Supermarket chain United Co-operatives has implemented a company-wide solution for printing its point-of-sale material at each of its 505 sites, cutting lead time to just one week and saving the company around 60% in agency and print costs.
The solution, provided by Bournemouth-based Image Computer Systems, was piloted in January and went live last week, over a month earlier than the original project plan forecast.
Image, who have implemented solutions for clients including Beales, Musgraves, Slater Menswear and Makro, initially discussed the project with United Co-operatives’ Space Planning Manager, Chris Kelly and Software development manager, Chris Sproston at the end of last year. The proposed solution had to take account of existing hardware and software systems installed at each location as well as each store’s varying requirements for product pricing and print volume.
United Co-operatives’ previous system involved compiling each promotion within a spreadsheet, which would then be passed on to a graphic designer for typesetting using Quark Xpress and amended to comply with Trading Standards specifications. These files would then be sent to a print agency and a set of proofs returned for approval before being printed and distributed manually to each store. Allowing for typesetting errors and amendments, this process was taking up to nine weeks.
The new solution allows all PoS to be proofed instantly on-screen from current promotional data, enabling each promotion to be amended as necessary and approved by head office before being electronically distributed via the company’s intranet.
The solution was achieved using Visual Basic.Net and Image’s EnGine and EnSign software. A number of templates were created by Image for the various formats used in-store which are merged dynamically with the promotional data for on-screen proofing and printing. Image’s software automatically converts the plain text data into formatted messages in Co-operatives’ corporate style and ensures Trading Standards requirements are met throughout.
“Working with United Co-operatives has been a real pleasure,” says Image Chairman, John Poole. “The speed and ease with which our software was integrated is testament to the technological awareness and responsiveness of United Co-operatives’ IT department as well as the power and flexibility of our software. The co-operation of everyone involved has made this a very rewarding project”.
By overprinting it’s PoS on pre-printed micro-perforated paper using in-store mono laser printers, United Co-operatives stand to save a substantial amount of money per annum as well as benefiting competitively from the huge reduction in lead time. Furthermore, by removing the repetitive and inefficient typesetting stage, United Co-operatives’ in-house design staff are now afforded greater time to produce marketing material which has been historically overlooked due to time considerations.
Susan Beetlestone General Manager – Marketing and project sponsor says, ‘I’m delighted with every aspect of this project from initiation to its very successful and early implementation. Having central control of each stores range has now enabled us to deliver store specific POS. The store managers love the ease and accuracy of the system making the promotional changeover days far easier to implement. It’s refreshing to have such a positive response and feedback of ideas to fine tune the system for the future’
