You can do a surprising amount of professional-level printing on a home printer. But if you’re doing a large print run for a mass mailing of brochures or postcards, a large number of CD inserts, or some other large job, you may need to look into the services of a professional printing company. Here’s how to choose the right company to handle your big print job.
Capabilities that meet your needs. Can the printing company work with the type of graphics files you have? Do they have the capability to perform your print job within your time frame? Do they offer print-on-demand services, web-to-print capabilities, an in-house bindery or die-cutting services? Talk to the company staff to be sure the company can handle all your printing needs in-house.
A printing company that does more. Many printing companies don’t just print. They may also offer graphic design service, mailing fulfillment, mailing lists, and more. Check with your printing company to see what added services they offer that would be useful for your project. In some cases, it can cost less to use a full-service printing company than to hire separate vendors for mailing, graphics, and other tasks.
Samples that look good. Bear in mind that some printing companies specialise in a specific type of printing. Before hiring any printing company, ask to see some samples of the type of work you’d be looking to print-not just generic samples of any print job. If their brochures, mailers, flyers, postcards or other marketing materials look good, it’s a good sign for your pending project.
Satisfied customers. Does the company have a list of satisfied customers who can give you recommendations? Before hiring a printing company, ask for a list of professional references and give them a call. Ask about the company’s level of service, printing costs, ability to meet the client’s budget and quality of extra services. If there were any problems with the print run, ask how the company handled it. If the printing company can’t or won’t give references, it may not be the best company to go with.
Knowledgeable and helpful staff. The staff at your printing company should be able to discuss your printing job from a professional standpoint and advise you of any ways to make your printing project better. In addition, the staff should have your best interests at heart-including letting you know when making a small adjustment, such as using matte instead of glossy paper or printing in three instead of four colours, could save you significant money on your print run.
The ability to meet your deadlines. How fast is their turnaround? Some printing companies can offer a range of full-service options, but they can’t make your deadline-often because they have too many clients and not enough equipment to handle everything in a timely manner. Check beforehand to make sure your printing company can get your documents to you before your deadline.
Green printing. If your company is environmentally conscious, it makes sense to look for the same values in the vendors you use. Printing companies can be environmentally friendly in many ways, including using recycled paper products and making a commitment to conserve energy or use renewable energy resources. However, most printing companies go green by offering soy-based printing.
Some printing companies use soy-based inks exclusively, and some offer the option. These are more environmentally friendly than traditional inks, which emit volatile organic chemicals (VOC’s). These chemicals are known to contribute to global warming and are believed to play a factor in certain health conditions. Soy-based inks tend to be more expensive by weight, but their colour is more intense than that of traditional inks as well-so you need less ink overall than you would with traditional inks. If you care about environmental factors or are making an effort to run a green company, it’s definitely a good idea to discuss using soy-based inks with your printer.
Not every printing company is created equally. Check with the company you’re considering to get a sense of their capabilities, knowledge and extra services. Always check references to get an unbiased second opinion on the company’s customer service, level of professionalism and skill. With the right preparation, you should have no problem finding the printing company that’s right for you.
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Printing can be hazardous to the environment. From the energy your printer uses to the paper and ink your message is printed on, the printing choices you make can have a strong effect on the world around you. Luckily, printing green isn’t difficult or expensive. Here are a few ways you can make sure you make environmentally friendly choices when printing—without breaking the bank.
Use recycled paper. The papermaking industry uses a lot of resources—including trees, water, and energy. It’s estimated that it takes approximately three tons of wood, over 2,000 pounds of solid waste, and almost 20,000 gallons of water to make a single ton of paper. In addition, the bleaching process used to get paper white can release damaging chemicals into waterways and the atmosphere. Any way you look at it, the more paper you use the worse it will be for the environment.
But you can make a difference by using recycled paper. It typically doesn’t cost significantly more than virgin paper, and it both reduces the demand for and uses less resources than production of new paper.
Print less. This is probably the easiest and most obvious way to go green—and the best for your budget. Avoid printing as much as possible. Keep your documents backed up on USB drives and discs instead of printing out paper copies. Send emails instead of mailing letters. When you do print, make sure you print on both sides of a sheet of paper so you can reduce the amount of paper you use overall.
Look into soy-based inks. Paper in landfills may not be ideal, but at least it’s biodegradable, right? It might be—but the ink printed on it isn’t. Most regular printer inks are petroleum-based. Petroleum-based inks release VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) into the air—not just in landfills, but in your home. These contribute to both global warming and indoor air pollution. In addition, some colours—often reds and metallics—contain heavy metals such as zinc, copper, and barium. In landfills, these pollutants leach into the environment and cause damage.
Soy-based inks use natural pigments and mediums, and are generally much less harmful to the environment. Not all of them are completely free from pollutants, however; look for inks that contain less than 2% petroleum.
Investigate the company’s energy use and green policies. Whenever possible, investigate the green policies of companies you buy printers and ink from. Do they take steps to reduce their carbon footprint? Do they have a recycling plan? Do they commit to using energy-efficient machinery and production methods? Many companies do lip service to the environmental movement, but don’t follow through on larger commitments. Most big printer manufacturers have a cartridge recycling program, for example—but some simply ship their used cartridges to third-world contractors who dispose of them in landfills.
Recycle. Don’t throw any of your electronics, ink and toner cartridges, or paper into the garbage. Recycle them instead. It’s relatively easy to recycle paper—most municipal recycling programs can take it—but it’s more difficult to recycle cartridges. Your best bet is often to use a nonprofit program that specializes in handling ink and toner cartridges. Some charge, but many don’t—and some will even arrange to pick up or pay for postage on your cartridges. In addition, some third-party cartridge companies sell remanufactured cartridges—and will pay you for your used ink and toner cartridges.
Use a green printer. If you use a printing company for high-volume work, be warned: printing companies can be highly toxic to the environment. Printers use solvents, drying agents, shellacs, and other chemical solutions to create film and printing plates as well as to clean printing presses. These get released into the air and into waterways, and many have toxic effects on people who are exposed to them. Look for a printer committed to green operations—one that avoids the use of packaging and foils that can make paper products impossible to recycle; relies on soy-based organic inks; and follows green energy use and printing practices.
Buy recycled cartridges. Third party cartridge resellers recycle old original ink and toner cartridges and fill them with their own ink. Buy from them instead of buying new cartridges from your manufacturer, and you could save significant amounts on cartridge costs—as well as reducing demand for new cartridges and keeping old ones out of landfills.
Green printing is good for the environment, as well as your budget. Commit to recycling, look for energy-efficient printers, and use recycled materials whenever possible. Buy recycled paper and cartridges, and support green printers and manufacturing companies—and you’ll be doing your part to make a difference.
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