15-18 June 2027
Crocus Expo, Moscow
Hybrid printing systems are moving from “nice-to-have” to commercial necessity as converters juggle shorter runs, tighter delivery windows, brand proliferation, and mounting compliance demands beyond packaging and advertising production. By combining offset, flexo, and digital technologies within a single production strategy (and, increasingly, within the same line), print businesses can protect margins while meeting today’s mixed order profiles. In CIS and wider Eurasia, where procurement decisions often balance price, serviceability, and supply stability, hybrid capability is also becoming a key differentiator in bidding for regional and export work.
Print businesses are operating in a more complex procurement climate than at any point in the past decade. In this environment, relying on a single print technology creates commercial risk. Hybrid capability offers operational flexibility without abandoning the cost efficiencies that analogue still provides at scale.
Brands are managing more variants (languages, promotions, seasonal designs) with smaller batch sizes. Digital handles versioning and rapid changeovers; flexo and offset still win on cost-per-unit at higher volumes and on certain substrates/finishes. Hybrid combines those strengths rather than forcing a single-process compromise.
Across manufacturing, the baseline for automation is rising fast: the International Federation of Robotics reported 4,281,585 industrial robots operating globally, with the global average robot density reaching 162 units per 10,000 employees in 2023. Print is not immune: capacity utilisation and order volatility push plants to reduce touchpoints, rework, and idle time, exactly where connected hybrid workflows and integrated print automation solutions deliver measurable returns.
Industry forecasts indicate the global value of flexographic printing reached approximately $230.5 billion in 2024, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3% through 2029, primarily driven by the packaging industry. That matters because most hybrid packaging pathways start with flexography (speed, substrate range) and add digital (versioning, late-stage customisation) rather than replacing analogue.
Hybrid printing is not one machine type; it is an operating model. Three patterns dominate in packaging and advertising production.
Press designs that combine flexo stations with an inkjet engine are increasingly mainstream. Industry buyer evaluations increasingly reference presses designed as hybrid inkjet–flexographic, where flexographic stations can sit before/after the inkjet for priming, whites, varnishes, and spot colours.
For folding cartons, commercial packaging and high-quality POS, many plants are pairing sheetfed offset for the base run with digital for top-ups, localisation, and short-notice repeats. Key 2024 data show the sector operating at an average capacity utilisation of 76%, leaving limited slack for unpredictable small jobs.
Even when print is analogue, finishing can be “hybrid”: digital imprinting of serialisation, QR codes, variable data, or language panels post-print, combined with automated cutting, inspection and packing. This approach is often the fastest route to hybrid value because it avoids replacing existing presses.
With global trade forecasting subject to shifts in policy and demand, supply chains continue to swing. WTO reporting indicates merchandise trade volumes increased year over year through 2025, with uneven quarterly movement. A hybrid-capable plant is better placed to absorb sudden order changes (rush top-ups, artwork swaps, regional compliance edits) without destabilising core production.
Hybrid printing systems are rising because they answer the questions procurement teams ask every day: “Can you deliver mixed volumes reliably, control waste, keep colour consistent, and support multi-market compliance?” For suppliers, this creates a clear sales advantage when the technology is demonstrated with real operating evidence, not generic claims.
Printech 2026 (16–19 June 2026, Crocus Expo, Moscow) is an International Print Expo for the Eurasian market, where international suppliers and regional buyers align on equipment, materials, and production upgrades under active investment cycles. Submit an exhibit enquiry to request exhibitor options and start building distributor and buyer conversations that convert on-site.
