The large-format sign and display graphics sector continues to grow and represents a significant portion of today’s marketing mix. According to InfoTrends, a strategy and consulting firm for the digital printing and document technology industries, the retail value of large-format graphics increased by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.9 per cent from 2010 to 2016. From the world’s largest brands to small businesses, non-profit organizations, schools and even individual consumers, the demand for short-run, wide-format graphics for promotions, special events, point-of-purchase (POP) displays and other applications has never been greater.
随着大幅面图形领域不断发展，它成为了当今营销组合的重要组成部分。数字印刷战略咨询公司InfoTrends称：“2010年至206年，大幅面图形的零售价格年复合增长率（CAGR）增长7.9％，来自全球大品牌对小型企业、非营利组织、学校甚至个人消费者而言，促销、特殊活动、购买点（POP）显示器和其他应用程序的短版宽幅图形的需求从未如此强烈。”
With this sustained year-over-year growth in the sign and display graphics business, wide-format digital inkjet printing continues to represent a strong and attractive profit opportunity for printing companies. As a result, many print service providers (PSPs) are now bolstering their product offerings with wide-format inkjet-based output.
随着标识图形业务的持续同比增长，宽幅数字喷墨打印继续为打印公司带来强大和诱人的获利机会。因此，许多打印服务提供商（PSP）现在正在通过宽幅喷墨打印输出，来支持他们的产品。
In some cases, they are helping their existing customers expand into signage and further large-format graphic applications. In other cases, they are seeking to attract new customers with the in-house ability to produce high-quality, high-margin graphics on demand.
在某些情况下，他们正在帮助现有客户扩展更大型的图形应用程序，寻求吸引新客户的各种方式，并拥有内部按需生产高质量、高利润率图形的能力。
Buying a new wide-format digital inkjet printer, however, is a significant investment that must be carefully considered beforehand. It is important to analyze the true costs of running the machine, among other factors that can affect its return on investment (ROI).
然而，购买新型宽幅数字喷墨打印机是一项重大投资，必须事先仔细考虑，分析好运行机器的真实成本，以及可能影响投资回报（ROI）的其他因素。
The first step in determining the ‘bottom line’ involves evaluating the current state of the business and its existing graphic production platforms. Many PSPs and sign shops already have some type of digital inkjet printer and may even already be fully digital facilities, but not all of these output devices are created equal. They can differ in terms of both ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ costs, inks, printing capacity and volume and environmental sustainability, among other factors.
第一步是评估企业的现状和现有的图形制作平台。许多PSP和标识商店已经有一些类型的数字喷墨打印机，甚至拥有完全数字化的设备，但并非所有输出设备都一样，它们在硬件和软件的成本、油墨、打印能力和数量，以及环境可持续性等方面存在一定差异。
Productivity
生产率
For many shops considering a major investment in a new printer, the natural inclination may be to look for the best deal, but this does not necessarily mean choosing the lowest price. ROI and ongoing profitability are based on more than the initial cost; they will also depend on what types of jobs the printer will handle, how many square feet of graphics it will output each hour (i.e. throughput), the quality of that output, the colour gamut and the types of inks.
对于考虑在新打印机上投入大量资金的标识商店来说，自然会寻找最好的交易方式，但这并不一定意味着会选择低的价格。投资回报率和持续盈利能力的基础是高于初始成本，它们将取决于打印机处理的作业类型、每小时将输出多少平方英尺的图形（即吞吐量）、输出的质量、色域和墨水的类型。
All of these factors must be considered together to make the right decision. More important than how many square feet of graphics can be printed in an hour, after all, is how much profit the shop can make from selling each of those square feet.
所有这些因素必须一起考虑才能做出正确的决定。毕竟，在一小时内，打印多少平方英尺的图形，比商店销售每平方英尺可赚取的利润更为重要。
Further, production capacity that goes unused or output that will have to be heavily discounted will erode the value of the printer. So, it is important to calculate how many hours of production per day or week, based on a level of work the shop can reasonably expect to sell at the right price, will be required to achieve a reasonable ROI. The equipment should pay for itself as quickly as possible within this context.
此外，未使用的产量或需要大量打折的产量会削弱打印机的价值。因此，根据规模合理预期，以合适的价格进行销售，计算每天或每周的生产小时数，以获得合理的投资回报率是非常重要的，在这种情况下，设备应尽快付款。
Substrates
基材
The mix of substrates for the new printer is another important consideration. A sign shop may plan to print directly onto flexible media and/or onto rigid materials; its choice in this regard will help narrow the search for the best printing platform.
新打印机的混合基材是另一个重要的考虑因素。标识商店可能计划直接在柔性介质或刚性材料上进行打印，在这方面的选择将有助于缩小打印平台的搜索范围。
It is also important to factor in both the ‘buy’ and ‘sell’ prices of substrates that will be run through the printer, with an eye on leveraging higher profit margins by minimizing material costs. With ultraviolet-curing (UV-curing) printers, for example, a sign shop can use non-coated substrates, which generally cost less than coated materials, thus allowing it to widen its opportunity for profit. And waste should be taken into account, with consideration given to the amount of ‘extra’ material a sign shop may normally expect to need and the relative costs of the substrates that shop can source for its printer.
