Make no mistake, using a wide-format printer can be an expensive proposition that makes producing traditional office documents seem downright economical. After all, everything is bigger, including the printer's price tag, the paper and how much ink you need.
\r\nAll of this adds up to a potential budget buster. If your company is struggling with the expense associated with creating banners, posters and marketing materials (but you need a wide-format printer), there are several ways to curtail the costs. From buying ink in bulk to combining prints, there's a lot you can do without sacrificing the printed materials your company counts on.
\r\nHere are eight ways to reign in wide-printing costs.
\r\nEditor's Note: Looking for a wide-format printer? We can help you choose the one that's right for you. Use the questionnaire below to have our sister site, BuyerZone, provide you with information from a variety of vendors for free:
\r\n\r\nIt might seem counterintuitive, but one of the easiest ways to save money on wide-format printing is to buy the largest ink modules you can get. That's because as the ink module's size increases, the ink's cost drops quickly. It's the same ink, it just costs less.
\r\nFor instance, Canon sells three cartridge sizes for its iMagePROgraf Pro-4000 series: 160, 330 and 700 milliliters (ml). The cost of the ink declines from 61 cents per milliliter for the small (160 ml) cartridge to 52 cents per ml for the medium one (330 ml) to 42 cents per ml for the large (700 ml) cartridge. Overall, it can add up to significant savings.
\r\nBetter yet, printers that don't utilize ink cartridges can save you even more. Some printers, like the LUS 150 formulation that the Mimaki JFX 2000 uses, contain ink reservoirs. When a particular color of ink is running low, you simply pour ink from a bottle into the appropriate reservoir. It can be messy, but the cost is approximately 10 cents per ml of ink. [Interested in buying a wide-format printer? Check out our best picks.]
\r\nThe easiest way to shave wide-format printing costs is to avoid using top resolution or photo-quality settings for works in progress. Instead, print in draft mode. You'll get a print that is suitable for marking up and soliciting comments on while slashing 20 to 40 percent of your costs.
\r\nYou may be able to configure the printer's default settings so that an item is automatically set to print in draft mode. Users must then manually change the printer's setting to print an item with high resolution for final prints.
\r\nWide-format printers create large printed items that other devices can't produce. But smaller items can be combined to cut costs, save time and reduce paper use.
\r\nSay, for example, that you have 10 prints to make ranging in size from 24 x 36 inches to 48 x 60 inches on your Roland Soljet EJ-640. They can be printed individually or arranged across the EJ-640's 64-inch wide bed. They're printed more quickly, and there's less waste (but the prints will need to be trimmed).
\r\nSome printer manufacturers include nesting software, like Epson's Layout Manager, that optimizes placement of individual prints on the sheet to help you make the most of your print jobs.
\r\nWe're always in a hurry to get the print job done, but a faster printer can be a great way to further lower expenses and make the printer pay for itself, because the more you use it, the less it costs per item printed.
\r\nTake printing a dozen D-sized (24 x 36-inch) posters with HP's PageWide XL 6000 printer. It's capable of producing them in less than a minute, leaving the printer ready for its next job. This increases the printer's capacity utilization while lowering the cost per item. You might even be able to consolidate costs by eliminating slower printers in your office and instead using one fast device.
\r\nIt may seem like an inconvenience, but a wide-format printer that can switch between two or more paper rolls easily can be a money saver. This is because you don't need to waste 10 or 15 minutes taking the old roll out, inserting the new one and feeding the paper properly. With a dial-roll device, you select the right paper size in the setup menu, just like you would with a regular printer if you were printing legal-sized documents versus letter-sized items.
\r\nOne of the best ways to cut paper and ink costs is to train employees to use the Print Preview function before they print their project. This step eliminates a lot of mistakes and waste.
\r\nIt's also a good idea to monitor your print job. The paper doesn't always feed straight into the printer or the ink isn't always laid down evenly. If you catch it early, you can start again with less waste.
\r\nSome printers, like Epson's SureColor P20000, have a sensor hidden near the print heads that monitors the print, detecting any changes in ink density variations, paper skewing and slack. If it detects a problem, it corrects it instantly so there are fewer wasted prints.
\r\nWide-format printers are complicated, expensive machines, and there's nothing worse than having a broken machine sit idle. That's where an extended warranty comes in.
\r\nFor instance, it costs about $2,200 to extend the original one-year warranty for Canon's imagePROGRAF iPF785 for an extra year. It's money well spent, because in the event the printer requires a major repair, the costs to repair the printer coupled with the costs to your business in terms of delays, productivity, etc., are astronomic compared to $2,200.
\r\nCheck to make sure the extended warranty is transferable should your company sell the printer.
