How Important Should Price be in Choosing A Printer?
I spent a good deal of time buying printing in a public sector environment where we were required to take at least three bids and place the job with the lowest bidder. Believe me, we learned first hand that the low bid was not always the best one.
What did we do? We developed strategies to avoid the losers and direct requests for bids to the print companies that were reputable, did good work, met all of the job specifications, and delivered on time. So, in a sense, we were shopping for features as well, even though at the end of the day we had to go with the low-cost bid. And sometimes we got burned.
Ray Chambers, CGCM, MBA, has invested over 30 years managing and directing printing plants, copy centers, mail centers and award-winning document management facilities in higher education and government.
Most recently, Chambers served as vice president and chief information officer at Juniata College. Chambers is currently a doctoral candidate studying Higher Education Administration at the Pennsylvania State University (PSU). His research interests include outsourcing in higher education and its impact on support services in higher education and managing support services. He also consults (Chambers Management Group) with leaders in both the public and private sectors to help them understand and improve in-plant printing and document services operations.
