The management information systems (MIS) market is one of the few growth areas in the print industry. The number of MIS suppliers has increased and more printers are embracing the fact that an MIS can speed up the calculation of job costs and provide detailed job tracking. The time-consuming process of estimating jobs with spreadsheets and price lists is becoming a thing of the past and having the right information to hand is helping companies at a time when efficiency and correct costing is imperative.

"It is critical to any modern printing business that it fundamentally understands how much it costs to manufacture," says Paul Deane, joint managing director of Shuttleworth Business Systems. "An MIS is critical to this process of establishing costs, as well as monitoring and adjusting those costs as business patterns change."

Automatic input
Originally, some MISs relied on operators filling in their activities for shopfloor data collection. Now, the information is captured direct by interfaces that are fitted onto a machine or with computer controlled presses - this can be fed directly to the MIS. Therefore, you can forecast the amount of ink, paper and other consumables needed for a particular job.
"With margins so tight, it is essential that decision makers have all the information available before they make business critical decisions. MIS is central to this," adds Deane.

DIY doubts
Unsurprisingly, MIS suppliers are dubious about any company wanting to go it alone. "Every single printer that I've come across with a bespoke system written for them by a friend or themselves, has hit a brick wall," says Norman Marks, managing director at Printpak. "You can construct your own spreadsheets, but it will be very slow, very clunky and won't be able to tell you where your profitability lies at a touch of a button."

With a DIY system, there are a lot of aspects the builder might forget and it's a problem that's difficult to recitfy.
"You need to consider every possibility when you're setting it up," says Marks.

Apart from making sure you choose from a supplier that will give as much support as possible, it's also important to remember what the MIS software is for. "The MIS tends to be viewed as an electronic admin system, rather than a business management system that can help managers run their business," adds Shuttleworth's Deane.

WHAT'S NEW IN MIS

• EFI launched a sign version of its PrintSmith MIS software this month. PrintSmith Sign incorporates signage and wide-format digital print features, including support for square area print pricing, square areas and linear finishing
• In June, Printpak launched a free version of its eponymous MIS to all UK charities. The move enables all charities with a registered UK charity number to claim a free copy of the full premium Printpak MIS. It follows Printpak’s decision to offer a free Community edition of its MIS to all print companies. The company says that the only cost will be a small annual support fee
• Leicester-based Haybrooke Associates has launched an MIS system with predictive dynamic quoting (PDQ). The estimating system calculates the cost of a job and gives advice on how to price it, based upon variables such as lead times, payment term, customer type and available capacity. It can also calculate the carbon footprint for each of the production processes