Ereview

Abstract

The top printing trade associations and scholars who study this industry have found that the demand for print services provided by commercial printers has declined. One major cause of this decline appears to be the growing electronic distribution of documents. Also, digital presses and high-volume office copiers now make it possible for corporations to print their own high-quality documents internally. A third explanation for the decline may be the fact that suppliers are adding printing to their service offerings, thus competing directly with the services provided by commercial printers. This month we look at a new RIT Printing Industry Center research monograph, Sourcing of Corporate Print: Three Case Studies (PICRM-2005-02) by Patricia Sorce, to understand these factors and others that impact the demand for outsourced commercial printing by corporations.