Globally, all sectors of the printing industry have been negatively impacted by the pandemic and the severe downswing it caused in economic activity. Printers around the world were affected by the fact that marketing spend was cut in every sector. This resulted in purchasing decisions for new equipment being deferred or even cancelled in 2020.

The trend in 2021 has seen a complete reversal of this with equipment sales in this year surpassing those of 2019 in many sectors as marketing budgets start to normalise and printers realise the need for new equipment in order to remain competitive and to be able to meet the needs of their clients. This trend has been seen in all sectors of the market, but specifically in the large-format printer market, as this is where the majority of outdoor marketing materials are created.

Local large-format printer brand AM.CO.ZA for example, has seen a dramatic increase in the number of units being purchased and is expected to exceed 150 units installed this year. At the end of the second quarter of this year, this brand had achieved sales of just over 60 units, which shows increasing growth in Q3 and Q4, despite the fact that these are periods in which the third and fourth wave of the pandemic hit the local market.

According to Eric Yin founder and managing director of Advanced Machinery, owner of the AM.CO.ZA brand, the growth is due in part to the fact that many companies are realising the urgent need to identify and solidify the “new normal” by factoring the pandemic into their business decisions. He added, ‘Another factor is that many companies are looking for the same high levels of quality and productivity which they always have but with lower purchasing costs, lower operating costs, better support and on-going and consistent access to training. These are all integral parts of the equipment we supply and has resulted in AM.CO.ZA becoming the leading brand in the large-format printer market which incorporates all devices over 150cm width.’

Another factor which has boosted the volume of sales is the recent local government elections which gave added impetus to the economic recovery by fuelling confidence and increasing the level of spend in this sector.

Nationally, Johannesburg is the largest market, with more than one-third of all large-format printers sold by Advanced Machinery being installed in this geographic region, and more than half of all large-format printers sold in Gauteng. That said, Advanced Machinery has distribution centres in Johannesburg and Cape Town and is able to service customers around the country and even into neighbouring countries from these centres. In addition, the company has developed a strong on-line presence which means that technical assistance, support and training can be provided remotely, thereby reducing timescales and increasing customer productivity.

About AM.CO.ZA Large Format Printers: AM.CO.ZA brand has been in the large format printer market since 2015. The New FastCOLOUR ONE Printer has been in the SA market from October, 2019. The FastCOLOUR One Printer is a Hybrid Printer that has multiple functions. It does both Roll to Roll printing and Flatbed printing. For more information about FastCOLOUR Large Format Printers, visit http://LargeFormatPrinter.co.za/

About Advanced Machinery (Pty) Ltd: the core company of the AM.CO.ZA brand, which is a leading supplier of CNC cutting and large-format printing solutions aimed primarily at industrial applications with a view to maximising our customer’s productivity, efficiency and profitability. Our products are designed to provide the highest levels of production capability to meet the needs of a range of customers from the small office home office market right through to industrial applications which require large-scale continuous production. We believe in providing complete solutions. This means that all ancillary equipment is supplied as part of a comprehensive solution ensuring that our customers know what they are getting and how much they will be paying. Please visit https://am.co.za/ for more products we sell.