I have to admit it…I’m spoiled (when you compare where I came from and where I am now). I sit not 40 feet from an Iris 4 and a Trendsetter Spectrum that are connected to a Prinergy workflow and surrounded by lesser output devices, both color and black and white. Yes, we have an in-house prepress workflow and that’s quite a luxury in the magazine publishing industry. Once upon a time I was a Production Manager at a rather backward company (from a digital standpoint). We were deeply entrenched in the analog world with all it’s dependencies on service bureaus and their associated costs…not that I’m slamming service bureaus as I worked at one for my very first taste of the world of print production.

Now I have the comfort of knowing that many costs associated with my magazines’ prepress are without mark-ups and I also know that if I need an Iris re-ran I can get it in my hands in no time flat. This might seem to be a perfect world where all walk hand-in-hand down a yellow brick road to production success and, dare I say it, bliss, but it’s not always the case. There is, as with everything a few down sides and that is the purpose of this short article. Today we’re talking about the good, the bad and the ugly (some might call them frustrations) of an in-house prepress workflow. Hopefully, this will assist someone out there to avoid some of the potholes that tend to litter our beautiful production road of yellow bricks.

The good – Now this is easy. Of course there are great deal of positive aspects to an in-house prepress operation. Here are a few:

Ease of scheduling and workflow control – If your project is important to your company you will always get your work preflighted, RIPed, and a contract proof run, as long as you provide your company’s trafficker with an advanced schedule. I provide a yearly schedule outlining what projects will be in preflight and when. I state when I expect Irises and when we will ship final files to one of our two primary printers (RR Donnelley and Sons Mendota Division and Quad Graphics Sussex Division do a great job for us…thanks guys!). I allow for one solid day to preflight application files and a day and a half to run Irises. Our Art Directors and Editors proof for 1/2 a day, then it’s back to prepress for alterations (if needed) and re-run Iris verification (if needed). We allow for one day to organize files and to burn CDs, shipping the job out at 3:00 with a complete set of Irises and a map of the book. Neat and completely, not withstanding an asteroid strike or some other act of God, within our control.

Lower prepress costs (sort of) – With an in-house prepress workflow you can monopolize lower costs for prepress services than those you would find at an off site service bureau. By having the equipment in-house you seemingly cut out the mark up the service bureaus have to add on order to cover their overhead costs. I said "seemingly" because your company ends up paying the same overhead costs even if your department is not directly billed for them.

Our operation at Wizards of the Coast is such that each of the departments using our prepress services pays a portion of the overhead and a fixed cost for consumables. It’s a business plan that works well for our group as our average cost per page went from approximately $35.00 to approximately $12.00 (that’s for a CTP workflow using an Iris 4). If your company is purely a publisher (ours is not) and you have to invest in equipment, training and personnel yourself, it will take a bite out of your bottom line and could end up being one of the negative aspects of an in-house prepress workflow. One might think that once the system is paid for running proofs or film would be practically free (not including consumables, maintenance, and staff wages), but not so. As with computer equipment, prepress equipment evolves and the in-house operation will need to, as we have at my company, invest in updated equipment to stay in step with industry developments.

Flexibility if a quick turnaround is needed – I have to say, there’s nothing like being able to plan a quick collateral job in the morning and to be holding a CD and Irises in your hand by 3:00. Flexibility is one of the most, in my humble opinion, attractive aspects of an in-house prepress workflow. If we have changes, my Art Directors walk 40 feet to the prepress area and have them made on the spot. My scheduled time in prepress is mine alone. For the most part the operator assigned to our job is able to focus on servicing our needs and when it comes to making corrections to the end of the process, it’s normally a snap! Also, if corrupt files are found once received at the printer (or maybe a file is missing) our prepress staff can quickly WamNet replacement files to the plant…we’re talking minutes here, not the time it would take to contact an outside operation, communicate your needs and "hope" that the needed files are transmitted in a timely manner.

