Workflow automation is driving the future of printing

For more than 60 years, we have been working on data-driven workflow automation. Its aim is to boost efficiency, reduce costs, counteract the skills shortage and increase profitability. In this century, we have stepped up the pace, ushered in the fourth industrial revolution under the name Industry 4.0, and demonstrated the value and importance of workflow automation in print production. Effective, scalable, automated workflows, which begin even before an order is received, offer a number of advantages: They enable print service providers to cope with the pressure of rising paper and consumables costs, the demand for shorter turnaround times, staffing challenges and the need to produce both very large and very small print runs. 

Automated workflows will be at the heart of future production processes. And their outcomes can have far-reaching consequences for print production. In the printing industry, the term ‘workflow’ refers to all defined, documented, repeatable and verifiable rules, protocols and processes. There are many workflows in printing companies – ranging from areas involving direct customer contact (front office) and administrative/organisational tasks (back office), through to production, and on to delivery and logistics. Every sale of products or services sets one or more routine processes in motion: during sales discussions, in costing, in contract drafting, in order processing, as well as in work preparation, production, delivery and invoicing.

From the placement of an order and the transmission of order data right through to delivery, the closure of order files in production and handover to the accounts department, every step in the process involves a certain degree of risk: Bottlenecks can occur at any stage, disrupting workflows, costing time and undermining profitability. Automation tools, on the other hand, optimise and streamline workflows in print production. They boost efficiency. And they improve scalability and return on sales.

Ten steps to automation

The market for workflow automation is currently very diverse. There are tools available for print service providers of all sizes and for every market segment. Printers should begin their search for the most suitable solution by taking the time to assess the capabilities of the software available for their specific market segments. Many tools are designed to meet the requirements of multiple printing technologies and products. However, before purchasing software, print service providers should gain a clear picture of where their workflows currently stand. 

The first step is a realistic process analysis:

1. List the production processes and the associated workflows. If a wide variety of printed products are produced, the workflows for each individual product should be identified. Are some or all of the workflows already automated? If so, this should be documented in the list.
2. Who is responsible for the structures of the individual processes?
3. Who is responsible for resolving bottlenecks in the individual workflows?
4. Where do the workflows overlap?
5. What rules apply to collaboration between Sales and Production?
6. What rules apply to collaboration between service engineers and Production?
7. Who communicates with customers should there be problems with their incoming files?
8. How are change requests handled?
9. How are proofs and approvals processed? Who monitors them?
10. How is the accounts department informed about subsequent order changes and the final order costs?

It may be worth including further items in the analysis: Where do bottlenecks rarely occur, and where do they happen more frequently? This analysis should also take into account the staff and technologies involved in the processes. Are all automation measures still delivering the expected results? This question also needs to be addressed.

Automate to eliminate disruptions in the process

There are three main reasons for investing time and money in implementing and optimising automation:

1. Reduced time spent on order intake: If you search the internet for information on order intake in print production, dozens of guides pop up – even on web-to-production and other digital portals. When analysing the workflow, various orders should be examined – from order acceptance right through to handing the orders over to production. The times taken and the number of work steps should be recorded. How many loops are there? Are the same rules followed everywhere? Or do all staff members have their own?
2. Minimised lead times until production begins: How much time and effort does work preparation take until jobs are handed over to production? How many loops, delays and rework are there here? Errors and misunderstandings come at the expense of profitability. That is why workflow automation is, in this context in particular, worth its weight in gold.
3. Shorter production times: The formula for short production times encompasses not only time-related aspects, but also staff and tasks. The aim here is to identify the manual steps and loops within these tasks that prolong production times. How many tools are used officially, and how many behind the scenes?

These three improvements minimise waste, reduce the number of delivery delays, increase production efficiency and improve profitability.

People cause disruptions

The printing industry is striving to attract more apprentices to the sector. It is also looking for ways to train new entrants to the profession and staff wishing to take on new roles more efficiently. At the same time, it is part of everyday life that staff make mistakes, thereby causing disruptions to workflows. This can result in orders needing to be reworked or reprinted, adjusted specifications being overlooked, or prices being calculated incorrectly. Even many minor errors throughout the production process can eat into profitability. Human labour is unreliable. People may be good team leaders or enthusiastic staff members. But they are not robots that carry out the same tasks with the same precision day in, day out. Yet it is precisely these that are needed: software robots that carry out tasks in a repeatable, controlled and error-free manner.

Print service providers should use their data to understand which tasks their staff spend time on, how much time they spend on them, and how many times they have to repeat them. Very few companies record working hours down to the minute. A brief survey could shed light on which tasks take up the most time throughout the day and what causes dissatisfaction. It should also be recorded how often jobs are ‘touched’ before the job data reaches production. How much time do employees spend checking stock levels, verifying print data, searching for missing elements, managing colour, or clarifying questions about finishing – via emails, text messages, phone calls and chats? With automated processes, print service providers can reclaim a large proportion of this time. Their staff can then focus on more important tasks.

