Since January, countries, cities and—most importantly—people have been impacted by the emergence of COVID-19. Printers around the world have had to make difficult decisions, face reduced business and worry about their family of employees. But, there is a glimmer of positivity that has started to peek through—innovation.
In the face of unprecedented shortages of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), the need for new messages to help guide people in staying safe and business declines due to economic shutdowns, we have seen our print industry rally to take care of the frontline workers and healthcare personnel around the world. Printers are changing their strategies from printing flyers and marketing materials to offering help in getting the word out for social distancing. Others are retooling and leveraging their production environments to create face masks and other shields to help keep our frontline workers protected.
There have been so many examples of innovation out of a sheer passion to help others from the Printing Industry. While many of the stories focus on 3D printing, there are also non-3D Print Service Providers stepping up to help including printing outdoor signage, point of display signage, floor directional decals, window clings and fabric printers that are taking on producing fabric-based face coverings and gowns.
In an article from Printing Impressions, Printers Nationwide Step Up After Hearing Calls for Help About Shortage of Medical Protective Gear Due to COVID-19, Mark Michelson shares stories of print providers that have taken up the call to support the medical field. And in many cases, they are doing this in a pure philanthropic capacity. The article is worth a read as it reminds us of all the good in the world. If you are watching the #covid19 streams on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, you likely have seen the outpouring of support from the global print community. It is uplifting to see, and we try to review it regularly to remember the importance of innovation and compassion.
At Scodix, we also know you and your print businesses are looking ahead and trying to figure out the next steps as levels of business start to be restored. Some of you have experienced record levels of volume already. As part of your plan, we suggest reading our Use This Time to Plan Your Print Comeback, #WeAreInThisTogether blog. There are many things you can do to plan for what will unfold as the new normal. If you are already a Scodix customer, we suggest different ways of leveraging the print embellishment capabilities you have in order to create engaging and standout print offerings for your clients.
For those who have not had the opportunity to invest in a Scodix Digital Print Enhancement Press, you can still leverage the capabilities by partnering with others in the print industry. Perhaps there is a printer in your area that offers these capabilities to different markets than you serve; there may be an opportunity to work together to build new business relationships. Scodix is also here for you with our representatives available to help start your journey toward new print and finishing capabilities.
Our team is committed to supporting your print business through this COVID-19 period and beyond. Whether that is through the innovations and education of our blog or through “in the news” articles we share, we look forward to working with you along the journey. And remember, be sure to thank all of those on the frontlines and those supporting them, #WeAreInThisTogether.
