11 WAYS ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS AND CONSTRUCTION FIRMS CAN SAVE BIG MONEY ON WIDE FORMAT PRINTING.
TIf you’re an architect or engineer or contractor, you know technical drawings are part of the daily routine. Printing, copying and scanning these drawings can be an expensive part of the process. For that reason, I wrote this e-paper to illustrate ways to save time and money wherever possible without sacrificing quality.
TIP # 1 REDUCE INK COSTS by changing the default print quality in the driver. Technical printers are based more on lines while graphic and photographic printers are more about the dots and the highest resolutions. For the technical drawing, it’s more about details and legibility than it is looking at it through a loop.
Go into your computer’s control panel and change the printer’s default setting to fast or draft mode. This could save as much as 50% of ink consumption and may not even be a noticeable difference in image quality. In fact, sometimes it looks even better since the lines are clearer and not as heavily drawn. When you save the new setting in the control panel, remember to click “apply” if that is shown so that it’s saved as a default printing preference. You can change the resolution on each print job by adjusting it when you print it, but as a default, it’s set to save you big money.
TIP # 2 Reduce Ink Costs Even More by buying larger ink tanks. Yes, today’s wide format printers have new options for buying large and extra-large ink tanks that can save you another 20-40% of the ink costs by picking up these larger tanks. Check with your ink supplier to find out if larger ink tanks are available for your printer. Sometimes, just buying the larger black and matte black inks in the larger tanks is enough a good amount of money. Talk to your ink specialist or printer manufacturer to find out more. Consider the latest technology, today’s printers are faster and more economical to operate than printers installed just 5 or 6 years ago.
3. Buy longer paper rolls. Inkjet Wide format paper comes mostly in 5 lengths. 100 foot for graphic media, 150 foot for older inkjet machines, 300 feet for newer wide format plotters. These are generally 2 inch core for inkjet machines. Toner based machines are generally 500’ in length and come with a 3 inch core. Many newer inkjet printers have 3inch core adapters that can handle the 500’ length. This can save you 20-25% on paper costs. Be aware however, this paper will not be coated for inkjet use, so don’t print heavy fill drawings as the ink can bleed on the page. But for simple line drawings, saving 25% on paper costs can really add up.
4. Use a 24lb presentation bond instead of costly photo papers. 24lb media can look amazing when printed on and cost 40% less than the photo version. If you’re doing it for a simple presentation, you might find it looks actually better than if it was printed on photo paper.
5. Consider buying or leasing off lease wide format printers. Not every printer should be considered for purchase as off lease, but for some makes and models it’s a complete winner if you choose it right. First, make sure the servicing dealer can support it, 2nd make sure the warranty is at least 3 months, but look for 6 months or longer. 3 and 4 year old off lease machines can be a perfect solution for those using 15 year old printers and scanners. Plus you’ll save up to 60% off msrp. When it arrives, your staff won’t know the difference and it’ll be new to you and them.
6. Look at the fine print on the lease. Many times you can save $30, $40, $50 and more on the lease by sending them an insurance rider from your existing policy. You don’t own the equipment, the leasing company does and they need their equipment insured. But you already pay renters or a business insurance. Simply look for that line item on your lease’s bill and ask your insurance company to list them as the owner and loss payee on that equipment and that your insurance would cover it in case of it getting damaged and whaalla, that line item just came off the bill saving you possibly hundreds per year.
7. Share the printer between departments. For example one of my clients is a hospital in Nassau County. They bought 2 machines (1 toner based and 1 color) for their engineering department; they also shared the expense with marketing and the HR department for corporate communications. Sharing the printer interdepartmentally is a great way for everyone to get what they need without having to buy 3 sets of machines with 3 sets of supplies and 3 sets of service contracts.
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9. Mark up drawings digitally. This is pretty new to the industry but more and more software companies are adding it to their offerings. Visit VolantiDisplays.com to see what a multi touch interactive display can do to reduce the need to print drawings. It will be more common place in 2020 and beyond. Imagine being able to mark up and distribute these updated drawings without printing a single page.
10. Avoid combining the copier and plotter lease. I just talked to an account that has a 5 year lease on their copiers and plotter combined. Their wide format printing needed changing and they can’t separate it from the copier lease. Keep the lease separate in case needs change or the equipment has major problems. Anything can happen and being able to deal with them individually in my opinion is easier to manage.
11. Print in house and on demand. STOP PAYING FOR OUTSOURCED PRINTING. Some print shops charge 5 to 10 times more than it would be if you printed in house. Office super stores can charge even more than that for color drawings where you can print them in house for a small fraction of the price.
As with all my tips, check with the printer manufacturer and or servicing dealer to confirm these cost savings steps are OK to implement.
Larry Farrell started his career selling Toshiba and Panasonic copiers in 1985. In 1989 to 1998, he re-manufactured toner cartridges with his staff of 15 in Islandia and Bohemia, Long Island. In 1998, he sold his company to Arista Imaging and began working with the leading wide format printer company in NYC and Woburn, MA, called Charrette. Within 1 year, he made his mark on the industry by selling a dozen Xerox 8830 DDS $35,000 printers to LILCO (National Grid) and was sent to Leesburg Virginia in 1999 for 3 weeks of extensive Wide Format training at Xerox’s Document University. Since then, Larry has been a successful wide format printing expert serving Long Island and New York City’s 5 Boros.
#archd #arche #blueprint #plotter #longisland #newyork #larryfarrell #islandwide #copysmart #oce #kip #ricoh #canon #hp #hewlettpackard #designjet #pagewide #xerox #memjet #largeformat #nassau #suffolk #brooklyn #queens #hvac #electrical #concrete #mechanical #silvercup, #goldcoast #kevincanwait #quantico #johnwick #godfatherofharlem #gotham #newark #sopranosAs with all my tips, check with the printer manufacturer and or servicing dealer to confirm these cost savings steps are OK to implement.
