September 2009
Greetings from the FormSprint help desk!
 


I've always felt that this time of the year was really the time to celebrate New Years. A new school year has begun, its time to wash the windows and clean out the cobwebs, and it's time to settle back into our work and begin new projects. This is a time filled with the hopeful anticipation of new beginnings. We thought this would be a good time to share some thoughts from one of our customers who has taken some new approaches to "going green".

And while we're on the subject of green, I thought I would share some pictures of my summer vacation part of which was spent in the Emerald Isle. Enjoy!
 
Using less toner Waterford
Hayward, California-based Columbus Distributing not only distributes world class Columbus Salame and Columbus Meat products, but also 6,500+ leading edge products from around the globe. Like any forward-thinking business, Columbus Distributing is always looking for ways to reduce costs. As a good corporate citizen, they are also interested in "going green." IT manager Curt Clawson shares with our readers how his company has used FormSprint to do both.

Curt's forms used large copies of the striking Columbus Distributing logo. They didn't want to eliminate the logo, but found that by printing it in grayscale rather than solid black it was still effective without using as much toner. On page two and beyond of their form, a smaller version of the logo is used for further savings. To estimate potential savings, Curt simply scanned the before and after images. He used the difference in file size as the savings. Based on this, he estimated toner savings at 20 - 30% . As Curt said, "Large logos and bar codes really suck up the toner."
 
Gardens of Lismore CastleControlling what is printed
Another way to save was to use FormSprint to control what is on each copy of an invoice. Columbus prints both a Customer copy and a Driver copy. Originally bar codes (item UPC on some and also one to allow for index scanning into an optical storage system) were printed on both copies. Now bar codes are only printed on the Customer copy. The invoice is a combination invoice and Proof of Delivery. Now only signature information and box are printed on the Driver's copy. Not only does it reduce toner, but it actually makes it obvious to the driver which copy the customer must sign.

Another way to reduce printing is to stop printing terms and conditions or other long, boiler plate text.  Instead, print a URL where it can be accessed from your Web site as a PDF.  One word of caution:  Be careful not to reduce toner and form elements to the point where the form is difficult to read.
 
Saving by duplexing Beautiful doorways of Dublin
Curt said Columbus is using FormSprint to duplex print invoices. "By using FormSprint to force a new page on a customer break (the way the report runs) we can ensure that the front and back sides never include two different customers...and do so without the added expense of changing the program. This is just another way that we will save 25 - 35% on the page printing AND also reduce postage (if mailed), bulk and recycling requirements for this job." Curt reports that customers immediately appreciated the duplex invoices. There was no issue with acceptance. "No one wants more paper!", he said.
 
Email and fax
Antrim coast Perhaps the largest savings for Columbus over the past few years has been using FormSprint in combination with a fax solution. Prior to implementing this they used to run dozens of jobs each month totaling hundreds (if not a few thousand) pages for Price Change Notification and/or Market Item price lists. Staff would manually sift through the reams of paper, separating by customer, then scan/fax to the customer. This tied up their staff and all fax machines for hours and hours. Now FormSprint breaks large spool files by customer, then gets the fax or e-mail information from the spool file and passes it to the fax or email server. Once sent, the fax and emails go out automatically and with far better tracking.

Curt reports, "The savings is enormous. Zero paper is printed and the staff never has to leave their desk."

By changing the form, a custom one-time letter can be added or the cover changed as needed. As an added benefit, the ease of this process encouraged staff to contact any customers that were still being sent a printed copy via USPS and many have been migrated to paperless.
FormSprint:  A green tool
Giant's Causeway Curt reports the great thing about "going green" is that it gets everybody thinking. Once people get used to that, they begin to challenge the way that everything is done. " It becomes a challenge (and great fun) when you or your co-workers find "low
hanging fruit" that can save money, improve efficiency and is also the right thing to do for the environment," Curt said.

For Columbus and their customers it is a truly a win-win situation for everyone involved. "FormSprint is one of those products that is an enabling tool that can make these things happen. Think of FormSprint as a "green tool!"
 
Issue: 13
In This Issue
Using less toner
Controlling what is printed
Saving by duplexing
Email and fax
FormSprint: A green tool
Miscellany
Gardens of Lismore Castle
 
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Betsy Andrews
860-657-3339