Understanding Printing Companies: Internal & External Factors, Industry Analysis & Classification
Internal & External Factors Influencing Printing Companies
Internal Factors
These factors depend on the company itself and its core business idea. Entrepreneurship plays a vital role, encompassing organizational skills, risk-taking, and innovation. Key internal factors include:
- The core business idea
- Entrepreneurial skills (organization, risk-taking, innovation)
- Ownership of production factors
- Know-how (knowledge of technology and organization)
External Factors
External factors are influenced by the surrounding environment and market conditions. These include:
- Sales Market Situation: Features and location of potential competitors, especially small businesses.
- Purchasing Market Possibilities: Availability of raw materials and goods, price levels, and delivery times.
- Location: Proximity to sales and purchasing markets, distribution facilities. (Less critical now due to digital communication and remote file transfer.)
- Resource Availability: Access to labor and other necessary resources.
- Social & Institutional Factors: Grants for startups and other support systems.
The Rise of Fast Printing Companies
Large cities have seen a surge in fast printing companies. These businesses combine the advantages of large companies (advanced technology) with those of small businesses (low overhead, direct employee responsibility). They often cater to administrative agencies, large company offices, and service companies with high documentation needs. Their services typically include photocopying, plotting, posters, graphic design, labeling, scanning, digital printing, file conversion, remote file transfer, faxing, laminating, and binding.
Printing Companies by Product Type
7.1. Commercial Product Printing Companies
Characteristics:
- Flexible structure, mostly small and medium enterprises (SMEs)
- Good economic and debt capacity
- High degree of professionalism
- Focus on short and medium print runs of publishing products
- Work with structured and planned designs, various technical materials, and finishing processes
- Manufacture products with high added value
- Offer high productivity within customer-specified timeframes
Weaknesses:
- Often family businesses with uncontrolled growth
- High fixed costs relative to structure
- Insufficient expertise in some cases
- Imbalance in production capacity (some processes undersized, others oversized)
- Dependence on suppliers for finished products
- Insufficient workload planning
- Lack of management culture and cost control
- Lack of applicable legislation and regulations
- Limited use of contracts for orders
- Highly aggressive market competition
7.2. Corporate Publishing Product Printing Companies
Characteristics:
- Mostly medium to large enterprises
- More rigid structure but with adaptability
- Good economic and debt capacity
- High professionalism and involvement
- Medium and long print runs
- Non-repetitive printing
- Complex and varied designs
- Products with high added value
- Offer a wide range of services to customers
Weaknesses:
- Often family businesses focused on specialization
- Oversized in machinery and workforce relative to demand
- Limited flexibility
- Excessive changes in production planning
- Lack of management culture in most cases
- Limited policy implementation
- Contractual orders
- High competition in a globalized market
The Impact of Business Clusters
Experts highlight the positive impact of business clusters in the printing industry:
Benefits of Clusters:
- Increased productivity
- Driven innovation
- Stimulation of new enterprise creation
- Reduction of opportunistic behavior
- Increased coordination between businesses
The cluster approach aims to invigorate the graphic and communication product sector and improve the competitiveness of associated companies. Key actions include promoting new businesses, fostering innovation, encouraging collaboration, supporting internationalization, optimizing performance and training, and facilitating access to funding.
Classification of Companies
3.1. By Economic Sector
3.1.1. Primary Sector:
Involves obtaining natural resources without transformation (e.g., agriculture, livestock, fisheries).
3.1.2. Secondary Sector:
Transforms raw materials into finished or semi-finished goods (e.g., manufacturing, printing).
3.1.3. Tertiary Sector (Services):
Provides services, including commercial companies (selling goods) and service companies (e.g., transportation). A fourth sector is emerging, encompassing media and information technology.
3.2. By Ownership
(Further details on company classification by ownership were not provided in the original text.)