Quocirca’s Future of Work 2025 report reveals that although inkjet printing is gaining increased acceptance in the office, it remains a complementary rather than replacement technology for laser printing for many businesses.
Inkjet print technology, once the almost exclusive domain of the home and consumer sector, has gradually closed the gap with laser print technology. Laser printers and MFPs are traditionally faster, quieter, and more durable, with superior print quality, However, inkjet technology innovation means that next generation inkjet print is closing the gap with laser print technology. Some inkjet printers and MFPs can match laser printers in terms of speed, with improved quality. Duty cycles, print management and networking features are all key considerations along with environmental features such as energy consumption as well as use of plastics, consumables and recyclability.
Quocirca’s research, based on the views of 1,021 office workers and 521 IT decision makers in France, Germany, the UK and the US, reveals that a quarter (25%) of businesses have already adopted inkjet technology as a result of the pandemic, with another third (32%) expecting to do so in the coming year.
As organisations move to a more distributed model to support hybrid work, office inkjet printers and MFPs can complement and, in some cases, replace a traditional A3 MFP (laser-based) fleet. In many cases, it is likely that office inkjet is supporting this balanced deployment approach, depending on the use case.,
Midmarket firms, and those based in the US are ahead in terms of inkjet adoption
Organisations based in the US and those with 500-999 employees – are ahead in terms of harnessing inkjet technology. Just 10% of those in the US have no plans to move from laser to inkjet technology, compared to 23% in France, 22% in Germany and 20% in the UK. Conversely, 35% of US businesses have already made this move, with another 35% planning to do so in the coming year, compared to an average of 19% and 29% respectively in the European markets (with the UK behind, with only 13% having already implemented the shift).
In terms of organisation size, 32% of midmarket organisations have moved to inkjet, versus 28% of those with over 1000 employees, 22% of those with 250-499 employees and just 18% of those with between 100 and 249 staff.
These midmarket firms tend to also be ahead in terms of digitisation, more rapidly adopting managed print services (MPS) and, to a lesser extent, sustainability. Where these firms, along with those based in the US lead, others follow, and it is likely that behaviours seen amongst these organisations will become mainstream as inkjet technology in the office gathers momentum.
Financial services organisations are most engaged with inkjet
Almost a third (31%) of financial services firms have already shifted to inkjet, with a further 34% set to follow in their footsteps in the next 12 months. Those operating in business and professional services are also ahead (30% already using inkjet and another 30% planning to do so within the year), while only 19% of industrials firms have already made the shift and 25% in the sector having no plans to do so at any stage. Those in financial services are markedly more likely to anticipate an increase in volumes of inkjet printing by 2025 (58%), compared to just 33% of those in industrials and retail. For all three of these verticals, this is again alongside an increase in volume of laser printing as opposed to a full-scale shift.
Firms based in the US are most likely to say they anticipate an increase in inkjet volumes (of 4% on average), although European firms are more likely to anticipate a reduction (of 3% on average, higher for the UK and lower for France and Germany).This pattern is the same in terms of laser print volumes, with those in the US anticipating an increase of around 5%, and European firms a decrease of 1% on average.
Sustainability has driven the move towards inkjet technology, and is crucial to communicate
Depending on the printer, laser printers can consume significant energy in the process of heating up the toner before printing, so typically consume more electricity than inkjets. There are also different environmental considerations to take into account around the sustainability of ink and toner cartridges along with recyclability.
Those who consider sustainability extremely important to their business activities are most likely to have shifted to inkjet printing (43%) and also to anticipate an increase in usage of the technology by 2025 (62%). The greater extent to which the financial services vertical has embraced inkjet is likely to be driven by their high commitment to sustainability (55% rate environmental concerns as very or extremely important to the business). As environmental concerns become more embedded in business practice and organisations have quantifiable targets to meet, inkjet printing could be a viable alternative to laser. The environmental impact of printing can be further reduced by responsible print policies and practices. By the end of 2023, 61% of organisations plan to have responsible print policies in place, and guidance on when to deploy inkjet printers could play have an impactful part within these.
What does this mean for suppliers?
Suppliers should consider extending hardware portfolios to incorporate inkjet technology. However, such devices will still need to be able to adhere to corporate standards around quality, manageability, and security. Suppliers can also help organisations identify where inkjet printers can help them lighten their environmental impact and save money, and where laser printing will make more sense for them, as well as helping them create infrastructures and responsible print policies tailored to their unique requirements in terms of print speed and quality. Sustainability will be an important message for suppliers to communicate to all customers and potential customers when discussing the advantages of both inkjet and laser print technology.
Find out more in Quocirca’s Future of Work 2025 Report
