Market, Outsourcing, Document, Growth, CAP, Ventures, Slower

CAP Ventures forecasts slower growth within document outsourcing market

19 Jan 2004 | (Article)

New projections from CAP Ventures indicate that the document outsourcing market will continue to grow, albeit at a slightly slower pace than projected in previous years. The market is expected to move from $30 billion in 2002 to $35 billion in 2007, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.5%.

This slower-than-expected growth is attributed to a slowdown in economic activity, continued weakness within offset printing revenue, transitions in the service provider market, and the overall maturity of the U.S. outsourcing market.

CAP Ventures' forecast entitled  United States Document Outsourcing Market Forecast: 2002-2007 provides an overview of the document outsourcing market as it exists today and the analysis necessary to understand the directions the market will take in the future. The forecast is updated each year to reflect new data from surveys, to account for changes in the economy, and to identify emerging issues. It breaks the industry into three primary segments: facilities management, statement printing, and contracted print services.

Facilities management is expected to exhibit the strongest growth of the three segments, increasing from just over $6.6 billion in 2002 to $8.1 billion in 2007 (4.1% CAGR). Contracted print services come in second with a CAGR of 3.6% expected over the forecast period, while statement printing will show an almost flat CAGR of 1%.

"A series of immediate changes and evolutions are underway in the document outsourcing market that will drive growth," commented Brian Miller ( BIO ), a Senior Consultant at CAP Ventures and one of the primary authors of the forecast. "One of the most visible is the blur between traditional segments of the marketplace as new entrants develop service offerings that incorporate elements borrowed from multiple segments, and existing providers recreate their offerings to better meet customer needs and expectations.

"This evolution will provide dramatic growth opportunities for providers who are willing and able to engage customers with solutions uniquely crafted to their business process requirements, and will lead to an early demise for other service providers who lack sophisticated industry-specific capabilities beyond commodity printing."

The challenge for outsourcers is to balance their investments in education, software, and hardware with the revenue potential to ensure that once they offer a service, they can continue to maintain the service levels and maintain customer satisfaction.

CAP Ventures' Document Outsourcing Market Forecast is designed to be used as a strategic planning tool by service providers wishing to identify market trends and opportunities, market size, the competitive landscape, and the range of services being offered as they embark upon strategic business planning. It also serves potential customers of document outsourcers by providing in-depth market intelligence and assessment of the capabilities necessary for future success.

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