Why Measuring Production Time is a Must-Do for Print Businesses

When you’re a small print business that doesn’t get a lot of orders, you may think that the only key performance indicators (KPIs) you need are those related to money. But time is money, and measuring production time for each stage of the printing process can give you insight on how to improve your print business as a whole.

Here’s why measuring production time is important for printers.

1. Measuring production time helps you provide better quotes.

Are your undercharging for your print products? You may notice that the time spent on printing some products has changed from when you originally estimated the quote. Knowing how long a print job takes helps you provide a quote that more accurately reflects the time it takes to produce it.

Furthermore, knowing how long setup takes can help you decide which products are better printed together. If starting up a machine takes a long time, you might as well print more while it’s on to decrease lead time on multiple orders. A good idea is to cross-sell that second product when you provide a quote for the first one. This saves you and your customer time and money.

You should also take this opportunity to review your turnaround times to ensure that they are realistic. That way your customers know what to expect and you won’t feel like you’re constantly behind deadlines.

2. Measuring production time helps you understand the capabilities of your equipment.

If your machinery is taking forever to print a popular product, maybe it’s time to consider selling the machine and buying a better one to increase production speed.

The same goes for equipment that breaks down often. You may want to explore other options that require less frequent maintenance, as delays could put you considerably behind your production schedule. Do a cost-benefit analysis to see whether the money spent on better equipment will save you from money lost during equipment downtime.

Conversely, you may also discover that there are certain types of jobs for which the cycle time is the fastest. Promote these products to generate more customer demand. You may even use this to help you differentiate from your competitors.

3. Measuring production time helps you understand the capabilities of your employees.

Are your employees adequately trained to make the best use of your equipment? If not, they may take longer than anticipated to print jobs.

Measuring time for production also helps you understand whether you need to hire more or fewer operators, and whether you need to schedule more or less work time for them.

Moreover, it helps you identify which operators are the mostly knowledgeable and skilled on the print shop floor. They may have leadership potential or can train newer employees.

4. Measuring production time helps you identify bottlenecks.

When you measure average time for different production stages, the results help you pinpoint specific bottlenecks. Fixing them could help you meet more deadlines. You may also discover and solve certain mistakes that slow down production.

In addition, some simple, repetitive tasks that are time-consuming can simply be automated, so that you can put your time and resources to more important tasks in growing your business.

5. Measuring production time helps you make outsourcing decisions.

When you know which jobs take a long time to complete, you can start seeking more economic alternatives. Outsourcing your printing is a great way to reduce turnaround time without buying new machinery or hiring more employees.

You may notice that due to the production time, printing certain run lengths in-house is just not profitable enough, in which case you’d outsource them instead.

Outsourcing is also a wise decision when printing certain jobs takes away from printing other ones. For example, if you’re printing 100,000 brochures, you might have to turn down another job with a tight deadline because your equipment is completely tied up. But with an outside print provider you’ll be able to get both jobs done on time.

Look for a trade printer that offers wholesale prices, fast turnaround times, and high quality printing. We recommend SinaLite, which also does blind shipping to save your clients even more time.

All of these advantages of measuring production time improve efficiency. And with efficient printing you can save time and money to continuously improve your bottom line. That’s why measuring production time is a must-do for printers to grow their profits in 2019.

Do you measure your production times? Share with us how in the comments below!