Outsourcing Print Can Be Minefield Of Errors

Outsourcing a print job has become a minefield for businesses who, without careful consideration, could find print jobs costing GBPthousands because of expensive errors.

That is according to UK print management consultancy Four Corners Print, which warned that misprints, poor quality and design flaws could all ruin a print job and inevitably drive up costs.

Dominic Vacher, a director of Four Corners Print, who explained that outsourcing a print job has become a minefield, although many typical problem issues could be avoided.

However, if print customers do not know what to look for the problems could be hard to spot.

Vacher said: "Printing is an imperfect world.

Every job is unique, with many variables, countless processes and numerous people involved, all of which can conspire to ruin a project at any stage.

Likewise many suppliers will tell you that they can do a job but you will often find that they are not equipped to deliver the best solution.

This creates a difficult scenario as most companies do not have the experience and skills of a dedicated print buyer as part of their in-house teams, making the print process difficult to navigate and leading to costly mistakes." He explained that because businesses are often unaware of the viability, practicalities and cost implications of their ideas, they can often get it wrong from the start and will end up paying for it at a later date in cost, time, quality, or suitability.

The increased use of modern technology and automation of the print process has also led to an increase in errors, as less people are working on and proofing a project than before.

Vacher believes that the increase in errors, combined with the growing importance of effective print materials, is driving more businesses to employ the services of a print management company.

He commented: "Print management companies are an attractive option for businesses.

They help companies that may have little experience or knowledge of the print process to get it right from the start using a print manager's expert knowledge of the industry to achieve better quality print at a lower cost.

Print management companies have an in-depth knowledge of printers, their skills and their equipment and that means that they can cherry pick the right supplier and processes for your job.

You would call in experts to handle your legal, financial and IT issues so why not do the same with your printing as well?" Four Corners was established in 2002 and it said it has worked with clients that include The Guardian, Telegraph and Mirror newspapers, as well as such companies as Ecover and Hipp Organic.

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