How Manufacturing Companies Can Cut Downtime with a Brand-Agnostic Print Solution

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More than half (54%) of manufacturing businesses are expecting to spend 10% or more on software in 2024 compared to 2023. If your business is one of these, your manufacturing organization is likely looking for software that helps to save time, cut costs with Output Management, and streamline workflows. 

If you’re investing in new software, print solutions should be at the top of your purchasing list. How do you know which print solution to choose? The printing software market was valued at $1.2 billion in 2021 and is estimated to reach $6.3 billion by 2031, so there are a lot of choices in this large market. As you weigh your options, be sure to choose a print solution that is brand-agnostic. Here’s why.

 

What Is a Brand-Agnostic Print Solution?  

If you’re wondering what a brand-agnostic print solution is, you first need to understand what “brand-agnostic” means. Being brand-agnostic means that one does not show a preference for a product based on brand. In software terms, brand-agnostic means that a solution can work with several different brands of software. If you’ve ever had an iPhone or a Mac computer, you know that iOS only works with other iOS software. This isn’t the same as Linux, which can be installed onto Windows or Mac computers. 

When print solutions are brand-agnostic, they can collect print jobs in a centralized repository from many different brands of operating systems, software, and platforms. The solution can work with many kinds of printers, print materials, and other related parts of the manufacturing process. 

The API printing of a brand-agnostic print solution can handle the challenges and differences of whatever existing systems you have. Developers can leverage API printing provided by the brand-agnostic print software to seamlessly integrate printing functionality into their applications, regardless of the printer brands or models used. 

 

6 Advantages of Having a Print Solution That’s Brand-Agnostic

Investing in a brand-agnostic print solution is a smart choice. If you’re looking to upgrade the way your manufacturing company operates, here are some of the ways a brand-agnostic print solution benefits your organization:

  1. They integrate with your existing systems. The major advantage of a brand-agnostic print solution is that it will likely work with whatever printers you already have. This saves your company money because you don’t have to replace your existing hardware. Among all industries, manufacturing industries spent the most on equipment ($15 billion, or 53% of total capital assets), so any way to save costs on more equipment is a smart idea. 
  2. You can future-proof your company with flexible systems. It’s no secret that tech changes fast. If you invest in a brand-agnostic print solution, you’ll have more flexibility to update and upgrade computers, printers, and other pieces because they’ll still work with your print solution. As mentioned in Forbes, organizations with a more tech-agnostic approach gain the power to harness market-leading tools that offer unparalleled excellence in their domain. 
  3. Your IT team will thank you. Brand-agnostic print solutions are easier on your IT team because these solutions easily integrate with your existing operating systems. Your IT support team will be delighted at how easily they can install the solution, connect it with your existing printers, and add new printers, 
  4. Users can learn to use it quickly. Brand-agnostic print solutions are easy and quick for users to navigate. These solutions also empower end-users to find and install their own printers via floor plan maps or lists without relying on IT assistance. It’s also easier for companies that have remote or hybrid employees, as the company can manage workers in different places effortlessly in a cloud environment without relying on local print servers at each location. The faster people learn to use the solution, the less downtime your company will experience. 
  5. Your brand-agnostic print solutions are safer and more secure. Because they’re designed to fit with a wide variety of software and hardware, brand-agnostic print solutions are safer than trying to cobble together disparate solutions that may not have the same Zero Trust protections or other safety measures. Manufacturing print software is especially at risk, as cybercriminals focused more extortion attempts on manufacturing than any other industry.
  6. You’ll get more data. Brand-agnostic print solutions integrate well with disparate systems, allowing your company to collect more data. One of the top trends in manufacturing companies for 2024 is the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). IIoT, which includes integrated print solutions, will lead to improved asset management and predictive maintenance, more efficient supply chains, and less downtime. 


Systems That PrinterLogic Integrates With

PrinterLogic is a brand-agnostic print solution. Its API printing works well with many other systems. PrinterLogic provides you with cost savings and flexibility by integrating seamlessly with:

  • Okta, the leading independent provider of identity for the enterprise
  • IGEL, a secure enterprise endpoint OS designed for SaaS, DaaS, and VDI environments
  • Citrix, a leading platform with Zero Trust frameworks
  • VMware, a virtualization software that accelerates app operations with network and security virtualization
  • Microsoft, a cloud-based print solution that enables simple, rich, and secure printing experiences

 

To avoid downtime and help future-proof your company, learn more details about PrinterLogic for manufacturing. Unify your systems and save some money in the process–learn more by booking a demo today. 

How to Streamline Back-end Batch Printing

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Let’s say you land at your desk first thing on Monday morning when a department head approaches you asking for help on a critical printing process. The department is implementing a new ticketing system to print thousands of tickets for an event. The ticketing system groups the tickets by order number, which could include multiple tickets for multiple people in a single order. 

Obviously, it’s imperative that these tickets are printed in the correct order to avoid confusion during distribution to the paying customers without disrupting productivity. However, the problem is that the ticketing system can’t guarantee this. 

How are you going to achieve this?


The answer: Batch printing to streamline your printing

Batch printing is necessary to streamline the output of bulk documents from ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) or EMR (Electronic Medical Records) systems since, more than likely, the way in which they are printed directly impacts your customers, productivity, budgets, and more. 

Printing in large batches happens in any industry. Whether you have lab techs trying to print off patient lab results for the day, manufacturing staff printing bulk shipping labels, or printing tickets for a major event; your goal is to make this experience as seamless as possible. 

