When it comes to NCR printing there are four main levers that can be pulled when trying to save money: Process, Supply Chain, Specification and Pricing.

This particular article focuses on process only, by which I mean examining your business processes, then identifying the forms required to serve those processes.

Once you have mapped out your processes you can start to ask some pretty fundamental questions like:

• Do I need all of my existing forms?

• Can my existing forms be combined to serve more than one process?

• Can I replace forms with modern technology?

Here are some examples which might help to illustrate the above points:

Large courier companies now ask consignees to sign ‘electronically’ for goods, whereas in the past they would have used multiple-part NCR forms. This not only eliminates the cost of form processing, but it also speeds up and automates Proof of Receipt processing, enabling the public to track orders on-line thus reducing incoming calls.

In Direct Sales organisations, a single NCR form is often used to serve as a sales order and sales invoice, with significant resultant savings in the accounts department.

At company reception desks, 2 part NCR sets are frequently used as visitor forms. It is usually possible to replace this system with a simple Visitor Sign-In Register, supplemented with reusable visitor badges.

Whenever looking at your business processes and the potential to introduce alternative methods it is important to weigh up all the relevant factors including:

• Cost of the form itself

• Order processing costs associated with that form

• Physical storage costs (both new stock and archives)

• Stock write offs due to obsolescence

• Time required to complete and process the form

• Potential efficiency savings of introducing alternative methods.

Some larger companies spend so much in these areas that they outsource all their print requirements to print management companies.

In summary, process reviews can be a significant way to reduce overall print costs, of which NCR printing can be a weighty sub set.