Sustainability and consolidation will be the two main themes that will influence the Indian signage industry in the coming future, Vitesh Sharma, country manager, large format production business, HP India, told Indian Printer and Publisher during the Media Expo Mumbai 2022.

“Sustainability will be an important theme that will impact the Indian signage printing industry. So, anybody who is future-ready with green technology will have an edge. Consolidation will be another major underlying theme that will shape the Indian signage industry. Serious and dedicated players will become prominent in the industry and the smaller players will gradually fade away,” Sharma said.

At Media Expo Mumbai 2022, HP India was demonstrating its fourth-generation latex printers that were launched last year. On display were HP Latex 700W with white ink and HP Latex 800 without white ink. According to Sharma, the biggest highlight of these printers is that now managing white ink has become easy. Also, for the first time, white ink is at the same price as the color inks. “This is a big departure from the industry standards and customers are liking it,” he said.

HPalso showcased the 10-color Designjet Z9 Pro 64-inch printer. This printer is meant for very high-end signage printing applications such as backlit printing.

Quality visitors at Media Expo Mumbai

Sharma stated that the 2022 edition of Media Expo Mumbai was great and HP got a large number of visitors as the expo was being held after more than two years and the company had new products on display.

Vitesh Sharma of HP India

“The last two years have been extremely tough for a lot of people at personal and professional levels. Media Expo Mumbai taking place after two and half years is a big respite for the industry. We have got a signal that the revival in the Indian signage printing industry is very strong. When we talk to our customers they say they are busy and getting a lot of work,” Sharma says.

Sharma too is optimistic about the industry going forward. “Fortune of the signage industry is directly tied with the Indian economy. As we know, the Indian economy is expected to be the faster growing economy among large economies. This will have a right rub-off on the signage industry,” he concluded.