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Find your Printer Service

To help you in your search there is a list of questions to ask print shops and service providers. Their answers should determine which printer is the best for you.

If you are interested in a Digital Prepress Service Provider then you might want to consider these questions:

1. What formats and platforms do you accept for digital work?  Ask about their supported software and transportation media.

2. What are your rates?

3. Do you offer any training or technical support?

4. What type and size imagesetters do you use? Some facilities can output only letter- and tabloid-sized page films. If your work is larger than this, you’ll have to look elsewhere.

5. How often are your imagesetters calibrated? (this should be done on daily basis)

6. What screening options are available? More and more establishments are offering stochastic screening and other types of custom screening. Ask for samples and a description of the steps involved in getting the most out of such technologies.

7. Do you offer scanning and color correcting services? Ask to see samples of their work, as well as their scanning equipment. Be leery of any facility offering critical color if their only device is a flatbed scanner. Also inquire about using Desktop Color Separation files.

8. What color proofing systems are available? Viable systems include laminate systems, IRIS inkjet, calibrated Fiery (or another color laser printer), and bluelines.

9. What trapping services are available? Some service bureaus use dedicated trapping software but charge considerably more for the service. Others use a combination of dedicated software and manual techniques. Others include a certain amount of trapping in the overall cost of output.

10. Who will be the primary contact? Will you communicate only with a salesperson? Or are you encouraged to contact the people responsible for processing your file? Choose a system that makes you most comfortable.

11. Do you have your own print shop? Many service bureaus, in order to remain competitive, have “closed the loop” by acquiring or merging with conventional print shops. This can be a great benefit, especially if you choose to have your project printed at their facility. It is likely that their production specialists can optimize their film output for reproduction on
their presses.

Questions for a Commercial Printer

1. Do you accept digital files? No one should feel obliged to hand over files to a printer for processing if you don’t feel comfortable with his level of digital experience. Also note that some printers, under the auspices of providing digital services, merely farm out the work to a service bureau and then mark up the cost by 20–30%.

2. What are your rates? If possible, ask about cost breakdowns for representative samples of your work to get a better idea.

3. Do you offer any training or technical support? Most printers encourage designers to call with even the tiniest inquiries. Find out the proper people to contact with such questions.

4. What prepress services do you offer? Ask for input on what prepress services might be more cost-effective if performed conventionally.

5. Are both sheet- and Web-fed presses available? By describing the nature of your projects to your printer, you can determine how these best suit the needs of your work.

6. How many colors can be printed in a single run? Many print shops run four-color jobs on two-color presses, which make press-checks almost impossible without using a densitometer. Stochastically screened images and five- or six-color jobs are also more difficult to print successfully and take more time to complete.

7. Do you offer high-fidelity color printing? Typically, only shops possessing six-color presses offer this service. Ask for samples printed on their presses.

8. What is your average turnaround time? The industry-standard turnaround time is 10 days, from the day the printer receives the files. Ask about their typical press schedule, and inquire about rush rates (or if they even accept rush jobs).

Bibliography:  “Print Publishing – A Hayden Shop Manual”