\r\nFinally, one of the best ways to reduce printing costs is to limit its use. Curtail access to the printer to only those employees who need to print and monitor who's printing what.
\r\nHP's SmartTracker software works with all PageWide XL devices to control the printing process, including who can and cannot print on the device. It also shows who is using the printer with helpful graphs and can estimate per-page costs.
\r\nAnother bonus to this approach is that you can charge back the use of this companywide resource to those departments that use it most.
\n","docType":"article","guid":"articles_96cb5aa1efebe073363d521829ee94c8","lastModified":"2018-09-20T16:45:00.000Z","published":"2018-09-20T16:45:00.000Z","structuredData":null,"subtitle":"Wide-format printing can be a budget buster if you don't follow these simple tips.","template":"legacy","title":"8 Tips for Cutting Wide-Format Printing Costs","type":"article","author":{"avatar":null,"bio":"Brian is a technology writer based north of New York City. He writes stories for Business.com, Tom's Guide, ComputerWorld and Scholastic Magazines. He is the former editor-in-chief of Mobile Computing & Communications magazine.","name":"Brian Nadel","image":null,"slug":null,"social":{"facebook":"","linkedin":"","twitter":"https://twitter.com/nadelbrian","website":"http://www.business.com"},"status":"enabled","title":null,"type":"Contributing Writer","user":{"imagePath":"https://staging.business.com/images/undefined","profile":{"company":"Heather Garcia Realty","jobTitle":"Realtor","website":""}}},"breadcrumbs":null,"channels":{"primary":{"name":"Technology","slug":"technology"},"sub":{"name":"Technology Solutions","slug":"technology-solutions"}},"meta":{"robots":"index, follow","description":"From buying ink in bulk to combining prints to reduce waste, there's a lot you can do without sacrificing the large printed materials your company needs.","title":"How to Cut Wide-Format Printing Costs - business.com"},"parsedContent":{"toc":[{"id":"1-bigger-is-better-with-ink-cartridges","title":"1. Bigger is better with ink cartridges."},{"id":"2-use-draft-mode","title":"2. Use draft mode."},{"id":"3-combine-print-jobs","title":"3. Combine print jobs."},{"id":"4-faster-printers-allow-for-greater-efficiency","title":"4. Faster printers allow for greater efficiency."},{"id":"5-two-rolls-are-better-than-one","title":"5. Two rolls are better than one."},{"id":"6-reduce-paper-waste-with-print-preview-and-overseeing-printing","title":"6. Reduce paper waste with print preview and overseeing printing."},{"id":"7-cut-repair-bills-with-an-extended-warranty","title":"7. Cut repair bills with an extended warranty."},{"id":"8-limit-employee-use-and-require-necessary-approvals","title":"8. Limit employee use and require necessary approvals."}],"json":[{"component":"p","children":["Make no mistake, using a wide-format printer can be an expensive proposition that makes producing traditional office documents seem downright economical. After all, everything is bigger, including the printer's price tag, the paper and how much ink you need. "]},{"component":"p","children":["All of this adds up to a potential budget buster. If your company is struggling with the expense associated with creating banners, posters and marketing materials (but you need a wide-format printer), there are several ways to curtail the costs. From buying ink in bulk to combining prints, there's a lot you can do without sacrificing the printed materials your company counts on. "]},{"component":"p","children":["Here are eight ways to reign in wide-printing costs."]},{"component":"p","children":[{"component":"strong","children":[" Editor's Note: Looking for a wide-format printer? We can help you choose the one that's right for you. Use the questionnaire below to have our sister site, BuyerZone, provide you with information from a variety of vendors for free:"]}," "]},{"component":"RfqWidget","props":{"className":"bz-form-widget","id":"bz-form-widget-0","widgetCategoryId":"10178"},"children":[" "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"1-bigger-is-better-with-ink-cartridges"},"children":["1. Bigger is better with ink cartridges."]},{"component":"p","children":["It might seem counterintuitive, but one of the easiest ways to save money on wide-format printing is to buy the largest ink modules you can get. That's because as the ink module's size increases, the ink's cost drops quickly. It's the same ink, it just costs less. "]},{"component":"p","children":["For instance, Canon sells three cartridge sizes for its iMagePROgraf Pro-4000 series: 160, 330 and 700 milliliters (ml). The cost of the ink declines from 61 cents per milliliter for the small (160 ml) cartridge to 52 cents per ml for the medium one (330 ml) to 42 cents per ml for the large (700 ml) cartridge. Overall, it can add up to significant savings. "]},{"component":"p","children":["Better yet, printers that don't utilize ink cartridges can save you even more. Some printers, like the LUS 150 formulation that the ",{"component":"Link","props":{"href":"https://www.business.com/reviews/mimaki-jfx200/","target":"_blank"},"children":["Mimaki JFX 2000"]}," uses, contain ink reservoirs. When a particular color of ink is running low, you simply pour ink from a bottle into the appropriate reservoir. It can be messy, but the cost is approximately 10 cents per ml of ink. ",{"component":"em","children":["[Interested in buying a "]},{"component":"Link","props":{"href":"https://www.business.com/categories/best-wide-format-printers/","target":"_blank"},"children":[{"component":"em","children":["wide-format printer"]}]},{"component":"em","children":["? Check out our best picks.]"]