Paper and consumables can disrupt workflows

Paper, films, vinyl and the many specialised substrates that print service providers stock, depending on their needs, as well as the numerous consumables required for printing processes – such as printing inks, toner, solvents and cleaning agents – all present bottlenecks. But here, too, automation can act as a ‘lubricant’.

Print service providers should take stock of their entire inventory and analyse how often they order replenishments. Are inventory management systems used? Or are stock levels still recorded manually in spreadsheets and managed using these? It is worth checking which items remain in stock for longer than average and which are reordered regularly. By automating their ordering processes using a stock management system based on the determined replenishment quantities and updating stock levels according to the products delivered, print service providers can simplify their materials management.

But that’s not all: integrating the ordering system with the software used to calculate cost estimates and prepare quotations ensures that the materials required for production are always available. This makes stock management more efficient.

Automation for seamless workflows

If print service providers wish to remain future-proof, they must design and optimise all their processes efficiently. Isolated pockets of automation (automated work steps) interspersed with manual processes are not the best solution. The ideal approach is, rather, end-to-end automation of all work steps. True to the motto: ‘, crawl-walk-run’ (crawl, walk, run)!

Where automated islands exist within production processes, the tools used there should first be analysed. The same applies to the manual processes between them. The software solutions installed here should be assessed to determine what options they offer for integration with the other tools in use, in order to achieve end-to-end automation.

The time spent on order processing, pre-press, production and delivery – everything needs to be scrutinised. Anthony Thirlby, owner of Venn Holding in Belgium, shares the company’s productivity data on LinkedIn: (https://uk.linkedin.com/company/venn-holdings-limited) According to this, costing, order management and scheduling account for 55 per cent of the total order lead time. Those who focus on these areas during the ‘crawl phase’ can achieve repeatable results and save time ranging from minutes to hours – thereby improving their profitability.

Even print service providers who already use web-to-production portals or ‘digital shop windows’ should check whether these solutions are still working effectively – or whether they need fine-tuning. It’s great when jobs flow seamlessly into pre-press and production once they’ve been received! However, if they’re still going round in circles within the company and bottlenecks persist, it’s worth examining how these tools are being used and how the problems can be eliminated.

Where print jobs are still being submitted manually via hot folders or email, this practice should be discontinued now. This ‘start-up phase’ should be used to develop a requirements and specifications protocol as the basis for automated order acceptance. This saves time, ensures consistency and increases efficiency – and it frees up staff to focus on more important tasks.

Automated order acceptance should be followed by an automated approval process, which also covers customers’ change requests and their processing – and which concludes the process. A check now needs to be built in to ensure that all orders, including change requests, are invoiced, and discount policies need to be defined. Furthermore, production data should be used to keep pricing up to date. Once print service providers have finally linked all work steps together and data flows between them, they will be ready to ‘hit the ground running’. Setting up end-to-end processes can take up to two years. But with every additional work step that is automated, efficiency improves.

What are the benefits of automation?

Automation is not rocket science. It requires clearly defined, transparent planning. And it necessitates support from senior management as well as team leadership. It is part art, part science. However, automation also means allaying employees’ fears of job losses. It also requires communication with various software providers. Yet once print service providers have analysed their current processes and held the necessary discussions, the resulting reduction in waste, increased production efficiency and improved customer satisfaction, amongst other things, can fundamentally change the course of a business.

How can employees be convinced of the need for automation? Here are the key arguments:

Manual and repetitive tasks are eliminated: In automated processes, routine tasks and the errors associated with them are eliminated. They speed up workflows, shorten turnaround times and generally increase efficiency.

Integration enables the sharing of data across different applications: The integration of digital technologies with traditional printing processes builds a bridge to the future. It allows for the seamless interconnection of design software with content management systems (CMS) and data-driven workflows.

Simplified collaboration: Work guidelines vary from country to country, but the globalised economy enables us to sell printed products worldwide. Automation, combined with cloud-based workflow solutions, promotes more efficient communication, faster approvals and shorter production times.

Less waste: Where inefficient workflows are identified and eliminated, reprints resulting from production errors become a thing of the past. And where supplier data is utilised and business processes are integrated with production processes, this enables better stock management, which in turn minimises waste. The ability to print on demand and in smaller quantities also reduces excess stock and the waste associated with obsolete or unused materials.

Automated workflows in print production enable greater efficiency and quality in production, as well as greater flexibility in scheduling. In short: they increase capacity and improve profitability for every single print job.

Automation and the associated process control enable print service providers to adapt flexibly to changing customer requirements, integrate digital processes, improve their efficiency and reduce costs. And it strengthens customer loyalty. Those who work with optimised printing processes are choosing to remain competitive in the digital age – whilst also embracing the unique advantages and qualities of printed products.