A helping hand
An MIS or management information system is software and hardware that acts as the hub of a business’ operations. It gathers data from various areas and provides employees with the information needed to complete tasks such as producing work, updating customer requests, and also enables business leaders to analyse which areas of the business are working and lucrative, and which not so much.
This then gives a company all the tools it needs to operate as efficiently as possible, and also reduces the disruption caused when a long-standing and knowledgeable team member leaves as all the information is stored in one place. It also makes the process of onboarding new staff smoother and frees up time for staff to work in other areas of the business.
In this feature, we take a look at the ways MIS software can add value to a print or graphics business and the various options available, because with most things, it’s not a one size fits all approach when it comes to picking the right solution for your business!
Ease of use
PrintIQ is a web-based MIS solution which acts as a seamless estimating, ordering, e-commerce, and production tool which gives businesses flexibility and control. Paul Bromley helped set up the UK branch of the business in January 2020 and is now the global sales director. Bromley says PrintIQ’s product is unique in the MIS space due to being a visually pleasing interface without the need for an on-premise costly server due to the solution being cloud-based with its own in-house development team in locations covering new Zealand, Australia, the US, and the UK.
PrintIQ’s UK operations were launched in 2020 but the company has locations in New Zealand, Australia, and the US
For Bromley, an MIS solution should be the central source of truth for a business and act as a repository of workflow business processes designed to guide all staff members with information. This information can then be used to produce a job or update a customer request within seconds. An MIS solution then enables a business to digitalise its business intelligence (BI) into reports and dashboards which enable businesses to analyse work that is making money.
“A successful system should act as the central element of the company with key integrations not hardware/presses capturing real-time data and also pre-press workflow solutions. As the industry faces staff shortages, the more information in your MIS, the less pain you feel should key members leave your team,” Bromley explains.
Another benefit of a good MIS system that Bromley highlights is that because the knowledge and company data are held within the system, it allows new employees to be easily onboarded to the MIS platform and reduces the need for dedicated estimators as employees can instead cover other roles.
PrintIQ is a cloud-based MIS solution with a visually pleasing interface, which the company says is important
“Your MIS platform should sit within the business for 15 to 20 years so ensure you futureproof your investment,” Bromley advises, adding: “Make sure the platform looks very visually pleasing as you may end up employing a team with little or no print knowledge.
“Ensure your solution allows you to communicate through system-built web portals included within the MIS platform. This allows you to automate business orders from customer portals straight into your business. Likewise, ensure that web-to-print platforms such as Infigo, Vpress, OnPrintShop, and so on, all have approved links to your solution.”
Bromley goes on to say that simplicity is key when picking an MIS system and advises businesses to try to find the visually pleasing option which will in turn mean easier onboarding of staff and less confusion.
Not all ‘like for like’
Another company that offers an MIS solution is Ricoh Graphic Communications with its Avanti Slingshot Print MIS. This solution services multiple solutions and is focused on organisation to enable businesses to focus on their customers’ needs.
Avanti Slingshot is a fully automated, cloud-based, flexible MIS system designed specifically for commercial print businesses. Using Avanti, print service providers can benefit from operational efficiency, eliminate errors, estimate intelligently, optimise production, improve customer experience, and access real-time data insights. This solution can also be used alongside Ricoh’s, and other vendors’, workflow automation solutions such as the RICOH ProcessDirector and RICOH TotalFlow Suite.
Offering more of an insight into what an MIS can do for a print business, Tim Carter, director of Commercial Print for Ricoh Graphic Communications, says: “Management information systems offer a suite of tools to efficiently manage key business and operational processes including estimating, scheduling, shop-floor data collection, shipping, and fulfilment.
Tim Carter, director of Commercial Print for Ricoh Graphic Communications
“Not all MIS software available is like for like. Ricoh Avanti Slingshot is scalable, vendor-neutral, and cloud-based which means full visibility and control over your real-time data and processes. It enables print organisations to deliver more jobs in less time, with the confidence in knowing that every aspect of your shop is integrated into one powerful print MIS platform.”
Some of the specific features users of the Avanti Slingshot can benefit from include being able to secure anywhere/anytime access on a browser-based device; support for multiple areas of business including offset, digital, hybrid, large-format, and marketing; integration into all “industry-leading” web-to-print platforms via an API; and JDF integration to connect ‘islands of automation’.
Other features include automated purchasing, full document and asset management from one system, CRM for one real-time, consistent view on one screen, digital and traditional scheduling, and advanced inventory management.
“Investing and implementing MIS often means embarking on a complex decision process,” Carter says, adding: “Ricoh specialists can assist on this journey and we recommend reviewing the eight-step process beforehand to make sure the business needs and project return on investment (ROI) are met.”
The eight-step process includes understanding your needs, listing key objectives, building an evaluation team, determining budget, prioritising essential capabilities, scoping software integration needs, evaluating the implementation process, and selecting a partner. The full breakdown of these considerations can be accessed via https://discover.ricoh.co.uk/story/how-to-buy-print-mis/page/1.
Carter continues: “When selecting a partner on this journey, I would recommend a technology vendor that has a proven track record of successful implementations and one that can offer you a solution fit for your business, not off the shelf.
When selecting a partner on this journey, I would recommend a technology vendor that has a proven track record of successful implementations and one that can offer you a solution fit for your business, not off the shelf”
“Integration with legacy systems also needs to be assured as are compliance and sustainability of the solution. Additionally, it is critical the system you choose is designed to manage ever-changing job types, applications, run lengths, and turnaround times. The business landscape is shifting to shorter, more impactful print runs, requiring your MIS system to be more agile and flexible in the future.”
