Nonetheless some recent statements in PrintWeek have occasioned pause for thought. One technical futurologist has suggested that ‘designers will become rarer, because templated layouts will be preferred over bespoke’ work. That prediction presents a bleak prospect of formulaic and uniform design that I would find tedious and lacking in enterprise.

History has a habit of repeating itself with variations. In the 1960s when computer composition emerged to challenge the established order, I recall several studies of typographic specifications intended as a prelude to the standardisation of printed products. The novelty of computer memory was viewed as tantamount to an eighth wonder of the world at the time and the possibility of stored formats for repetitive retrieval appeared to offer boosted productivity.

When desktop publishing surfaced in the 1980s, the concept of ‘templated layout’ was revived as compensation for the deficiencies in design experience of many DTP operators. Doubtless I sound like a weary industrial observer, but sometimes retrospection is helpful. On both occasions, the approach to stored formats and ‘templated layout’ fell short of expectations, though not entirely without merit and impact.

My belief is that designers will continue to be an essential element in the graphic arts industry over the next 10 years and beyond. There is an inherent contradiction in the notion of standardised design. Clients will continue to demand bespoke designs as a means of differentiation from competitors and as a method of gaining distinctiveness. Next week I will be considering the position of the salesman.

Lawrence Wallis has held international pre-press marketing positions and is now a respected author and print historian.