Global Flexographic Printing Market – Industry Trends and Forecast to 2031

Global Flexographic Printing Market, By Offering (Flexographic Printing Machine, Flexographic Printing Ink), Component (Software, Services, Hardware), Type (Water-based Inks, Solvent-based Inks, Energy-curable Inks), Method (Inline Type press, Central Impression press, Stack Type press), Form (Narrow web, Medium web, Wide web), Automation Type (Automatic, Semi-automatic), Application (Corrugated Packaging, Flexible Packaging, Labels & Tags, Cartons, Others) - Industry Trends and Forecast to 2031.

Flexographic Printing Market Analysis and Size

The flexographic printing market is moderately fragmented, 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 of the market are aiming to expand their customer base across other countries. These companies leverage strategic collaborative initiatives to augment their market share and increase profitability.

Data Bridge Market Research analyzes that the global flexographic printing market is expected to reach USD 5,452.3 million by 2031, from USD 3,923.20 million in 2023, and is expected to undergo a CAGR of 4.20% during the forecast period of 2024 to 2031. “Flexographic printing machine” dominates the components segment of the market due to demand from growing markets. The growth of the packaging industry is one of the major factors driving the growth of the flexographic printing market. In addition to the market insights such as market value, growth rate, market segments, geographical coverage, market players, and market scenario, the market report curated by the Data Bridge Market Research team includes in-depth expert analysis, import/export analysis, pricing analysis, production consumption analysis, and pestle analysis.

Report Scope and Market Segmentation

Market Definition

Flexography, also known as flexo printing, is a modern form of printing that uses a flexible relief plate to print on almost any type of substrate, including plastic, metallic films, cellophane, and paper. The process is essentially a modern version of letterpress, evolved with high-speed rotary functionality. The pre-press process is extremely important for flexographic printing, as inaccuracies in preparing the artwork or plate-making can lead to a lot of wasted ink and materials. The printing process involves multiple printing stations, with each station printing a single color. The substrate has to pass through many printing stations, with each roll of material passed through multiple flexible rotary plates, with each flexible plate used for a single printed color. Flexography is widely used in the packaging industry, with about 60% of the industry using flexographic printing in some way.

Global Flexographic Printing Market Dynamics

Driver

• Growth of the packaging industry

The packaging industry is driven by increasing consumer demand for packaged goods, contributing significantly to flexographic printing demand as flexographic printing is widely used for packaging materials such as labels, cartons, bags, and flexible packaging. The packaging industry is continually evolving with growing trends such as booming E- commerce and online shopping, due to which there is a surge in demand for packaging material to protect and deliver the products. Increased awareness towards sustainability of the environment and demand for eco- friendly packaging solutions by the companies have added to the growth of this industry.

Opportunity

• Customization and personalization packaging

Flexographic printing allows businesses to create custom designs and branding that stands out in the market. This uniqueness helps brands differentiate themselves and establish a strong identity in consumers' minds. The versatility provided by the flexographic printing market are well-suited for producing tailored packaging solutions rendering the demand of customization by the consumers based on target demographics, events, or seasons. Flexographic printing can integrate variable data printing, enabling the incorporation of individualized text, images, and QR codes. This capability is particularly valuable for promotions, personalized messages, and serialized labels. Moreover, its printing efficiency makes producing small batches of customized products feasible, catering to niche markets and micro-targeted audiences, which creates opportunities for the market.

Restraints/Challenges

• Shift in market demand

Changing consumer preferences for packaging design, materials, and sustainability practices increases demand for flexographic printers to offer solutions that align with these shifting demands. The rise of e-commerce has led to unique packaging requirements, such as shipping-friendly designs and unboxing experiences. Flexographic printers must cater to these specialized needs to serve e-commerce businesses effectively. The trend towards shorter print runs and on-demand printing requires flexographic printers to optimize their processes to efficiently cater to these smaller production quantities. In addition to that brands also become more price-sensitive due to economic fluctuations. Flexographic printers must balance cost-effective solutions while delivering high-quality, visually appealing printed materials.

Impact and Current Market Scenario of Raw Material Shortage and Shipping Delays

Data Bridge Market Research offers a high-level analysis of the market and delivers information by keeping in account the impact and current market environment of raw material shortage and shipping delays. This translates into assessing strategic possibilities, creating effective action plans, and assisting businesses in making important decisions.

Apart from the standard report, we also offer in-depth analysis of the procurement level from forecasted shipping delays, distributor mapping by region, commodity analysis, production analysis, price mapping trends, sourcing, category performance analysis, supply chain risk management solutions, advanced benchmarking, and other services for procurement and strategic support.