Completely evolved
Tharstern offers a range of MIS software for the print industry with its main product being Tharstern Desktop. This is described by the company as “a comprehensive business workflow solution designed for print professionals wanting to make their company run better and faster.”
Tharstern has produced a blog and a short video outlining what an MIS is and its benenfits to printers
The MIS is designed for printers that want to speed up print jobs and make them flow throughout each department with little intervention needed, which in turn frees up staff for customer service and faster delivery. On top of this, Tharstern also has a team of print technology experts who are available to guide customers, and the company has great relationships with many vendors and has established integrations and a comprehensive API.
Amanda Newman, head of marketing at Tharstern reflects on how the definition of an MIS has evolved over the years: “A print management system, more commonly known as Print MIS, will sit at the heart of your business and help you run all the departments in your print business from one place. This is the most common phrase for referring to the software printing companies use to manage their business.
“The term came about back in the 1980s when these software applications did two things only – help printers create estimates and provide management information. Print MIS solutions have completely evolved from these times and do so much more than that now. They are a complete end-to-end solution for everything from sales and marketing to production and invoicing, and everything in between.”
Today, an MIS offers so much more than that as highlighted in the examples earlier in this article, and Newman emphasises that due to their all-encompassing nature and integration capabilities, MIS solutions for printers tend to be used as the central hub for a workflow. Tharstern has highlighted the benefits of an MIS for printers as well as produced a short video outlining what an MIS actually is which can both be found via the company’s website, but for the purpose of this article, Newman says the main benefits are: visibility, saving time, and speed.
“Without an MIS, print companies can sometimes feel lost when it comes to production data and business performance, but with an MIS the whole company can have access to all the relevant data they need. Having access to all this information can help improve communication with customers,” Newman says.
Without an MIS, print companies can sometimes feel lost when it comes to production data and business performance”
“As production technology continues to advance, bottlenecks are being created in the administrative area of printing companies, pre-production, and the average time spent on jobs is increasing.” With this in mind, Newman says that by introducing an MIS and adding these time-consuming tasks into a streamlined workflow, printers can reduce touchpoints and free up valuable time – a theme that keeps arising!
On what to look out for when investing, Newman says to make sure the MIS can integrate with other software and to make sure the print MIS has a roadmap for the MIS. “MIS systems are a long-term investment so it’s important to make sure you and your MIS provider have the same vision in mind and the development of the product is going to continue once you’ve implemented the system,” Newman adds.
Adding value
A key theme that all the MIS providers I spoke with have highlighted is the importance of the MIS solution you choose being integrable with other solutions. Solimar Systems offers a range of solutions that can do just this. One being the Solimar Systems Chemistry Platform which is a modular set of solutions to help users to achiever greater efficiency and visibility.
Solimar’s solutions are middleware and workflow solutions within the printing industry and some examples include an award-winning PDF optimisation solution, ReadyPDF Prepress Server which helps print production and electronic creation and delivery process for printers and in-plant printing centres.
Solimar Systems’ Chemistry Platform can be used alongside an MIS solution to add value
As part of the Chemistry platform, Solimar offers a visibility solution that can track, report, and manage work as it comes from a print MIS, through production, and out to the intended recipient. Aside from MIS solutions, the SOLitrack component of the Chemistry platform creates automated and intelligent workflows where similar work can be managed, produced, tracked, and reported on for activities such as real-time production floor management, audits, and more.
Often the data that the system collects from print devices and other software and hardware can be shared with a print MIS system to fill gaps in the ‘managed information’ being delivered.
Jamie Walsh, sales manager for EMEA and APAC for Solimar Systems explains how the company’s solutions can add value to an MIS for a print service provider: “Workflow software platforms like Chemistry from Solimar aren’t designed to be a print MIS. Truly, this kind of workflow solution is considered middleware, which is how it adds value.
“It’s meant to connect solutions together, providing additional levels of optimisation, automation, and auditability. For example, many print providers leverage PDF as a print file type, ensuring that those PDF files are optimised (including fonts) is crucial to reducing processing times and production errors.”
Walsh continues: “Solutions like Chemistry from Solimar can change or transform legacy file types such as PostScript, TIFF, and other formats to PDF, then optimise them for improved throughput, quality, and return on investment.”
Something Walsh advises looking out for when choosing an MIS is custom solutions. He says that whilst print MIS systems have custom offerings, you need to ensure that it doesn’t challenge your ability to maintain or upgrade your solution. He also says it is crucial to be able to easily onboard new staff members on any solutions in place to prevent production delays if another employee transitions away from the production environment.
O Factoid: According to Bizfluent, a functional MIS has five elements. These are timeliness, accuracy, consistency, completeness, and relevance O
“As you look to invest in software to help you automate and optimise, remember to look at the company culture of the companies you consider,” he says, adding: “Solimar Solutions has extensive online education to keep customers informed and a brilliant Customer Advisory Council (CAC) to provide guidance!”
So, we’ve heard from a handful of companies offering MIS solutions and it’s clear to see the benefits these solutions can bring to a print business. From print cost estimating and print job management, to stock management and accounting and invoice management, there are a whole host of ways an MIS can help you to reduce bottlenecks and improve efficiency. The challenge is to pick one that’s right for you and that has longevity as these are solutions that are going to be in your company for years to come. The good news is there are plenty
of high quality and reputable options available!
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