Using an MIS to automate production and turn revenue into profit

A Management Information System (MIS) is crucial for modern print businesses, providing data for management decisions and automating production steps. Key factors when choosing an MIS include selecting a reliable supplier, ensuring the system is customisable to your business needs, and evaluating its core features (estimating, job management) and optional modules (Web-to-Print). Customize the MIS around your business.

We are long past the days when print was considered a craft industry. These days data allows us to optimise our processes and determines both business and production decisions. So the ability to manage and interpret that data is key to the success of any print business, and this is as true for the smallest sign making shop right through to large multi-discipline printers.

The basic concept behind a management information system or MIS, or even an Enterprise Resource Program or ERP, is not limited to printing but there are several systems that have been specifically developed for printers so these are a good starting point. Most of these will now cover all aspects of printing from narrow web labelling to wide format graphics, reflecting the fact that many print service providers now cover several market sectors.

However, MIS do vary in their scope, with some being mainly aimed at enterprise-level organisations with multiple sites, possibly across different countries and able to handle different languages and currencies. Others are designed for small to medium-sized companies, which will be cheaper to implement but may struggle to cope if the business expands.

There are two main aspects to an MIS. The first is gathering data on the running of the company and then presenting that in a format to help make management decisions. This could include productivity information to see which machines are working hardest and to identify bottlenecks and unnecessary delays. Equally it could include financial production information to see if some equipment or products are costing more than they are earning, or if there are aspects of the business that are eating away at the bottom line – such as high energy bills – or areas that are earning above average that could be capitalised on.

Inevitably this means connecting the MIS to all the other systems, from RIP servers to accounting packages, right through the business so that it can pull in this data. That in turn means that implementing an MIS – and perhaps later having to replace that MIS – is a complex task so it’s best to take your time and choose carefully between the different options.

For this reason, the first factor to take into account is the supplier itself. The system is important but you are going to have a long term relationship with the supplier so take a look at the company’s history, the people working there and the overall attitude. Most importantly, make sure those people are going to be there for you when everything has crashed and you really need help.

The next thing to consider is how well the system presents data and how easily this can be customised. No two businesses are the same, so it’s important to make sure that the MIS dashboard is delivering the information you need, and not forcing you to work to the way that suits the MIS. This information is usually broken down into key performance indicators, or KPI, and should include items such as machine utilisation, turnover and invoice payments – all the things that help turn revenues into profits.

The second aspect of an MIS is its ability to automate many of the production steps together, from taking jobs in, preflighting and correcting, and then routing them through to the right print queue. This has developed out of the fact that an MIS has to connect to many different systems creating a de facto chain between what would otherwise be separate systems, often developed by different vendors. For many companies, this automation is the main reason for investing in an MIS as it enables the business to take on large numbers of low margin jobs and still make a profit.

Most MIS consist of a database with a number of core features plus additional modules so that you only have to buy in the parts that you need. The core feature set should include the dashboard and key performance indicators, as well as job estimating and managing job tickets. This means that customer data only has to be entered once, from a request for quote or actual order, and can then be used throughout the production systems to eliminate the potential for errors from rekeying information.

Other optional modules might include a web-to-print or e-commerce module so that you can automate the job submission. Other typical modules can include stock inventory management and customer relationship management or CRM. The balance between what is a core function or an optional module will vary from one MIS to another. In some cases you may find that the core feature set includes estimating and even some web-to-print but that optional modules offer more functionality. Most modern MIS will also offer a mobile app so that sales staff operation outside the office can book in jobs, as well as checking the progress of customer jobs.

It’s also becoming increasingly common to offer a cloud option. These systems can be cheaper as there’s no physical server to maintain on-site. Online security has improved to the point this is no longer the concern that it once was but this approach does depend on having a constant internet connection.

Richard Earley, who runs Recreative Signs based in Brighton, UK, has been working with the cloud-based Clarity Go MIS. He explains: “The speed at which you can raise a quote for a customer is mind-blowing, especially as you can do it from any location. I can carry out a site meeting, do the survey, and whilst sitting in the car before heading off or on the train back, I can raise the quotation and send it over to the client I have just left. Without Clarity Go, this would easily require 24 hours or more to respond in this way.”

In conclusion, an MIS is not a simple software choice; it is literally the one tool that will rule all the others. So it is important to take some time to think carefully about what features you need from an MIS, and compare the different options that are available. The most important advice is to customise the MIS around your business, and not the other way around.