This is where an investment in an MIS really starts to pay off. The ability to produce automated estimates, pretty much at the touch of a button, has never been more important, according to Accura MIS international sales director Alan Potter.
"There is a greater need than ever for printers to understand their true costs and communicate them to a customer," explains Potter. "With an MIS you can offer real-time communications."
When considering investing in an MIS, the key thing to look at is whether or not the system is flexible enough to ‘mould’ into your business.
"People make a mistake of trying to computerise their manual systems and this often brings them up against problems. The other thing that people get wrong is that they still see MIS as just an estimating tool and it is so much more than that," says Potter.
Inter-communication
Advances in the ways software packages communicate with each other are occurring all the time – the steady rise in popularity of JDF is also starting to filter through.
"JDF is becoming more cost-justifiable," explains Mike McLain, sales director of Speedquote and Solprint. "We are now working with customers on pre-press systems."
McLain adds that most modern machines are now JDF-ready, which adds to the format’s appeal.
Full integration of MIS is also becoming increasingly important, according to McLain. He says his company sees great benefits in integration and believes that this will be a key focus in the future.
Although some printers may choose to develop their own MIS, it’s a highly skilled task to make it work successfully. With such a wide variety of off-the-shelf MISs already available at different price points, it may be more time effective to integrate an existing package, as long as it can fit in with your workflow and grow with your business.
WHAT'S NEW IN...
MIS
- There was a raft of new MIS technologies this year, many launched at Ipex. AccuraOnline, a new addition to Accura MIS, giving 24/7 access to estimates, orders, proof checking, online store facilities, delivery information and invoicing
- Imprint released an automated online estimating system, allowing customers to create their own quotes
- PrintPak launched a new brand, PrintSum, to target markets outside the UK. The new name was designed to avoid brand confusion in territories where one or more firms already trades as ‘Printpak’
- Tharstern launched an MIS, with a new interface, including: enhanced production planning; multisite and multischeduler support; Esko Artios CAD link for packaging; pick-and-pack support; Tharstern Communication Centre; Integration Manager for third-party integrations using cXML; and Pulse direct machine monitoring
- EFI showed iPad and iPhone apps for its MIS products
- TimeHarvest has also created iPad and iPhone MIS apps this year. It said iPads would work out cheaper than laptops with software licences
