A New Look at Printers in Schools

Even with the digital transformation we saw in education during the pandemic, the use of paper and printed materials in teaching is still a necessity. While some students and teachers thrived in a digital learning environment, many found they missed the interaction and stimulation that comes from being in a classroom. They missed supporting students’ learning with educational signage and displays, being part of a bright and cheerful learning environment, and engaging different learning styles with printed materials. Printed materials remain a vital part of the educational experience for both students and teachers.

To support this effort, many schools are finding benefits with the addition of a production printer to their school district’s print environment. Let’s take a closer look at how your school may benefit from taking a new approach to printing needs, including large-format printers and centralized print shops.

What is a large-format production printer?

For the most part, a large-format production printer is what it sounds like. It’s a printer that prints onto a roll of material that is cut into individual sheets while providing crisp clean graphics. Think about jobs you might typically send to a commercial printer, and they may be able to be printed on-site instead with the addition of a production printer.

How schools can utilize large-format printers

There are many ways visual representation enhances the educational experience, so there is no shortage of opportunities to utilize production printers in education. Here are some applications to consider:

• Event posters. Display event posters for school musicals, fundraising activities, and awards ceremonies. These can be done on a variety of media from standard bond or art paper to durable outdoor vinyl banner material.
• Window clings. Get your message across while taking advantage of the sun shining in! You can print on media that is easy to hang and remove, and you can make it readable from the inside or out.
• Wall mountable prints. Bring awareness and recognition to your club and athletic participants by producing wall-mountable prints that are self-adhesive and easy to put up and take down.
• School vehicle enhancements. Print information congratulating your club or sports team on their trip to a competition. The see-through media allows you to safely apply self-adhesive material to the windows of your school vehicle to let the public know about your students’ accomplishments.
• Classroom posters and hallway art. Welcome students every day with vibrant classroom and hallway decorations.
• Health and safety posters. Post reminders about handwashing, safety rules, and mental health tips.

Reasons to consider a centralized print shop

Some schools are recognizing that a patchwork of printers and copiers throughout the district isn’t the most efficient way to handle their printing needs. Instead, they are adding print capabilities centrally to a building or the district office to support students and staff.

A print center is designed to handle high-volume print jobs at a central location instead of outsourcing or having multiple sites throughout a school district. By running larger jobs centrally on a device with higher capacity, it is also much less expensive to operate than a traditional “office copier.” Along with being less expensive to run, and substantially faster than regular copiers, the print quality is noticeably better as well. When you think of all the printing needs throughout your district, it isn’t hard to see how a centralized print center might be utilized. In addition to the large-format banners and posters already mentioned, here are a few production print jobs that a centralized print center could better support.

• Event programs. It seems every week there is an event happening in your school. Theatre productions, music recitals, award ceremonies, and sporting events all require the printing of event programs.
• Certificates. Awards, recognition, and even graduation diplomas can easily be printed in a school print shop.
• Teaching aids. Teachers would love an easier way to print things like exam booklets, packets to send home, and classroom calendars.

Benefits of incorporating production-level printing in schools

There are several benefits school districts are finding with the addition of a print center or production-level printer to their school.

• Cost savings. Typically, printing in-house is less expensive than outsourcing. Keep in mind the fees you typically see for shipping, delivery, and set-up charges.
• Convenience and efficiency. Print on your own timeline instead of needing to coordinate with outside vendors.
• Enhance your school environment. Use printed graphics and posters to create an engaging school environment.
• Support the teaching staff. Show staff their printing needs are supported by the administration.
• Improve your printer fleet. Reduce the number of printers you need, along with the number of service calls.

Design a better print experience for your school

We have partnered with several school districts to successfully incorporate production-level printing into their school environment. Our team of print experts can help you evaluate your current and future printing needs to see if it might be a good fit for your school district as well. Contact us for more information.