The bad – There are some negative aspects of an in-house workflow that, for the most part revolve around the expenditure of Yankee greenbacks. The initial investment in equipment alone is staggering, not to mention finding, training and retaining experienced prepress professionals. Very careful planning is needed prior to jumping into an in-house prepress workflow to determine if your organization can even benefit from such expenditure. I compare in-house prepress to printing presses, unless that press is being fed it’s not paying for itself and unless there’s enough work in your company to truly keep that prepress group hopping, you could probably spend your dollars much more wisely and continue using an outside source for prepress.

The ugly – I’ve saved this for last and there are some pitfalls, other than expenditures, associated with some in-house prepress Workflows. The potholes of an in-house workflow normally revolve around poor communication and bunker mentalities. These observations are purely my own and are based on a business model where my publishing group is but one aspect of our company using prepress and where the prepress department does not directly report to me. Here goes…

You do not have total control of the prepress process – this may seem to contradict what I wrote above, but on a purely business level you may have no control regarding decisions made in the prepress department that can directly effect your business operation. If the department decides to go offline and install a new system without a backup workflow you could be stuck. This can easily be taken care of with advanced planning and good old fashion communication.

Equipment failures can be disastrous – If your equipment fails and you’re on deadline it could be disastrous. I’ve come very close to missing ship dates because the Iris decided to become testy. If using an outside service bureau they will probably have more back ups than an in-house operation or they can easily outsource the work to another shop if need be. It’s prudent to have a back-up plan for sending your files through an alternate workflow or to an outside service bureau if needed.

The in-house prepress staff does not work for you, but with you – This is an important distinction as your priorities might not be theirs. If the prepress manager plops another job in your operator’s lap, he or she may have no choice but to bump your job. Always be ready to use your diplomatic skills and, as your mother taught, say "please and thank you"!

In-house operations are usually more limited than a service bureau – I touched on this above when speaking of backup systems. If a company wants to take on the responsibilities of a service bureau they had better be prepared to operate like one. Many don’t (again, usually a by product of not enough funding…poor or insufficient equipment procured or inexperienced personnel hired) and they try "cookie cutter" approaches to prepress by offering their in-house clients few alternatives when it comes to workflow, proofs and file formats. Many times a certain file format can cut quite a bit off your prepress bill once your job hits the printer. I’ve found that it costs, normally, a great deal less to process a TIFF/IT-P1 (or any locked down format) than an application file, but not every in-house operation can produce TIFF/IT-P1s or PDF/X1a. Proofing is also a key element that can be under funded. In publishing we need SWOP compliant proofs but the proofers are, to many budgets, cost prohibitive so some opt for less expensive proofing systems that are really designed as pre-proofers for content only. They do not match the color you look for on press and can cause unexpected issues on press. There could also be an skill set issue if the in-house operation does not properly train its staff and stay up-to-date with industry developments (as noted above).

Last, but not least, is the "bunker mentality". This is when departments get into the habit of not working as a team, but as different groups striving towards their own defined goals. Communication is poor at best and errors can be made. If anything I would recommend over communicating and always, as I said above, say thank you for a job well done. Ensure that you set up a relationship where the prepress staff knows that you will assist them to assist you and never give orders, but make requests. If there is a special need make the request and explain why it’s important. I feel that having an understanding of the specifics of a job provides a feeling of empowerment. To also be frank, it ensures that people don’t feel you’re a directive jerk and let’s be honest, we all do more for people we like.

In conclusion an in-house operation can be, if planned and executed properly, a great asset to a company and cause a lot less gray hair for your staff. Prior to implementing such an operation ensure that you have a firm understanding of exactly what your needs are…how will an in-house operation benefit you? Get your primary vendors involved and always, from a file standpoint, use the 3 "Ts" of prepress planning…"test, test, test". This advanced planning will save you possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars and ensure that your in-house prepress workflow will be an asset and not a hindrance