}," "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"2-use-draft-mode"},"children":[{"component":"em"},"2. Use draft mode."]},{"component":"p","children":["The easiest way to shave wide-format printing costs is to avoid using top resolution or photo-quality settings for works in progress. Instead, print in draft mode. You'll get a print that is suitable for marking up and soliciting comments on while slashing 20 to 40 percent of your costs. "]},{"component":"p","children":["You may be able to configure the printer's default settings so that an item is automatically set to print in draft mode. Users must then manually change the printer's setting to print an item with high resolution for final prints. "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"3-combine-print-jobs"},"children":[{"component":"em"},"3. Combine print jobs."]},{"component":"p","children":["Wide-format printers create large printed items that other devices can't produce. But smaller items can be combined to cut costs, save time and reduce paper use. "]},{"component":"p","children":["Say, for example, that you have 10 prints to make ranging in size from 24 x 36 inches to 48 x 60 inches on your ",{"component":"Link","props":{"href":"https://www.business.com/reviews/roland-soljet/","target":"_blank"},"children":["Roland Soljet EJ-640"]},". They can be printed individually or arranged across the EJ-640's 64-inch wide bed. They're printed more quickly, and there's less waste (but the prints will need to be trimmed). "]},{"component":"p","children":["Some printer manufacturers include nesting software, like Epson's Layout Manager, that optimizes placement of individual prints on the sheet to help you make the most of your print jobs. "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"4-faster-printers-allow-for-greater-efficiency"},"children":[{"component":"em"},"4. Faster printers allow for greater efficiency."]},{"component":"p","children":["We're always in a hurry to get the print job done, but a faster printer can be a great way to further lower expenses and make the printer pay for itself, because the more you use it, the less it costs per item printed. "]},{"component":"p","children":["Take printing a dozen D-sized (24 x 36-inch) posters with ",{"component":"Link","props":{"href":"https://www.business.com/reviews/hp-pagewide-xl-4500/","target":"_blank"},"children":["HP's PageWide XL 6000"]}," printer. It's capable of producing them in less than a minute, leaving the printer ready for its next job. This increases the printer's capacity utilization while lowering the cost per item. You might even be able to consolidate costs by eliminating slower printers in your office and instead using one fast device. "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"5-two-rolls-are-better-than-one"},"children":[{"component":"em"},"5. Two rolls are better than one."]},{"component":"p","children":["It may seem like an inconvenience, but a wide-format printer that can switch between two or more paper rolls easily can be a money saver. This is because you don't need to waste 10 or 15 minutes taking the old roll out, inserting the new one and feeding the paper properly. With a dial-roll device, you select the right paper size in the setup menu, just like you would with a regular printer if you were printing legal-sized documents versus letter-sized items. "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"6-reduce-paper-waste-with-print-preview-and-overseeing-printing"},"children":[{"component":"em"},"6. Reduce paper waste with print preview and overseeing printing."]},{"component":"p","children":["One of the best ways to cut paper and ink costs is to train employees to use the Print Preview function before they print their project. This step eliminates a lot of mistakes and waste. "]},{"component":"p","children":["It's also a good idea to monitor your print job. The paper doesn't always feed straight into the printer or the ink isn't always laid down evenly. If you catch it early, you can start again with less waste. "]},{"component":"p","children":["Some printers, like ",{"component":"Link","props":{"href":"https://www.business.com/reviews/epson-surecolor-p20000/","target":"_blank"},"children":["Epson's SureColor P20000"]},", have a sensor hidden near the print heads that monitors the print, detecting any changes in ink density variations, paper skewing and slack. If it detects a problem, it corrects it instantly so there are fewer wasted prints. "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"7-cut-repair-bills-with-an-extended-warranty"},"children":[{"component":"em"},"7. Cut repair bills with an extended warranty."]},{"component":"p","children":["Wide-format printers are complicated, expensive machines, and there's nothing worse than having a broken machine sit idle. That's where an extended warranty comes in. "]},{"component":"p","children":["For instance, it costs about $2,200 to extend the original one-year warranty for ",{"component":"Link","props":{"href":"https://www.business.com/reviews/canon-imageprograf/","target":"_blank"},"children":["Canon's imagePROGRAF iPF785"]}," for an extra year. It's money well spent, because in the event the printer requires a major repair, the costs to repair the printer coupled with the costs to your business in terms of delays, productivity, etc., are astronomic compared to $2,200. "]},{"component":"p","children":["Check to make sure the extended warranty is transferable should your company sell the printer. "]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"8-limit-employee-use-and-require-necessary-approvals"},"children":[{"component":"em"},"8. Limit employee use and require necessary approvals."]