Cover story
2018 Inve tment Survey
survey reveals may surprise you
Filomena Tamburri
Our first investment survey shows an industry in transition and in a
hopeful mood.
Welcome to our first survey – a look at how printers plan to invest this year and next. We also tried to
gauge the mood of the industry, and were pleasantly surprised. It’s not wine and roses to be sure, but
most respondents are confident about their prospects – more than 50% of respondents said they
brought in higher sales in 2017 than the previous year. Also, investing projections confirm an industry
well in transition. New investments will focus on wide-format inkjet, colour toner presses, digital finish-
ing, bindery and software automation. Investment in traditional equipment is on the backburner, and
there is still some hesitancy about inkjet sheetfed presses.
Here’s how our survey participants answered the questions.
A positive state of mind
Despite general frustrations, with the rise in minimum wage
(that came up a few times), frustration with political decisions,
a general lack of skilled staff, and finding those elusive super-
performing sales reps, most respondents generally feel
upbeat about their businesses.
20 | March 2018 | GRAPHIC ARTS MAGAZINE
How confident are you about the future of your company?
6%
Very confident
37%
56%
Somewhat confident
Not confident
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