Sound estimating and pricing practices are essential to the success of all printing organizations. An estimate that accurately reflects actual costs plays a key role in making intelligent pricing decisions and determining your bottom line. The speed in which you can provide your customers with a price quote reflects your organization’s ability to provide prompt service. An estimate is also critical for forecasting materials requirements, labor and equipment resources, production schedules, and costs.

Profectus' expert consultants can improve the competitiveness and profitability of your organization by enhancing the accuracy of your estimates, speeding up your price quote turnaround, smoothing out your workflow, and showing you how to get more estimates done in less time.

Our consultants work with your staff to learn, understand, and accurately assess your estimating and pricing practices. You will receive a detail custom written Findings and Recommendations report based on your organizations' unique situation. The report will identify your company's strengths and weaknesses and provide recommendations for improving the performance of your people, streamlining business processes, embracing best practices, and maximizing the capabilities of management information systems for estimating and pricing.

Our recommendations are backed by first hand exposure to hundreds of printing organizations and situations, and our extensive industry experience in management, operations, production, technologies, and systems. Profectus' consultants will than provide training specific to the culture, requirements, issues, and realities of your organization.

• Estimating and pricing practices, processes, procedures, and workflow
• Estimating department structure and the responsibilities of management, estimators, salespersons, and others involved with the estimating processes
• Estimating and pricing forms, reports, documents, and other related communications means including request for estimate forms, planning worksheets, and estimated cost analysis reports
• Production standards used to determine the estimated time and materials for performing operations such as makeready and running including their accuracy, origination, determining formulas, updating methods, and review frequency
• Budgeted hourly cost rates used for estimating equipment and labor costs including their accuracy, origination, determining formulas, updating methods, and review frequency
• Practices for marking up labor costs, materials, and outside services including percentages, formulas, value-added and contribution usage, and variables considered
• The utilization of information technology and the internet for receiving estimate requests, preparing estimates, measuring estimating performance, calculating hours, materials, and costs

• Faster estimate throughput
• Produce more estimates in less time
• Improved estimate accuracy and realistic time, material, & cost estimates
• Increased number of estimates awarded
• Faster quote turn-around
• Determine the best pricing model for your company
• Mark-up jobs for higher profits
• Increased sales
• Commissions based on “the best sales”
• Enhanced client, sales, & staff communications
• Standardizes estimating procedures and processes
• Improves the overall cost effectiveness, competitiveness, and profitability of your organization