},{"component":"p","children":["Finally, one of the best ways to reduce printing costs is to limit its use. Curtail access to the printer to only those employees who need to print and monitor who's printing what. "]},{"component":"p","children":["HP's SmartTracker software works with all PageWide XL devices to control the printing process, including who can and cannot print on the device. It also shows who is using the printer with helpful graphs and can estimate per-page costs. "]},{"component":"p","children":["Another bonus to this approach is that you can charge back the use of this companywide resource to those departments that use it most."]}]},"resource":null,"sponsorship":null,"thumbnail":{"path":"https://staging.business.com/images/content/5ba/3ae3f51ee473d5b8b457d/1500-0-","caption":"geppe/Shutterstock","isBlurred":true},"bestPicks":null},"related":{"relatedArticles":[{"title":"PowerShell: Everything You Need to Know","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/powershell-everything-you-need-to-know/","slug":"powershell-everything-you-need-to-know","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5b8/998581039eb8f738b457b/1500-0-","dek":"What you need to know to unlock Microsoft PowerShell's full capabilities.","lastModified":"2018-09-05T17:00:00Z","published":"2018-09-05T17:00:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"How to Choose the Best Business Loan","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/how-to-choose-a-business-loan/","slug":"how-to-choose-a-business-loan","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5db/c5c175a215e47798b456f/1500-0-","dek":"Small businesses have a lot of funding options, but choose wisely.","lastModified":"2020-02-04T14:25:00Z","published":"2020-02-04T14:25:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"Digital Copier Buying Guide","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/choosing-digital-copier/","slug":"choosing-digital-copier","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/58f/78ec73087b1e906c2fd1c/1500-0-","dek":"Follow this basic advice to make the right choice for a digital copier for business.","lastModified":"2017-10-11T14:08:00Z","published":"2017-10-11T14:08:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"Using Lean Strategies to Achieve Team Synergy and Efficiency","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/lean-strategies-team-efficiency/","slug":"lean-strategies-team-efficiency","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5be/480e49c658a51108b458c/1500-0-","dek":"Learn more about lean manufacturing strategies and how to implement them in your business.","lastModified":"2018-11-08T08:00:00Z","published":"2018-11-08T08:00:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"Your Guide to Creating a Small Business Marketing Plan","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/sample-marketing-plan-outline-and-template/","slug":"sample-marketing-plan-outline-and-template","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5f3/3e1765a215eb62d8b4567/1500-0-","dek":"Follow these templates and guidelines to get started on creating your business's marketing plan.","lastModified":"2020-08-12T12:28:00Z","published":"2018-03-02T13:00:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"Because Every Penny Counts: The Ultimate Free Tech Toolbox for Startups","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/ultimate-free-tech-toolbox-for-startups/","slug":"ultimate-free-tech-toolbox-for-startups","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/59f/a346a51ee4783668b459e/1500-0-","dek":"Here are 19 free or low-cost apps and services that can give your startup a boost.","lastModified":"2017-11-01T22:01:00Z","published":"2017-11-01T22:01:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"The Ultimate Small Business Guide to Credit Card Processing Fees","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/credit-card-processing-fees/","slug":"credit-card-processing-fees","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5d2/346547b437454698b4577/1500-0-","dek":"Learn about credit card processing fees and how to negotiate for lower costs.","lastModified":"2020-06-16T10:08:00Z","published":"2017-12-07T08:00:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"How to Hire for Your Business","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/how-to-staff-business/","slug":"how-to-staff-business","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5ea/9c8bb9c658aee018b456c/1500-0-","dek":"Sterling Staffing Solutions CEO Stephen Carter shares his tips on staffing your business.","lastModified":"2020-07-31T15:00:00Z","published":"2018-08-16T12:00:00Z","sponsored":false},{"title":"How to Make Money in Retirement: A Guide to Turning a Hobby into a Side Business","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/how-make-money-retirement-hobby/","slug":"how-make-money-retirement-hobby","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5ba/902e01039eb26648b4572/1500-0-","dek":"Many retirees turn side interests into income. 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