此外，通过考虑对打印机运行基材的买入和售出价格也很重要，同时也要注意通过降低材料成本来提高利润率。例如，对于UV固化打印机，标识商店可以使用非涂布基材，通常这种基材成本低于涂布材料，可以扩大获利机会。考虑到标识商店预期需要额外材料的数量，商店可以为打印机提供基材的相关成本，考虑会浪费的费用。
Substrate weight might also be an issue, particularly if wide-format graphics will be shipped to clients who are seeking to reduce their freight costs. Light-emitting diode-based (LED-based) UV-curing printers can use thinner, lighter, heat-sensitive materials, for example, which can save on shipping costs. (The LEDs also require less energy than traditional UV lamps, yielding further savings in terms of operational costs.) In addition to financial advantages, there is also the environmental advantage of reducing the carbon footprint associated with shipping.
除此之外，基材的重量也可能是一个问题，如果宽幅图形将运送到寻求降低运输成本的客户那里，也是可节约费用的。例如，基于发光二极管（LED）的UV固化打印机可以使用更薄、更轻、对热敏感的材料，这就节省了运输成本。与传统UV灯相比，这些LED的能耗更低，从而进一步节省了运营成本。除了在经济方面的优势外，减少航运相关的碳排放上也有着明显的优势。
For that matter, the ability with UV-LEDs to print on heat-sensitive materials opens
the door to working with a broader variety
of inexpensive films and boards that would otherwise warp or buckle during printing. So, there can be savings above and beyond those associated with uncoated substrates for UV-curing printers.
就此而言，使用UV-LED在热敏材料上打印的能力，为更广泛的廉价薄膜和电路板的工作打开了市场大门，否则打印过程中会发生翘曲或弯曲的问题。因此，UV固化打印机可以节省一定的成本。
Inks
油墨
Ink prices should be considered in terms of square feet, rather than litres, because coverage levels on the substrate can significantly affect ongoing costs. The price per bottle will not tell the whole story in terms of profitability per print.
由于基材上的覆盖水平可能会显着影响持续成本，油墨价格应以平方英尺计算，而不是升， 每瓶的价格并不能说明每件打印品的盈利能力。
The type of ink used—durable aqueous ‘latex,’ solvent-based or UV-curable—will have an impact in terms of consumption, print production time, graphic durability, application range and environmental sustainability.
使用的油墨类型包括耐用水性胶乳、溶剂型或UV固化型，在打印生产时间，图形的耐用性、应用范围和环境可持续性方面都会对最终的产品产生影响。
UV-curable inks, for example, are not only compatible with a wide range of flexible and rigid substrates, but have also become popular in the sign industry because they cure or ‘set’ quickly, yielding dry graphics that are immediately ready to move onto the next step in the production process; turnaround times are a major issue for many customers. UV inks offer environmental advantages over the solvent-based inks of the past, which contained noxious volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and required ventilation systems.
例如，UV固化油墨不仅与广泛的柔性和刚性基材相容，在标识行业中也很受欢迎，它可以快速固化，产生干燥的图形，立即进入生产过程中的下一步。在周转时间上，与过去的溶剂型油墨相比，UV油墨具有环境优势，并含有有毒挥发性有机化合物（VOC）和所需的通风系统。
Many other inks require heating or greater drying time to achieve a proper cure, which entails special equipment and, thus, extra power consumption. And some inks are not water-resistant, so they will require an overcoat or lamination if the finished graphics are intended for outdoor installation.
而其他墨水需要加热或更长的干燥时间才能实现适当的固化，不仅需要特殊的设备，还需要额外的能耗。有些油墨不耐水，如果成品图像是用于户外安装的话，他们需要外套或层压。
That said, UV inks are not the best answer for every application, so it is important for signmakers to do their homework first, learning about how the type of ink selected will affect their scope of applications.
也就是说，UV油墨不是每个应用的选择，对于标牌制作者来说，首先要做好功课，了解所选油墨的类型，以及它会影响的应用范围，这一点非常重要。
Another consideration that has become significant in wide-format printing in recent years is white ink. When a sign shop can print layers of white, it can output graphics on a broader array of substrates, including dark and transparent materials, which increases the variety of applications it can offer to customers. White ink is often required for window clings, backlit graphics, architectural features, packaging and prototypes, many of which can entail higher profit margins for the shop than other applications.
近年来，在宽幅打印中，需要考虑的一个重要因素是白色墨水。当一家标识商店打印白色的图层时，白色墨水可以在更广泛的基材上输出图像，包括深色和透明材料，为客户扩充了各种应用。白色墨水通常用于窗贴、背光图形、建筑外包，这些比其他应用程序能获得更高的利润。
Printheads
打印头
The choice of inkjet printhead technology will also have an impact on ink consumption and quality of output.
