essentially the same features. As such, when looking for new software, Mikkelsen advises also asking for a roadmap of the software development and release cycle, and also checking whether the software vendor provides well-structured product documentation that you have access to as a customer. “We have been talking about ‘big data’ for many years and to gain actual value of your production data make sure to select a solution that gathers all your business intelligence in one solution to avoid ‘data silos’,” Mikkelsen says, adding: “To use and understand your data it should be in a so-called common data lake so you can draw out reports and gain insight from realtime data presented visually in Microsoft Power BI.” Another topic that comes to mind for Mikkelsen, and as it should also do for all printing businesses, is security. Moving from own on-prem servers to the cloud gives advantages both regarding the overhead of managing own server infrastructure as well as higher security levels. “Cloud service providers invest heavily in security measures, enhancing data security,” explains Mikkelsen, who continues: “Being in the cloud ensures that you are always running on the latest version without requiring manual intervention to upgrade, contributing to system security and up-to-date functionality. Just imagine how much money Microsoft is spending on Azure security compared to your own IT department!” Looking to how PrintVis can help, Mikkelsen bills PrintVis as a flexible, cloudbased, all-in-one platform to run the entire print business. It is powered by Microsoft with all the benefits that the Microsoft stack provides. PrintVis, Mikkelsen says, is a standard, out-of-the-box business management software solution tailored to meet the needs of the entire print industry. PrintVis is built directly on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and developed with printspecific MIS functionality all combined in one comprehensive, yet flexible solution. “It is continuously developed by print industry specialists and is the complete end-to-end solution for the print industry to help print businesses streamline, run, and manage their operations from estimate and quote to invoicing and shipping including warehouse management,” Mikkelsen adds. What Do You Want? Also in this sector is Zaikio, which works with companies to provide management solutions. UK sales manager Louise Pasquini says when selecting an MIS solution for use within the wide-format print market, companies should look to internally prioritise first and consider what they actually want from their solution. “Large-format printers should update their MIS for efficiency, cost reduction, improved communication, data analysis, scalability, compliance, and integration capabilities,” Pasquini says, adding: “The last point in particular is a crucial one in the modern market. “With more and more customised orders coming in from different sources, relevant systems need to be connected and 45 Issue 252 - April / May 2024 email: news@signlink.co.uk Being in the cloud ensures that you are always running on the latest version without requiring manual intervention to upgrade MIS SYSTEMS
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