Printing and labels
Manufacturing software for printing presses
For the cartons and labels you print every month, fix the board, ink and labour once, and let each work order tell you what a thousand really cost.
In short
SimpleERP is manufacturing software for printing presses that run repeat cartons and labels. A bill of materials holds board, ink, plates and scrap per batch, and a work order consumes stock and adds finished cartons at actual cost.
Illustration of a bill of materials with cost roll-up and a work order moving from planned to in progress to completed.
A manufacturing day at Lancaster Offset Printers
Not every job at Lancaster Offset Printers is new. A Lancaster coffee roaster orders the same 1,000-piece printed carton every three weeks, and a winery takes 50,000 labels twice a month. These repeat runs are where the press makes or loses money without noticing.
The owner priced the carton three years ago at $0.45 and has never checked it since. Board went up twice, lamination film went up once, and the die-cutting man now asks for more per batch.
In SimpleERP the carton has a bill of materials, and each run is a work order. When the work order completes, the board, ink and film leave stock at average cost and the cartons enter finished goods at what they actually cost, so the $0.45 price can be checked against a number.
What goes into a bill of materials for a printed carton?
List each material per batch with its quantity, add a scrap percentage for make-ready and trimming, and put printing, die-cutting and pasting labour as additional cost per batch. SimpleERP rolls it up into a cost per carton.
- Scrap on board covers the sheets lost while the press comes to colour.
- Versions keep last year's board grade on old work orders when you change it.
- Plates can be a line in the batch or left out when they are reused.
| Component | Quantity per batch | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Duplex board 300 gsm | 95 kg @ $1.30 | $123.50 |
| Process inks | 2.5 kg @ $11 | $27.50 |
| CTP plates | 4 @ $12 | $48.00 |
| Lamination film | 6 kg @ $4.50 | $27.00 |
| Side-pasting adhesive | 3 kg @ $3 | $9.00 |
| Scrap allowance | 6% of board | $7.41 |
| Printing, die-cutting and pasting | per batch | $55.00 |
| Batch cost (per carton) | $297.41 ($0.30) |
How does a work order use the board and ink?
Plan the work order from the BOM and SimpleERP checks the board and ink in the chosen warehouse. Start it when the run begins, and complete it when the cartons are packed. Completion is the only step that moves stock.
- Actual quantities are entered at completion, so extra board used shows in the cost.
- From the sales order line, with the quantity still owed filled in.
- Start and complete from a phone at the press, without walking to the office.
Illustration of stock on hand by warehouse at average cost, with a low-stock row highlighted and a movement ledger.
How do I know if a repeat job still makes money?
The completed work order gives a cost per carton, and the invoice to the spice company gives the price. Put the two side by side each month and you see whether a board price rise has eaten the margin before the next quote goes out.
- Finished cartons sit in stock at their real cost until invoiced.
- Cost of goods sold posts at that cost when the invoice is raised.
- The journal for the work order posts in the same step as the stock movement.
One system
Where manufacturing connects
Work orders draw on inventory and post to the books; the invoice for the finished cartons books the sale and the cost.
Printing and labels
Job quotations that become invoices, paper and ink stock, billing for goods and services, and payroll.
See howInventory for printing presses
Paper in reams, board in kilos and ink by colour, per warehouse and at weighted average cost.
See howAccounting for printing presses
Books that write themselves from press invoices, paper bills and payroll, with a lock date at month end.
See howPayroll for printing presses
Monthly payroll for press operators and binding staff, with season shifts, advances and deductions.
See howManufacturing
Bills of materials with scrap and cost roll-up, and work orders from plan to complete.
See how
Honest limits
What SimpleERP does not do yet
- No production stages or shop-floor tracking; a work order is planned, started and completed
- No piece-rate pay or scrap by-product in the work order
- Work orders are internal; job work sent outside is a purchase, not a work order
- No impression or make-ready calculator: sheets per batch are set by you in the BOM.
- One-off jobs priced per quote are better billed directly than run through a work order.
Getting started
Start with manufacturing
Sign up with your email
Name, email and a password. No card for the seven-day trial.
Tell us about the business
Pick your country and, if you are registered, type your tax number. Accounts, tax rates, units, roles and numbering are seeded for that country.
Add bills of materials
Build a bill of materials for your most frequent carton or label, with board or label stock, ink, film and a labour cost per batch.
Complete a work order
Components leave stock, finished goods arrive at real cost, and the journal posts in the same step.
FAQ
Questions, answered
Should every print job be a work order?
No. Work orders suit repeat products you print to a fixed specification, like a customer's carton or label. A one-off brochure or wedding card job is simpler as a quotation and invoice, with any paper issued recorded as a stock adjustment.
Can I track printing, die-cutting and pasting as separate steps?
No. There are no production stages. A work order is planned, started and completed, and the labour for all three steps goes in as additional cost per batch on the bill of materials.
What if the run uses more board than planned?
Enter the actual quantity when you complete the work order. The extra board leaves stock and goes into the cost of that batch, so the cost per carton reflects the real run rather than the plan.
Can I send cartons out to a pasting contractor?
Outside pasting is a purchase, not a work order. Many presses transfer the printed sheets to a warehouse named for the contractor and enter the contractor's bill as a purchase. Ask your accountant how to treat it for tax.
Related
Keep reading
Printing and labels
Job quotations that become invoices, paper and ink stock, billing for goods and services, and payroll.
Read moreInventory for printing presses
Paper in reams, board in kilos and ink by colour, per warehouse and at weighted average cost.
Read moreAccounting for printing presses
Books that write themselves from press invoices, paper bills and payroll, with a lock date at month end.
Read more
See how manufacturing works in SimpleERP for printing and labels
Seven days free. No card. Your first invoice in minutes.