Thermal Paper Market Analysis

Thermal Paper Market Analysis

Based on Type, top coated segment will grow at over 10% in thermal paper market through 2025 owing to its easy printing and excellent imaging capabilities. Thermal printing process requires smooth and maximum contact between print head and paper dye so that the top-coated sheet contacts the print head and produce brighter & unfaded image.

Positive application outlook across packaging, printing and logistics industries will create lucrative opportunities for thermal paper market participants to enhance their sales. Transactional documents require graphics and logos for service records, accounting, warranty documents, product order forms, customer order history, accident reports, and price quotes.

Transactional documents need to durable, legible and exhibit professional appearance even in adverse environmental and rough handling situations. With the rapid adoption of top coated thermal papers, the images produced remain readable for 20 to 25 years under proper storage conditions.

Direct thermal technology has witnessed a substantial increase in its adoption for shipping labels, compliance labels, receipts, kiosk tickets, visitor tags and parking tickets. coupons. This technology has maintained prominence in the printing industry with 48% share in 2018. Widespread acceptance in the printing and packaging industry due to its high mobility, noise reduction, and full graphics capability is the key industrial parameter for the thermal paper market demand.
 

This technology is the most preferred printing process in industries since the images or words are produced by the method of direct heat submission. This type of printing adopts chemically treated, heat-sensitive media which darkens upon passing through printhead. Simple design of printers, since they do not use ink, toner or ribbon materials, improves their durability, ease of use and cost effectiveness over laser, inkjet and thermal transfer printers. This technology provides sufficient lifespan for various barcode applications that are beneficial in packaging labels & tags, POS, printed tickets, and RFID identification
 

Cashless payments are widely adopted due to availability of secure payment solutions and services. POS terminal machines feature real time analytics and engage in fast bill processing, maintaining customer records and loyalty programs of retail stores. ATM and credit cards have special symbol for contactless payments and easily read by POS machines.
 

Large data volumes produced by different business verticals are exerting tremendous pressure on existing organizations to switch to POS systems from conventional transactional methods. POS terminals avoid manual errors in financial billing, inventory management and offer business reliability. Consequently, developing retail sector and increased printing of receipts and bills in large- and small-scale stores to spur thermal paper market growth.
 

Labelling requirements in food, industry provide expiry date, price and related information in brief. Thermal paper witness penetration as hallmarks and stickers, since it provides details of the constituents and removes prospects of duplication.
 

In accordance with U.S. FDA, food allergens, ingredient and nutritional information must be listed on food labels to improve customer awareness and provide great insights to customers while selecting the packaged food product. Mislabeled food items, failing to disclose accurate calorie and dietary information on self-service food accompanied by food on display are being penalized under the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C).
 

Asia Pacific led by China, India and Japan thermal paper market share is expected to witness growth at over 10% CAGR from 2019 to 2025.  Industrial sector in China has been ardent consumer of the printing receipts due to intensive paperwork required for governance and planning. Huge scale investments by international players in China printing industry supplements the product business in Asian region. Multiple print shops have also surfaced across cities and town centers and cater to large scale need for promotional receipts, coupons, tickets, and rebate forms. 
 

Advent of portable electronic devices and internet access has made marketing and advertisement ubiquitous. Popular methods embraced by Chinese manufacturing industries to reach customers is by printing quotes and messages on a thermal receipt.  Printed receipts display high degree of customization, by using company logos, forms, attractive font designs, as a graphic
 

Enterprises operating in the thermal paper market trends are adopting strategies such as collaborations and acquisitions, new capacity additions, and product launches, to enhance their existing offerings and target a wider customer base and cement its market position. For instance, in Jan 2019, Ricoh Company, Ltd. announced the expansion of its existing production line in Europe. Ricoh has planned to invest 3 Billion Yen in Ricoh Industrie France S.A.S. to increase its production capacity by two times to cope up shipping labels demand in Eastern Europe. Previously, in 2018, Ricoh made huge investments in China to expand its business in Europe.
 

In September 2018, Appvion exhibited new product series of direct thermal label along with tag face stocks at Labelexpo Americas 2018. The company partnered with Colordyne Technologies and AzCoat to launch and demonstrate tags and face stocks which are compatible with water-based inkjet technology.