5 benefits of automating the print production process
Print production automation cuts errors, speeds approvals and frees studio time. Five practical benefits — and what they mean for agility.
Almost 90% of respondents to research by global management consultancy Oliver Wyman said business agility was highly important to the future success of their companies. A further 96% of chief innovation officers said they needed to become more agile, according to the same study, Organisational Agility.
That got us thinking about how critical agility is to the print industry. How do you streamline processes, react faster to change, and use technology in a way that lifts productivity and quality at the same time?
Automation can be applied to almost any industry. Below are five ways the print production process can be streamlined, automated and improved. If business agility is on your agenda, read on.
1. Faster approvals
Changes, edits and last-minute errors are a fact of life in print. The businesses that react fastest are the ones that stay productive and profitable. Automation software can transform the final stages of production and dramatically cut the number of times artwork ping-pongs back to the client.
At the point artwork is sent to print, the workflow puts the job into a hold state and automatically generates a low-resolution PDF for sign-off. No back-and-forth emails, no chasing attachments — everyone reviews and approves (or declines) in one place.
How it streamlines the process
- The studio team no longer has to manually generate sign-off PDFs
- Far less chance of errors slipping through to final print
2. Fewer errors
Imagine a system that automatically spots issues in artwork — and fixes them before anyone has to flag them.
When designing for print, it's a mistake to assume the colours on screen will translate accurately to the printed sheet. The wrong image format, an unflattened transparency or a missing profile can all derail a job.
Automation software can flag or correct these issues before the file reaches the press, sharply reducing risk.
How it streamlines the process
- No need for someone to manually pre-flight every file
- Print-related errors are caught upstream, not on press
3. Complex processes, automated
Easiest explained with a typical scenario:
- Files arrive at the print studio
- The team pulls them down from FTP, WeTransfer or similar
- They're uncompressed and stored on local servers
- Each file is checked, sorted and validated
- Approved files are loaded into the print system
A simple piece of artwork has now become a multi-step, error-prone job. With automation, the same sequence runs in under five minutes — untouched by human hands.
How it streamlines the process
- Far fewer people-hours spent on routine tasks
- Less chance of error because the path from client to press is shorter
4. Seamless integration
A common myth is that automation software won't talk to your existing tools and will just bolt more complexity onto an already complex stack. In our experience, the opposite is true.
Modern automation platforms integrate cleanly with booking systems, MIS, asset management, e-commerce and approval tools. Picked well, the software acts as the connective tissue between systems you already rely on — not a replacement for them.
How it streamlines the process
- More systems talking to each other = greater overall efficiency
- A single source of truth for jobs in flight
5. Better allocation of time
The obvious one, but the important one. Automation reduces the time and resource required to complete a project, which frees your team to focus on growth, client work and revenue — not file wrangling.
The cost savings compound: a slick workflow strips out the avoidable errors that cause jobs to stall, drag and erode margin.
How it streamlines the process
- Less time on production, more time on business development
- Lower resource cost per job
The toolkit we build on
Most of the workflows above are built on the Enfocus product family — the industry standard for print production automation:
- Enfocus Switch — the orchestration engine that connects your systems, routes files and automates the steps between job arrival and press
- Enfocus PitStop Pro & Server — automated PDF preflight and correction, catching (and fixing) the errors described above before they ever reach plate
- Enfocus Review — browser-based proofing and approvals that replace the email back-and-forth in section 1
As an Enfocus reseller and integration specialist, we license the software, configure it around your workflow, and build the custom Switch flows and PitStop action lists that make it actually fit your business.
Where to start
Automation works best when it's designed around your actual workflow — not bolted on as a generic layer. We help print businesses, brand owners and agencies map their current process, identify the highest-impact bottlenecks, and build automated workflows on Enfocus Switch and PitStop that pay back quickly.
Want to talk through automating your print production? See our Enfocus services or get in touch — we'll show you what's possible with your current setup.