Océ Writes the Book on Digital Printing with ‘Roll Over Gutenberg’

Fast-forward just over 500 years. Today, digital book printing technologies are revolutionizing the book supply chain once again. Today, companies like Océ offer a varied portfolio of advanced digital printing systems that bring more color, speed, and efficiency to the world of printing. Just as Gutenberg’s press enabled the mass production of books, digital technology is transforming the traditional book printing and publishing business model. Océ Vice President of Graphic Arts, Peter Wolff, suggests that digital book printing changes the supply chain in three ways. It enables book lifecycle management, where runs alternate between offset and digital based on the stage of a title’s lifecycle. It enables books to be printed on demand (sell first, then print in a quantity of one) and in short runs (print first, then sell in smaller runs). And it eliminates the traditional value chain, specifically the inventory function of wholesalers.