喷墨打印头的选择同样会对墨水的消耗和输出的质量产生影响。
Today’s piezoelectric drop-on-demand (DoD) inkjet technologies comprise three primary types of printheads:
今天的压电按需喷墨技术包括三种主要类型的打印头：
Binary—A single drop size is ejected from the printhead. This type of printhead can simulate greyscale effects with multiple passes but, in doing so, will consume more ink.
二元组——从打印头中可弹出墨滴。这种类型的打印头可以多次模拟灰度效果，但这样做会消耗更多的墨水。
Variable-drop—Different sizes of drops can be produced, but only one size per graphic, as this type of printhead is not capable of dynamic drop-volume changes within the same image.
可变墨滴——可以生成不同大小的墨滴，但每个图形只能固定一个大小，这种类型的打印头无法在同一图像中，进行动态墨滴量的变化。
Variable-drop greyscale—Different sizes of drops can be ejected from the printhead within the same graphic, making it easier to produce near-photographic image quality.
可变墨滴的灰度效果——可在同一图形中喷出不同大小的墨滴，使其更容易产生接近照片的图像质量。
Another aspect of printing that affects ink consumption is raster image processor (RIP) software. The RIP allows the user to control and manage image colours, contrast levels and ink laydown, optimizing the final image quality within profit targets. With the right RIP, ink volumes can be better managed from job to job.
影响墨水消耗的另一个方面是光栅图像处理器软件。RIP允许用户控制和管理图像颜色、对比度水平和油墨沉积量，从而优化利润目标内的最终图像质量。正确使用RIP，可以更好地管理不同工作过程中的墨水量。
Finishing
精加工
There are many finishing options for signs and display graphics, including cutting, lamination and mounting. With this in mind, it is important when choosing a printer to consider the entire in-house workflow, including floor space, labour and time to market for finished goods, rather than decide on the printer in isolation.
标识显示图形有许多精加工选项，包括切割、层压与安装。考虑到这些，选择打印机时，需要考虑整个内部的工作流程（包括占地面积、人工和产品的上市时间），而并非从单个方面来选择打印机。
By purchasing finishing equipment in parallel with the printer, sign shops can often improve delivery time to customers and their own ROI. A hybrid or flatbed printer, for instance, can print directly onto rigid substrates, often preventing the need to mount the graphics to another substrate and reduces waste material. A cutter or router may still be required, however, with its own floor space allotment.
通过与打印机并行购买印后设备，标识商店通常可以缩短客户的交付时间，并提高自己的投资回报率。例如，混合式或平板式打印机可以直接打印到刚性基材上，不需要将图形安装到另一个基材上，从而减少废料，但是，图形仍然需要切割机或雕刻机。
So, when upgrading or expanding from solvent-based roll-to-roll inkjet printing to UV-curing hybrid printers, there are new finishing implications that will need to be considered, with an eye on freeing up additional production time, reducing labour overtime, enabling more just-in-time (JIT) output and improving profitability. Speed of delivery is more important to customers than speed of printing, after all, and proper workflow planning can help to better optimize turnaround times.
因此，从溶剂型卷到卷喷墨打印升级到UV固化混合打印机时，需要考虑精加工带来的影响，并需要释放额外的生产时间，减少劳动时间，实现更多即时的输出提高盈利能力。毕竟，交付速度对客户来说比打印速度更为重要，正确的工作流程规划可以帮助更好地优化周转时间。
Workflow
工作流程
To accurately calculate ROI, it is important to take a close look at the actual production workflow in the shop. Workflow is an end-to-end process, involving not just the speed of the printer and time for drying and finishing, but also file processing with the RIP before printing.
要准确计算出投资回报率，仔细观察店内的实际生产工作流程非常重要。工作流程是一个端到端的过程，不仅涉及打印机的速度和整理的时间，还涉及打印之前使用RIP进行的文件处理。
An average day might include eight hours of printing and four hours of finishing, but the capacity of the new printer will determine how much can reasonably be printed within each shift. This should be considered in relation to the growth objectives of the business.
平均一天的工作量可能包括8小时的打印和4小时的印后加工，但是，新打印机的容量将决定每班次内合理打印的量，这与企业的增长目标有关。
The shop may also anticipate handling larger jobs in the future, in which case the purchasing decision would need to lean toward a higher-volume printer. If large orders are not an immediate concern, on the other hand, a lower-volume device could be a better fit, particularly while striking up a partnership with another shop to take on ‘overflow’ work as needed.
标识商店需要预计将来会处理更大型的工作，在这种情况下，需要购买更高容量的打印机。另一方面，如果大订单不是直接的问题，那么产量较低的设备可能更加适合，尤其是与另一家制造商建立了合作伙伴关系之后，以便承担更多“溢出”的工作。
In either case, wide-format inkjet printers are available today that offer capabilities for sign shops and PSPs to produce new applications, pursue diverse opportunities and enjoy more profitable margins.
目前，无论在哪种情况下，都可以使用大幅面喷墨打印机，这些喷墨打印机可以为标识商店和PSP提供新功能，以创造新的应用，追求多样化的机会，并获得更高的利润。
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