Expected Impact of Economic Slowdown on the Pricing and Availability of Products

When economic activity slows, industries begin to suffer. The forecasted effects of the economic downturn on the pricing and accessibility of the products are taken into account in the market insight reports and intelligence services provided by DBMR. With this, our clients can typically keep one step ahead of their competitors, project their sales and revenue, and estimate their profit and loss expenditures.

Recent Developments

• In February 2021, Mark Andy, Inc. (U.S.) announced the launch of its latest production inkjet press, Digital Series iQ. Built on Mark Andy Inc. evolution series of flexographic platform for providing flexibility in various applications, the press uses a Domino N610i UV inkjet module for high-quality production-class printing. Moreover the press has a high-quality print resolution achieving speeds up to 230 fpm (70 mpm) in rapid production mode
• In August 2022, Windmöller & Hölscher (W&H) has launched the VISTAFLEX II, which is Cl flexographic press with wide-web press that could run jobs 24/7 with a speed of up to 800 m/min (2,620 ft/min) with quick and easy job changeovers. Moreover, this version is launched with technical upgradation and modern look

Global Flexographic Printing Market Scope

The flexographic printing market is segmented on the basis of offering, component, type, method, form, automation type and application. The growth amongst these segments will help you analyze meager growth segments in the industries and provide the users with a valuable market overview and market insights to help them make strategic decisions for identifying core market applications.

Offering

• Flexographic Printing Machine
• Flexographic Printing Ink

Component

• Software
• Services
• Hardware

Type

• Water-based Inks
• Solvent-based Inks
• Energy-curable Inks

Method

• Inline Type press
• Central Impression press
• Stack Type press

Form

• Narrow web
• Medium web
• Wide web

Automation Type

• Automatic
• Semi-automatic

Application

• Corrugated Packaging
• Flexible Packaging
• Labels & Tags
• Cartons
• Others

Global Flexographic Printing Market Region Analysis/Insights

The flexographic printing market is analyzed and market size insights and trends are provided by region, offering, type, method, form, automation type and application as referenced above.

The regions covered in the market are North America, South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East and Africa. The countries covered in the market report are U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, rest of South America, Germany, Italy, U.K., France, Spain, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Turkey, Russia, rest of Europe, Japan, China, India, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, rest of Asia-Pacific, Saudi Arabia, U.A.E., South Africa, Egypt, Israel, and rest of the Middle East and Africa.

North America is expected to dominate the market because North America is home to renowned research institutions, universities, and technology companies that conduct cutting-edge research in photonics and integrated circuit technologies. This strong R&D ecosystem fosters innovation and drives advancements in flexographic printing circuits.

Asia-Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing country in the market due to the Asia-Pacific region's large and rapidly growing population, along with a significant increase in internet usage and data consumption. This drives the demand for high-speed and efficient communication networks, which can benefit from the use of flexible printing circuits. PICs are capable of integrating multiple optical components on a single chip, making them well-suited for high-speed data transmission and communication applications.

The region section of the report also provides individual market-impacting factors and changes in regulation in the market domestically that impact the current and future trends of the market. Data points like downstream and upstream value chain analysis, technical trends, and Porter’s five forces analysis, case studies are some of the pointers used to forecast the market scenario for individual countries. Also, the presence and availability of global brands and the challenges faced due to large or scarce competition from local and domestic brands, the impact of domestic tariffs, and trade routes are considered while providing forecast analysis of the region data.   

Competitive Landscape and Global Flexographic Printing Market Share Analysis

The flexographic printing market competitive landscape provides details of competitors. Details included are company overview, company financials, revenue generated, market potential, investment in research and development, new market initiatives, global presence, production sites and facilities, production capacities, company strengths and weaknesses, product launch, product width and breadth, and application dominance. The above data points provided are only related to the companies' focus related to the flexographic printing market.

Some of the major players operating in the flexographic printing market are:

• Bobst (Switzerland)
• Mark Andy Inc. (U.S.)
• Windmöller & Hölscher (Germany)
• Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Germany)
• MPS Systems B.V. (Netherlands)
• NilpeterA/S (U.S.)
• Amcor Plc (Australia)
• Aim Machinetechnik Pvt. Ltd (India)
• Rotatek (Germany)
• Koenig & Bauer AG (Germany)
• Comexi (Spain)
• Uteco (Italy)
• Codimag (France)
• Gaullus (Switzerland)
• Tresu Group (Denmark)
• Komori Corporation (Japan)
• Nuova Gidue (Italy)
• Omet Group (Italy)
• Flint Group (Luxembourg)
• Allstein GmbH (Germany)
• Soma Engineering (Czech Republic)
• Edale (Italy)
• Barry Wehmiller (U.S.)
• Westrock (U.S.)
• Andreson & Vreeland (U.S.)