By unofficial count, there are more than 20 card printer manufacturers worldwide, the majority of which are focused on entry-level products. This amount of competition at the manufacturer level can lend itself to price concessions. For customers, this means lower prices, but potentially less service in integrating and maintaining a custom solution.

As card functionality, ease of use, and basic security increase at the entry level through new technologies, organizations without current card programs may enter the market. And those integrators, whose business models can handle high-volume, short-margins sales (such as those via the Internet), will find steady revenues.

High-security, multi-function applications, like those in large corporations or government agencies, will continue to demand more complex solutions. For example, the growing use of smart cards in national ID, government agency and other high-security applications has increased the demand for reverse image card printers like Fargo’s High Definition Printer/Encoders. Initiatives like the Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which mandates a standard ID card for all federal employees and vendors, will logically grow the demand for high-security systems at the federal level. But its impact will reach farther than that. As the implementation of HSPD-12 continues, its potential as the default standard for non-federal applications at state and local agencies and corporations is high.

Card printer/encoders are just part of a high-security card identity system. There is a growing realization among security managers that even a minor glitch in the issuance of an ID card can be the chink in the armor that allows a devastating security breach. If a card contains a multitude of complex security features, but the process to issue it doesn’t include safeguards to ensure authenticity from start to finish, the integrity of the credential is lost.

Having card printers on a network can complicate the security equation. Preventing unauthorized ID card issuance poses a major security challenge when badging stations are scattered throughout a building or campus. As more printers are networked, the need for products to secure that niche will grow.

Fargo has begun to identify and address these vulnerabilities with its SecureMark technology, the basis of its next-generation printer/encoders, software, systems and materials. As the card-related niche of the security market continues to grow, look for more advanced-technology products that help protect all aspects of the card production process.

Visit Fargo online at www.fargo.com.

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