AI Is No Longer Optional: Why it Will Define the Industry’s Next Era

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a transformative force in the printing and packaging industry — not as a futuristic concept, but as a practical tool reshaping operations. With the launch of PRINTING United Alliance’s PRINTING AI Consulting Services, the industry now has a dedicated partner to help printers and packaging professionals navigate this change with clarity, confidence, and measurable results.

Leading this initiative is Amy Servi-Bonner, newly appointed Vice President, Consulting – Applied AI & Printing Technology, whose decades of experience in technology leadership and digital transformation uniquely position her to help companies bridge the gap between AI theory and implementation.

“Right now, the fastest wins are in the back office and on the shop floor,” Servi-Bonner says. “Things like quoting, scheduling, customer communication, and reporting are ready for automation with AI. Commercial printers can shave hours off estimating, reduce errors in job planning, and give customers faster, more accurate answers. Those aren’t abstract gains — they’re measurable margin protection.”

This focus on tangible outcomes defines the mission of PRINTING AI Consulting Services. The initiative provides industry-specific guidance on AI readiness, ERP/MIS transformation, and productivity pilots — all designed to integrate seamlessly into existing workflows. Servi-Bonner emphasized that many companies still overestimate the complexity of AI adoption.

“The biggest misconception is that AI is some giant, unmanageable project," she notes. "Printing and packaging companies think they need a data scientist on staff or a huge budget to even start. The reality is that AI can be introduced in focused, practical ways that align with existing workflows. The role of PRINTING AI Consulting Services is to cut through the noise, give members unbiased education, and connect them with proven strategies so they can act with confidence instead of hesitation.”

The benefits of this strategic approach extend far beyond automation. “AI will make efficiency less about firefighting and more about forward thinking,” she explains. “Printing and packaging companies will move from reacting to bottlenecks to anticipating them. Productivity won’t just mean ‘faster presses’ — it will mean smarter planning and better use of people. And on the customer side, engagement will shift to personalized, proactive communication driven by insights from data ... no more guessing.”

Servi-Bonner sees AI as a defining factor in future competitiveness: “In three to five years, AI won’t be optional — it will be the ‘new minimum’. The companies that thrive will be those who stop treating AI as a bolt-on experiment and start building it into their core processes. The competitive gap between those who adopt early and those who delay will only widen.”

As the printing and packaging sectors evolve, PRINTING AI aims to ensure no company is left behind. “My role is focused on turning AI from theory into practice for our members,” she says. “That means delivering assessments, workshops, and pilots that are specific to print and packaging workflows. It also means building a partner ecosystem and playbooks, so members don’t waste time reinventing the wheel. Long term, this is about ensuring that PRINTING AI remains the place where the industry turns first for leadership and trusted guidance in AI adoption.”

Her final advice to the industry captures the heart of the movement: “Own it. Don’t outsource your AI strategy to generic tools or vendors. Your data, your workflows, your customer knowledge — that’s your competitive advantage. Protect it, build on it, and make AI work for you, not the other way around.”