for in- and near-line finishing equipment. "The
global market for new postpress equipment is valued at $4.8
billion in 2018, and ... packaging and label finishing equipment
[markets] will grow, as will postpress equipment aimed at digital
printing systems," says Smithers Pira's "The Future of Print
Finishing Markets to 2023" report. If your shop's on the lookout
for a new cutter, router, or laminator, the future seems bright.
To produce the most stunning long-term graphics and
expertly routed displays, the finishing process should be
deliberate and planned from the get-go. "From a workflow
perspective, it's important to design with finishing in mind
to eliminate waste creation along the path," the ISA report
adds. Finishing should be much more than an afterthought -
"Finishing's value-added benefits also enable printers to develop
consultative relations with clients that extend well beyond
print alone." Awe a new client with your impressive knowledge
of which laminate will most prolong the life of their outdoor
ad, and you may have a new, long-lasting print buyer.
But with printers churning out thousands of square feet of
graphics per hour, how can the finishing department keep up
without becoming a burdensome bottleneck? And with so
many substrates, how can one shop offer all the finishing that
may be required?

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Big Picture - September 2018