This functionality is simple enough, right? Batch printing is a pretty standard capability, especially for enterprises that need to print a lot of documents. 


But where does Output Management enter this conversation? 

Vasion’s Output Management solution connects to your back-end EMR, ERP, or line-of-business applications to facilitate printing. Output Management offers an API Print Service that allows you to deploy the API within your network to connect your back-end applications to printers and handle any specific printing needs using RESTful API calls. 

One instance where this is used is batch printing. The Output Management Batch Printing feature supports requests sent natively from Epic, along with our API Print Service, to handle printing from any number of EMRs or ERPs. Regardless of the source application, Batch Printing follows these four basic steps:

  1. The source application (EMR/ERP) sends a request to the Output Management Service to open a batch with a batch open request. This request contains a unique identifier for the batch and identifiers for all jobs that will be received as part of this batch.
  2. Batch jobs are sent through the Output Management Service. While a batch is open, it is put on standby and will not be printed until it is closed. Of course, your non-batch jobs will still be processed and printed normally.
  3. The batch is closed once the Output Management Service receives a batch close request containing the unique batch identifier.
  4. Then your jobs are printed in the order they need to be in! At this point, the API Print Service makes the request back to communicate the status of the print job, either successful or unsuccessful.

 

Why Output Management?

Vasion’s Output Management solution is highly reliable and highly available. With support for load balancing, API printing, and ERP/EMR connections, Output Management eliminates single points of failure when printing from your critical line of business applications, ensuring output is received exactly as needed. 

And, you have access to several other great capabilities for your batch jobs like:

  • Bidirectional communication with the printer confirming your batch jobs were 100% successful
  • Converting files to print-ready formats for individual printer preferences
  • Automatically redirecting batch jobs to a backup printer in case of failures
  • Remote facilities printing batch jobs outside the network to secure company printers
  • And many more…

 

Let’s have a conversation about your printing environment and back-end document processes. Schedule a demo today.

How API Printing is the Missing Puzzle Piece for Your Environment

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You may be familiar with printing protocols such as Line Printer Daemon Protocol (LPR) or Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) when communicating with servers and clients. These industry-standard protocols are widely used for most printing processes and provide a secure connection for print data all the to the printer tray. 


Closer Look at What LPR and IPP Printing Protocols Are and Do

Line Printer Daemon (LPR) has a very strict communication standard, and a majority of all printers support this protocol, as defined in RFC 1179. Due to its widespread support and well-defined parameters, it can be easy to lean towards when needing to print over the network as a default printing connection.

Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) is a communication protocol–its name explains what it does: facilitating printing over the Internet. IPP requests use the hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) and can support HTTPS (becoming IPPS), alleviating security concerns. In contrast to LPR, it also supports strong error messages and modern features of the printer. IPP Everywhere came a few versions later, allowing printing from any device–being “driverless”–regardless of vendor-specific software. 


Going One Step Further  

You’ve got your standard print communication down with LPR and IPP protocols. But when you need to connect your printers with custom software in your organization, like web-based line-of-business applications that don’t have a native printing connection into a seamless printing process, you need a customizable, simple solution to make that possible. 


Introducing API Printing: The Piece to the Puzzle 

Printing with an API connection bridges the gap with flexibility and customizability when printing from web-based applications without native printing capabilities. As well as being extremely lightweight with no need for physical print server hardware, API printing gives you that extra control over your print jobs, making it a necessary printing connection to introduce into your environment. 

1. APIs are customizable to your organization’s applications

Within PrinterLogic’s Output Management bundle, the API Print Service connects any web-based system, not natively equipped to communicate with printing protocols but can make requests over the Internet with your existing print management solution or directly with your office printers–all driverless and strong security measures built in. A few of these integrations include:

  • Salesforce and other CRMs
  • Point-of-sale and line-of-business systems
  • Custom kiosks
  • Batch printing daily routes and tasks (to be talked more about in a future blog)!

2. API calls make sending print jobs simple

Sending a print job through the API Print Service is as easy as performing an HTTP call, for example:

const formData = new FormData();

formData.append("queue", "HP127");

formData.append("jobID", "96e31686-daae-4820-9389-5a9d36496bad");

formData.append("deviceName", "m123.local");

formData.append("paperSource", "1");

formData.append("username", "john.doe@vasion.com");

formData.append("statusURL", "https://example.com/print-job-status");

fetch("https://print-server:31990/v1/print", {

method: "POST",

headers: {

    "accept": "application/json",

},

body: formData,

})

.then(response => response.json())

.then(data => console.log(data))

.catch(error => console.error('Error:', error));

It’s that easy. The API code establishes the connection between your application and printers, acting as that puzzle piece you need to unify your processes. We’ve defined the implementation of the schema in our documentation for more information. 


3. API printing creates a seamless Output Management experience

And after the API makes the connection, PrinterLogic Output Management handles the rest, sending the document to the correct printer, rendering it to a format the printer can handle as needed, and reporting the status after success (or failure). Output Management combines the advantages of both LPR and IPP into a simple API post request that is secure and performant. 

Output Management can provide your organization with the modern tools and automation necessary to ensure output from any system is delivered where it needs to go, in the format it needs to be in, and when it needs to be there. You get more granular control over printing with rules-based document routing, EMR/ERP connections, and High Availability–all to unify your systems and increase efficiency. 


If you’re interested in API printing and our Output Management solution to facilitate printing with your businesses’ applications, visit our website and schedule a demo today. Our Output Management team is available to discuss your needs and goals and your organization’s automation initiatives.