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volume wide format printing to what extent??
to what extent is it ok to use my wide format machine with regards to volume work?? before i think its better to do this on litho?? This would also include the cutting of each individual label.
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17 Replies
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if you have nothing better to do best to keep all the profit.
these machines like a good trashing now and again 😉
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what if a customer gives you 2000 labels at an a5 size. would it be cost effective though??
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you mean a thin paper label? or a thick vinyl label.
have you got your formula to calculate pricing?
will you use your vinyl roll for anything else?
its all down to your business model.
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See through clear vinyl labels, will be dedicating the roll to the printing of the labels. I worked it out to be 61 meters of clear vinyl and would equate to £1750.00 which i think sounds steep!!
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thats £1750 for the job which is measured by approximately £25.00 for a meter at my charge.
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Hi
It doesn’t matter whether or not that sounds steep in some ways. If thats how much you have to quote to cover your costs and make an acceptable profit then that is what you have to quote for your in-house manufactured stickers. Remember your cost includes depreciation on the machine, finance costs, any extra warranty costs etc. etc. You will probably find that on this quantity and size a screen printer would easily undercut you, sorry have no idea about litho though.
Having said that if it were us and the customer was happy to go with digitally printed stickers and pay this value then we’d be very happy with the margin this price would give.
cheers
macky -
also it depends on where the stickers are goint to be stuck, on a surface other than white, the colours would change
Peter
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stickers would be stuck on white bell boxes. I am just going to work out a price based on an outsourced screen supplier, outsourced litho and my own price and see what works out best margin wise. if its not too different then i might as well do all the printing myslef! 🙂
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ah now ur making sense, its external…. well silk screen or digital printed… forget litho.
although i would do them in white and profile cut afterwards and then you can stick them anywhere.
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for a external bell box dig print should be laminated as well
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when you guys say digital printed do you mean on my wide format?? also what if its not laminated?? how much of a difference would it be???
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you are offering a short term product to go on to a long term box. also what quality of material were you going to use.
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thinking of using metamark clear vinyl. should last a good 4-5 years i would expect.
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Stuart,
When I do bulk / volume orders I use a different price structure from my normal digital printing.
I’m currently printing 150 A1 size posters.(on a Versa Art 640) I came in cheaper than the Litho guys on this job.. (printed on 200gsm Photo paper, which is slightly cheaper than Clear vinyl) To my reaconing, my own cost will be less on even far bigger jobs, compared to outsourcing. And my own quality is tops…..
When I chase bulk / volume orders, I change my pricing model:
a) I do not consider installments, insurance etc, since the objective of getting bulk orders is to keep the printers occupied the maximum number of hours per day, i.e. it takes up DOWNTIME not PRODUCTION time.
b) Large stock purchases will get you discount from suppliers. I managed to get a "key account holder" status with my main supplier, which means I pay 15 to 25% less on ALL my stock purchases. This obviously benifits my "regular" business as well!!
c) The speed of your printer becomes an issue. I have a SP540 and a VersaArt 640. Since the Versa Art is print only, I have to produce 30 000 licence disc stickers on the SP. (This was a "bulk" deal as well, which means about half the price of a normal job) It has to be finished by Tuesday, and I still have to print 12 000. This job occupies my only print/cut machine for 16+hours per day. This does stuff my normal work schedule up a bit. If you have the machine time, go for it. If not, consider another option.
Your price seems a bit steep for a bulk order. On this kind of deal I would be in the GBP 10 – 12 range per square metre, with lamination added as cost + 50%. The prices may seem low, but this is what you need to quote to get this type of work. You can still make a handsome profit if you do sufficient volumes.
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If they are for alarm bell boxes then screen printing will be the way to go. If you don’t screen print then sub it out and mark it up, money for nothing and will still probably work out cheaper than a digi print. mod-edit
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I should also add here to beware of your terminology, a "label" to me is a short term cheap paper sticker. Whereas a "Sticker" to me refers to self adhesive vinyl.
It would also be wise to point out that a digi print will only last 3 years even if you print it on a 10 year vinyl, its the UV rays that kill print not the life of the vinyl. As for laminating, do yourself a testpiece and laminate half and leave the other side plain, stick it outside for a year or two and see the difference, the unlaminated will wear off even with rain running down it. I have a few stickers on my garage which are unlaminated and after 2 years they are showing signs of rain wear. I have used genuine Roland EcosolMax inks -
For what your customer wants then screen printing is really the way to go.
The advantage of digital printing is that it can be used for one offs and low volume orders, it isnt really ideal for bulk production.
On the flipside, screen printing is rubbish for one offs as the setup costs are expensive, but for bulk orders it is better as once the setup costs are paid, the price per decal is a lot less.
In 30 seconds on Google I have just found a screen printer offering A5 outdoor decals, printed in single colour at £263 + VAT for 2500. If your customer does the same search, they aren’t going to be very impressed with a quote of £1750 for something that isnt going to last nearly as long.
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