Understanding turnaround
Good timing starts before printing. Allow time to prepare and approve your artwork, make the finished print, then collect it or have it delivered.
Your turnaround checklist
- Tell us when you need the print in your hands, not only the event date.
- Check the timing for your chosen product, quantity and finish.
- Allow time for artwork checks, changes and proof approval.
- Confirm any cut-off and complete the required steps before it.
- Check whether the date means dispatch, delivery or ready for collection.
- Leave a little breathing room for a fixed deadline.
Prepare
Choose your product and send the artwork or design brief.
Approve
Check the final proof and give approval to print.
Produce
Printing and finishing take place.
Receive
Collect when ready, or allow time for delivery.
Know More
Turnaround is more than printing time
An order has several stages. Your artwork may need checking or design work before it is ready to print. You then need to review and approve the proof. Printing and finishing follow, with collection or delivery at the end.
A short production time does not remove the steps before or after it. Check the timing shown for your chosen product and make sure you understand what the date refers to.
Proof approval: the point that matters
Production time begins once you approve your proof. Uploading a file or placing an order is not the same as giving approval to print.
Check every page and side of the final proof. Read the wording, names, numbers and contact details. Look at the size, page order, images and layout. If something needs changing, tell us before you approve it.
When a revised proof arrives, check that version too. Make sure everyone who needs to sign it off has had time to review it. A quick reply helps the schedule, but a rushed approval can leave a mistake in the finished print.
A proof is your chance to check the artwork before printing. Do not approve a version with changes still outstanding.
Cut-offs: check what needs to be complete
A cut-off is the latest time for the required steps to be complete if your order is to meet a particular production schedule. It is not a promise that the printing will be finished at that time.
For an urgent job, ask what needs to be ready by the cut-off: the order, the artwork, proof approval and any payment requirement. Do not assume that submitting an order just before the deadline is enough.
A cut-off is a deadline, not a print time
Complete the required steps for the agreed production slot.
Ask for a revised schedule. Do not assume the original date still applies.
If you miss an agreed cut-off or need another artwork change, ask us to check the schedule again. The production slot or expected date may change. Do not rely on the original timing until it has been confirmed.
Working days and fixed deadlines
Read the timing as working days where that is how it is quoted. Check which days count, whether weekends and bank holidays are excluded, and when the count starts for your order.
If the print is for an event, launch or mailing, work backwards from when you need to use it. Leave time to receive it, check it and get it where it needs to be. An event date is often later than the date you really need the print in your hands.
What can affect the timing?
Artwork and approval: missing files, low-quality images, an incomplete brief or another round of changes can add time before printing. A physical proof also needs extra preparation and delivery time compared with a digital proof.
The product and finish: quantity, paper choice and production method can affect the schedule. Folding, binding, lamination and other finishing add work after printing. Check the timing for the complete product, not only the printed sheets.
Several items in one order: different products may be ready at different times. If you need one item urgently, ask whether it can be sent separately or whether everything will be sent together.
Dispatch, delivery and collection are different
Dispatch means your order has left us. Delivery is when it reaches your address. A dispatch date is not an arrival date, so allow for the delivery journey as well as production.
Check the delivery address and contact details before ordering. For a fixed deadline, tell us the date and location so we can check the full plan. Delivery estimates are a guide, not a guarantee; courier delays can happen.
If you are collecting, check when the order will be ready before travelling. Collection avoids the delivery journey, but it does not shorten the artwork, printing or finishing work.
Need it urgently? Ask before ordering
Tell us what you need, the quantity, finish and the date it must be in your hands. Say whether you already have print-ready artwork and whether you can collect.
We can then check what is possible and any extra cost. Faster turnaround is not available for every job. Do not assume that same-day dispatch is offered for your product, or that dispatch means same-day delivery.
FAQs
When does production time start?
Once you approve the proof. Allow time before that for artwork checks, design work and any changes.
Does ordering start the print clock?
Not by itself. We need the final artwork approved before it goes to print.
What is the cut-off time?
Check the time that applies to your product and order. Ask us if it is not clear, especially for an urgent job.
Are weekends included?
Do not assume so. Check which working days count for your order, including bank holidays.
Is dispatch the same as delivery?
No. Dispatch means the order has left us. Delivery is when it reaches your address.
Can you print it faster?
Ask before ordering. We will check what is possible for your product, finish and deadline, and confirm any extra cost.
Will changes affect the date?
They can. Changes before approval take time; changes after approval need an immediate check of the job’s status.
Can I collect instead?
Collection is available. Check when the order will be ready before travelling.
Have a date you cannot miss?
Tell us before you order. We can check the product, proof approval and delivery plan against the time you need it.
