Inkjet & Digital Printing
HP to Present Digital Book Production Solutions for Publishers at London Book Fair
Monday 04. March 2013 - New HP SmartBooks Toolkit enables supply chain analysis for production planning
HP today announced that it will be presenting digital printing solutions for publishers as well as demonstrating the new HP SmartBooks Toolkit for calculating the most cost-effective production methods for books, at the London Book Fair, 15 – 17 April 2013, Earls Court, London.
On the HP stand (N500) will be a variety of samples showing the range and quality of books that can be printed using HP digital printing technologies. HP Indigo and HP Inkjet Color Inkjet Web Presses offer publishers the means of producing high-quality, colour-rich art and coffee-table books, hard and soft-cover monochrome books, and short runs of highly specialised books for medical, legal and educational purposes.
“Today’s publishers face rapidly changing market and economic conditions,” said Paul Randall, market development manager, Publishing Segment, EMEA, HP. “Publishing solutions based on digital printing from HP can help reduce the risks that publishers face when bringing titles to market, including overstocking, incurring storage costs and, ultimately, having to pulp unsold books.”
High-end colour books and covers can now be produced in larger formats using the recently launched HP Indigo 10000 Digital Press that handles large-format sheets(1) and can facilitate fast-turnaround book production in short to medium runs. Books produced on HP digital presses may be printed on a wide range of coated and uncoated papers (including recycled stocks) in matt, semi-gloss and gloss finishes, giving publishers and book designers the opportunity to exercise creativity.
The new HP SmartBooks Toolkit, shown for the first time at the London Book Fair, is an in-depth financial modelling tool for publishers to use with individual titles to analyse the financial implications of printing conventionally, digitally, or by both methods at different times over a two-year life cycle.
Whether a debut novel or a virtually sure-fire book from an established writer, HP SmartBooks can help publishers plot the different phases of the book’s life. This will assist publishing companies in regulating their cash flow through the use of digital printing to help them benefit from the associated reductions in transport and storage costs.
At this year’s show, there will be opportunities for publishers to meet with HP business development personnel and learn how the HP SmartBook Toolkit could help their businesses.
The next big thing in publishing – print!
HP digital printing combines the advantages of offset litho quality with production immediacy and flexibility. Publishers can respond quickly to market demands and editorial changes and updates – a great advantage for content-sensitive publications like textbooks, law books, travel guides and other books that need to compete with online information.
Publishers are also able to generate income from their backlists without the major expense of a conventional reprint of thousands of copies. Print runs as low as one can be viable when printing digitally, and backlists need never again be “out of print.”
Since their launch, more than 90 HP Color Inkjet Web Presses have been installed worldwide and have printed more than 25 billion pages – with a current rate of a billion pages per month.
About 250 specialist book printers are using HP digital presses (HP Indigo and HP Color Inkjet Web Presses) in 50 countries across six continents. These digital presses are enabling publishers to “Think Global and Print Local” and adapt their printing strategies, reduce risk and better respond to demand in specific markets.