You should never break the chain

Businesses are coming to the realisation that international supply chains are unreliable, particularly when global lockdowns come into play. Shorter, localised supply chains are necessary for consistency and reliability.

There has been much discussion about supply chain integrity as the pandemic reveals weaknesses in long distance commerce. This is helping book printers as publishers recognise that buying from China has become risky: shipping is uncertain and can involve multiple links, and the supplier is vulnerable to foreign policy switches, say the US-China trade dispute. Buying local has fewer links and fewer links mean a stronger chain.

This applies to all supply chains: the fewer links there are the stronger the chain. Work from home can be considered part of this as the link between home and the place of work is currently a vulnerability to that employee and therefore that business. The future is about reduction in the number of links and building more resilient chains with fewer suppliers doing more.

Printers that understand this and can take on the links in the chain ahead of or after printing, make themselves and their customer stronger. Thus taking more management responsibility for design or for delivery or sales. Many display printers know this and will take charge of the installation of what they print. Other printers should be thinking on the same lines.

Gareth Ward