Industry tools up for free

Printers will be able to access, without charge, a suite of sophisticated management and production tools, the Toolkits, to implement in their enterprises, following the release of the final part of the industry strategy, Print 21.

The Toolkits have been designed expressly to deal with the planning and strategy issues facing members of the industry. They are the result of almost three years of extensive consultation and the participation of many printers and prepress professionals during which time the particular issues that define the industry were identified and addressed.

The strategy document was released in March this year whle the Toolkits, which chairman Trevor Hone describes as the “core of the document” were presented to the industry at PacPrint. Unlike a similar initiative undertaken by US printing associations, the Toolkits are being made available free of charge to all professionals within the industry here to encourage their wider adaptation.

The Toolkits consist of programmes that allow printers to conduct in-depth analysis of their businesses, measure how they are going against industry standards and, in the words of John Flynn president of PIAA, “develop business plans based on strategic investment decisions, medium to long term operational plans and effective marketing strategies.”

“The industry is predominantly made up of small to medium size firms, who don’t necessarily have the expertise or resources to develop a business planning process that is specific to the industry,” he said.

“The Print21 Toolkit provides a framework for printers large and small to be able to do a detailed analysis of their business and to develop business plans based on strategic investment decisions, medium to long term operational plans and effective marketing strategies.”

Print21, also known as the Printing Industries Action Agenda, has been developed over the past two years in a partnership between the PIAA, GAMAA, Australian Paper and the Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources.

Print21 Chairman, Trevor Hone, said the initiative was in response to industry and government concerns over research indicating that the printing industry, one of Australia’s largest manufacturing sectors employing over 100,000 people, was experiencing a slow but steady decline in margins and profitability.

“These are challenging times characterised by technological change, new publishing environments and increasing globalisation,” he said. “We are a strong, vibrant and forward thinking industry, but we need to come to grips with these issues if we are to continue to grow and prosper.”

A website has been developed to provide printers with online access to the Action Agenda research.