▲Specialist print consultant, Jean Lloyd, says PSPs that try to force digital into long-run work, or litho into highly versioned “The future is not about choosing between litho or digital, but about leveraging both strategically to deliver maximum efficiency, quality, and commercial advantage.” Shifting Relationship Also weighing in is Chuck Slingerland, vice president of Barberan Corrugated, part of Barberan S.A., a specialist manufacturer of single‑pass digital printing solutions for retail packaging and displays, flooring, and metal applications. On the subject of using both litho and digital print within the same workflow, Slingerland says the relationship is shifting – and quite decisively. “Backed by Barberán S.A’s 18 years of single pass production expertise, we see the market moving toward a truly hybrid print model in which litho and digital are complementary rather than competing technologies,” Slingerland says, adding: “Printers now intelligently route each job to the most suitable process: offset for long, stable runs at the lowest unit cost, and digital for short runs, variable data, quick turnaround, and on demand reprints. “Because workflows, colour management, substrates, and finishing are increasingly unified, it’s becoming seamless to combine both processes within the same workflow or even the same campaign. As print buyers focus more on speed, flexibility, and consistent quality than on the underlying print method, Barberán’s single pass solutions enable digital to enhance and support offset instead of displacing it; maximising efficiency, responsiveness, and profitability across the entire operation.” While Slingerland says litho and digital are genuinely complementary, especially in mid to large commercial operations where they share prepress, workflows, and finishing, this may not be the case in smaller or traditional shops. He explains that digital is used more as a secondary device for proofs, micro runs, and rush jobs, and while the complementarity is real, it is not fully optimised due to limited automation, colour or stock constraints, and cultural resistance. However, Slingerland maintains Hybrid workflows that combine offset and digital give printers leverage on both the production and commercial sides. He says: “Operationally, they allow you to route each job to the most efficient process – offset for long, stable runs, and digital for short, variable, or rush work – while relying on shared prepress/MIS and common finishing. That integration cuts touchpoints, waste, and inventory, and helps smooth out capacity peaks across the plant. “Commercially, you can offer a much broader range of options: from large, multiwave campaigns to tiny test batches and highly personalised or last-minute components. It lets you position your business as a campaign and problem-solving partner rather than just a “press owner,” improve margins by steering work to the most profitable process, and build loyalty by handling all of your customers’ needs under one consistent, colour managed roof.” On this, Slingerland notes how Barberán S.A.’s engineering forward culture is “very much aligned with this future”. He explains how the manufacturer designs its single pass solutions so they can live alongside offset, not replace it, giving printers a coherent, integrated environment rather than forcing an either-or choice. In this model, he explains how offset handles long, stable, cost driven runs, while digital takes care of variable, fast changing, and risk sensitive work, with jobs automatically steered to whichever process best fits the campaign, schedule, and supply chain needs. “Lithographic and digital printing will continue to compete at the edges, especially as faster, more cost effective digital systems push into volumes once dominated by offset, but the overall direction is toward tighter integration in shared workflows,” Slingerland says, concluding: “Common prepress, MIS, colour standards, substrates, and finishing increasingly let printers treat both processes as interchangeable tools inside one hybrid production platform.” Mature and Realistic Approach Away from manufacturers, Jean Lloyd, a specialist print consultant and a global ambassador for Print Island, says the relationship between litho and digital is complementary. She says most successful PSPs are combining both within a single workflow to maximise efficiency, flexibility, and profitability. “For a long time, the industry positioned digital and litho print as competitors, with digital expected to replace conventional processes,” Lloyd says, adding: “Having been in the market during those early days, I can say that simply didn’t happen, and it was never going to. “What we’re seeing now is a far more mature, realistic approach. Digital print, particularly inkjet printing, has evolved significantly in terms of quality, speed, and volume capacity. At the same time, litho hasn’t stood still. Press manufacturers have improved makeready times, reduced waste, and made short-run litho far more viable.” Lloyd goes on to set out how each technology has its own advantages. With digital print, she says it delivers its strongest value where flexibility and responsiveness are critical, pointing out how short runs, versioning, variable data, and fast turnaround times are where inkjet really excels. “However, the real value isn’t just in the technology itself; it’s in how it’s used,” Lloyd says, expanding: “The most successful PSPs are those who understand how to The most effective and future-proof production model today is hybrid British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF) research shows digital print was responsible for an estimated 37% of all printed media in the UK in 2025 Factoid LITHOGRAPHIC AND DIGITAL PRINT | ROB FLETCHER 44 Issue 360 - May | June 2026 email: editor@printmonthly.co.uk
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjM0NDIxOA==