At a crossroads
Be your organisation’s voice
The term central reprographics
department (CRD) is as old-
fashioned as it gets. Referring
to an in-house print and copy
facility, this antiquated term
fails to describe the wide range
of services that a modern
operation provides, from print
on demand and variable data
printing to multi-channel and
cross media communications.
According to Canon Europe
vertical market business
development manager Chas
Blanchard, today a CRD is
much more likely to call itself a
print centre or media centre.
Whatever term is used,
Blanchard says that public and
private sector print departments
face some tough decisions. “A
lot of CRDs are at a crossroads.
The organisations they support
are making decisions on how
to progress and proceed. Some
are looking at outsourcing the
facility and some at extending
the facility and bringing more
work in. They are looking at what
the CRD can do, particularly
with the introduction of today’s
digital print equipment. And
they are looking at how they can
bring back in-house work that for
Production Print
Central reprographics departments are evolving into digital print
centres as they expand their range of services to meet the changing
needs of today’s customers.
PrintIT
spoke to Canon’s Chas Blanchard
about the challenges, opportunities and decisions facing managers of
in-house print facilities.
Mark Hinder, Konica Minolta Market Development Manager, Production
Printing, outlines a road-map for the central communications department.
“It’s clear, not only from feedback from
our customers but also from market
reports, such as the latest InfoTrends
Western Europe Production Printing
Application Forecast, that print volumes
will continue to be affected in certain
areas. As the trend continues for some
documents to be delivered electronically
instead of printed and then posted,
certain applications such as proposals,
reports, letters and presentations, will
continue to be those most affected as
the shift to drive out cost continues.
“However, it is not all bad news. If we
consider CAD (Computer Aided Design),
which drives opportunities for wide format
printing for instance, we are witnessing
modest increases in print volumes. As
the economy continues to strengthen
and as verticals such as engineering and
construction continue to recover from
the economic downturn, I’m sure we will
see increased demand for these types of
documents when tenders and planning
applications start to increase.
“Establishments running central
reprographic areas and print rooms need to
focus on how they leverage value for their
organisation. To do this effectively it’s key
to understand internal customers’ priorities
and business needs. This starts by ensuring
your organisation understands the value of
the print room and what it can offer. Print
rooms should be viewed by all departments
as the communications room, a place where
all communications, be they electronic
or printed, can be centrally coordinated
and distributed. Perhaps even consider
internally re-branding this area and changing
the name to central communications
department! CRDs need to offer services
such as data management, web2print and
cross media to fully support functions across
the business such as marketing, finance and
facilities.
“Through investing in new solutions,
print rooms can act as the voice of an
organisation. It is proven that by working this
way, organisations not only drive out cost,
but also can increase profitability.”
PRINT.IT
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