The rapid economic, social and cultural development in late medieval Europe created favorable intellectual and technical conditions for Gutenberg's improved printing press: the spirit of entrepreneurship of emerging capitalism increasingly influenced the mode of production in the Middle Ages, promoted economic ideas and improved the efficiency of traditional workflow. The dramatic rise in learning and literacy in the Middle Ages led to an increase in demand for books, and this time-consuming manual reproduction method is far from being adapted.

The printing press technology that led to the invention of the printing press included paper manufacturing, ink development, woodcut printing and glasses distribution. At the same time, many medieval products and technological processes have reached a mature level, making them available for printing purposes. Gutenberg accepted these distant clues, combined them into a complete functional system, and perfected the printing process at all stages by adding some of his own inventions and innovations.

This screw press is widely used in Europe and provides Gutenberg with his model press. The screw press, which allows direct pressure to be applied on a flat surface, has been very old in Gutenberg and used for many tasks. It was introduced by the Romans in the 1st century A.D. and was usually used for agricultural production, for the pressing of wine grapes and (olive) fruits, both of which were part of the Mediterranean and medieval diets. It was also used as a cloth press for printing patterns in urban environments. Gutenberg may also have been inspired by paper printers on German soil since the end of the 14th century, using the same mechanical principles.

Gutenberg adopted the basic design to mechanize the printing process. Printing, however, varies greatly from pressing down the requirements on the machine. Gutenberg has improved this structure so that the pressure exerted on the paper by the sheet is now uniformly applied and has the required sudden elasticity. To speed up the printing process, he introduced a movable bottom plate with a plane on which thin plates can be quickly replaced.