Flexographic Printing Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

Flexographic Printing Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The flexographic printing market was valued at USD 107.42 billion in 2020 and is expected to reach USD 124.61 billion by 2026 at a CAGR of 2.44% over the forecast period 2021 - 2026. Flexographic printing continues to be one of the fastest-growing print processes and is no longer reserved just for printing specialty items. The ability of flexography to print on a variety of substrates allows the process to be used for a wide range of printed products. Food packaging is an important market because of the ability of flexography to print on non-porous substrates. This ability makes it useful for printing on plastic bags, as well. The process is ideal for the publication of packaging, wallpaper, calendars, books, laminated tetra paks, and food packaging. The material that receives the print, known as the substrate, can be paper, card, polymers, textiles, and even metalized films (polymers coated with a thin layer of metal).

• Flexography is less expensive to produce, and the technology has been observing significant innovations in the prepress and press parts of the process, along with inks. For instance, United Kingdom-based MPS launched its new E-Sleeve technology, an alternative to traditional sleeves, at Labelexpo Europe 2019. The product enables printers to generate results at better speeds, with assured quality tolerances and more reliable production cost calculations.
• Flexographic printing is one of the fastest-growing print processes and is no longer reserved for printing specialty items. The ability of flexography to print on a variety of substrates enables the process to be used for a wide range of printed products. Food packaging is a significant market because of the ability of flexography to print on non-porous substrates.
• This ability makes it useful for printing on plastic bags, as well. The process is ideal for the publication of calendars, books, wallpaper, packaging, laminated tetra packs, and food packaging. The material that receives the print, known as the substrate, can be paper, card, polymers, textiles, and even metalized films.
• Progressions in software, prepress, plate technology, and inks and coatings have all seen meaningful innovation, reducing the possibility that digital printing will overhaul flexography printing’s cost-effectiveness for medium to long runs.
• Flexography provides principal benefits for customers using spot colors and finishing processes such as cold foiling, perforating, embossing, and laminating. Continued progress will possibly continue to decrease the costs of these value-added processes and make them extra mainstream.
• The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the growth in the e-commerce industry. Part of the packaging industry's new trends in the consumer's shift to e-commerce amidst the pandemic lock-downs. Online orders and delivery of goods and services are rising as people spend more time at home due to the fear of the coronavirus spreading.

• Flexographic printing is quick-drying and able to use non-toxic inks. These factors make flexographic printing accessible in the printing of food packaging. It can primarily be used on packagings like milk cartons, food containers, beverage containers, as well as disposable cups and containers.
• Since flexography is a food-safe with the right ink, it can also be applied to print packaging for drugs and other medical supplies. Flexographic printing can be utilized on hygienic bags, plastic, foil wrappers, and cardboard packaging.
• Flexographic printing’s capacity to print on a broad variety of substrates and surfaces makes it a perfect method for printing on brown corrugated boxes utilized in shipping and storage companies.
• The capacity to print on flexible, non-rigid materials makes flexographic printing helpful when printing on rolls of material utilized for plastic and paper bags. Flexographic printing is a perfect choice for industrial converters that make paper bags and printed plastic.
• There’s no ambiguity that retail products need labels, regardless of whether the labels are applied manually or by machine. Self-adhesive labels are also helpful in the corporate setting. Flexographic printing provides for the relatively swift printing of medium or big print jobs of self-adhesive labels – an excellent printing choice for businesses.

• The packaging industry and print media majorly contribute to the market for flexographic printing in the United Kingdom. The declining demand for print media due to digitization is impacting the market for flexographic printing in the country. According to Print Business Ltd., print sales for the United Kingdom's most prominent national newspapers slumped by as much as 39% in January 2020, as the coronavirus lockdown shut high streets and kept the nation at home.
• The Financial Times and the inewspaper reported the most significant decline in circulation, down 39% and 38%, respectively. The drop of circulation of the iwas exacerbated by the cessation of the distribution of bulks, free copies, to locations including airports, gyms, and railway stations.
• The United Kingdom printing industry has continued to grow revenues, though the growth is set against the industry's continuing struggles in high volume markets.
• According to the official United Kingdom Government Prodcomstatistics, declines continue in newspapers, magazines, catalogs, and advertising material. All are tilted towards higher volumes, suggesting that buyers are cutting print runs or reducing the numbers of sections in catalogues and magazines. This is underscored by paper consumption, which continues to fall in the top printing grades.
• Further, the retail trade in the country is increasingly driven by e-commerce. According to Office for National Statistics (United Kingdom), United Kingdom is the leading country in Europe in terms of online shopping penetration, and during 2014-2018, the average share of online sales as a proportion of retail trade in Europe grew from 7.2% to 8.8%. ​This is boosting the market among the corrugated packages.

The Flexographic Printing Machine market appears to be moderately fragmented and with the presence of several companies. In terms of market share, few of the major players currently dominate the market. These major players with a significant share in the market are aiming to expand their customer base across other countries. These companies are leveraging strategic collaborative initiatives to augment their market share and increase their profitability.

• October 2019 - Komori Corporation announced that it has reached an agreement with Shinwa Factory for conducting field testing of the 40-inch Sheetfed Nanographic Printing System, Impremia NS40.
• October 2020 - Comexi Ctecstarted offering new consulting products, such as ServiFlexand Remote ServiFlex, and it announced plans to perform online, in person, and client in-home training. The company expanded its operations with three technological centers in various countries: the Manel Xifra BoadaTechnology Center (Comexi CTec), located at the company's facilities in Riudellots de la Selva (Girona); CTecUSA, located at the new headquarters in Miami (Florida), which will be completed soon; and CTec Brasil, which has been in operation for 3 years at the headquarters in Montenegro.

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