The Printing United Alliance and IT Strategies are battling to build a ‘comprehensive taxonomy’ for the American print industry.
The two organisations have entered into a partnership in order to develop the system, which they hope will address the sector’s under-representation in government statistics and help prepare the industry for growing business in the future.
‘The primary purpose of this initiative is to create uniformity of nomenclature, which helps discoverability of content and information online, at events, and across the industry,’ explained Ford Bowers, CEO of the Printing United Alliance.
‘Using the same names and definitions in the same way will allow printers, OEMs and suppliers, and everyone else involved in printing to utilise a common ‘language’ that eliminates some of the confusion that currently exists. It will also be very useful in providing statistical tracking and analysis across the industry in a more coherent manner. Getting the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to adopt a new and more precise classification, if we are successful, will help everyone understand the breadth and depth of the printing industry much better.’
The initiative will see an open standard printing industry taxonomy drafted, with the aim of bringing together the various printing taxonomies currently in use by the US Government, by the various printing trade associations, and by private companies under ‘one consistent and comprehensive taxonomy that will be available to all.’
The two organisations believe that the need for this standard taxonomy is even more critical as printing commerce becomes increasingly global and marketing and buying of print becomes ever more virtual.
