Articles By Pat McGrew

Pat is a well-known evangelist for inkjet productivity. At McGrew Group, she uses her decades technical and marketing experience to lead the industry toward optimized business processes and production workflows. She has helped companies to define their five-year plans, audited workflow processes, and developed sales team interventions and education programs. Pat is the Co-Author of 8 industry books, editor of A Guide to the Electronic Document Body of Knowledge, and a regular contributor to Inkjet Insight and WhatTheyThink.com.

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Featured image for “What’s in YOUR Dashboard?”
June 18, 2020

What’s in YOUR Dashboard?

Dashboards can be an amazing productivity aid, or they can be a distraction. Consider your team, your working environment, and what information will help the team be as efficient as possible.
Featured image for “What is a Dashboard and Do You Need One?”
May 26, 2020

What is a Dashboard and Do You Need One?

Dashboards are helpful for everyone in an organization from team members on the shop floor to the C-suite. Pat McGrew sets the stage for what questions you should ask yourself when considering a dashboard for your inkjet organization.
Featured image for “Working with Virtual Support When Everything is on Lockdown”
April 22, 2020

Working with Virtual Support When Everything is on Lockdown

When that reliable, friendly face is no longer sitting in their office on your site, can’t travel, or is less available on the phone, what options do you have for getting the support you need? Ask your vendors about virtual support! It takes many forms. You may already be using some form of it, but make sure you are taking advantage of every option. 
Featured image for “Evaluating Inkjet Prototypes – Past and Present”
February 20, 2020

Evaluating Inkjet Prototypes – Past and Present

Pat McGrew provides a few guidelines for how to evaluate the non-products you encounter at drupa, other tradeshows, or at private events. She also suggests that you evaluate the promise of the future in the context of past demonstrations and announcements in our industry.
Featured image for “More to Ask for in Your Inkjet Digital Front End”
February 6, 2020

More to Ask for in Your Inkjet Digital Front End

If you run light production equipment, you may not have given much thought to the Digital Front End of your printing device. There is no industry standard for what a DFE should encompass, or even a widely agreed set of guidelines. And, while you may have a choice of features and even vendors for the DFE, there hasn’t been much discussion of what should come next. What should you be asking for and when should you expect it?
Featured image for “What to Ask for in your Inkjet Digital Front End”
January 23, 2020

What to Ask for in your Inkjet Digital Front End

There is no industry standard for what should be included in a digital front end, and there is no universal template that guides how much control the inkjet DFE should expose to an operator to permit changes in how a job will be processed. As we enter the 2020s, this is something that should change. It’s time for the buyers of inkjet presses to identify their expectations, list the features that make a difference to their operation, and categorize the challenges they may have with their current DFE.
Featured image for “Can Offset & Inkjet Finishing Live in Harmony?”
January 8, 2020

Can Offset & Inkjet Finishing Live in Harmony?

Pat McGrew with happy new year news on possible compatibility of finishing options across printing processes. Consider the finishing options that can add value in your inkjet environment.
Featured image for “drupa 2016 to 2020: the Inkjet Journey”
November 21, 2019

drupa 2016 to 2020: the Inkjet Journey

Pat McGrew delivers the 3rd in her drupa series looking at some of the key announcement from 2016 and who has delivered – and who has not.
Featured image for “Drupa 2020, What to Look For-Part 2”
November 5, 2019

Drupa 2020, What to Look For-Part 2

Join Pat McGrew for Part 2 of “What to Look for at drupa 2020” and the questions to ask once you find it! Pat drills down with a great primer on inkjet tire-kicking that will make you think about requirements.
Featured image for “drupa 2020: What to Look For”
October 24, 2019

drupa 2020: What to Look For

drupa 2020 is on the horizon. What should you expect? What should you look for? Pat McGrew has some thoughts on innovation, trade shows and the questions to ask when you get to Dusseldorf.
Featured image for “The Big Push: Experiments to Try with your Inkjet Press – Part 3”
October 9, 2019

The Big Push: Experiments to Try with your Inkjet Press – Part 3

If you own an Inkjet press, part of your on-going process should include some experimentation. Experimentation with different substrates, different ink settings, and different profiles help the production team understand the opportunities your press enables. This episode covers experiments with speed and drying.
Featured image for “Three Experiments to Try with your Inkjet Press (Part 2)”
September 17, 2019

Three Experiments to Try with your Inkjet Press (Part 2)

Experimenting with your inkjet press is something that should be part of your monthly plan. Here is the second of three experiments to help you really get to know your press. The first experiment was about paper. Today we talk about ink volume.
Featured image for “The Big Push: 3 Experiments to Try with your Inkjet Press (Part 1)”
September 11, 2019

The Big Push: 3 Experiments to Try with your Inkjet Press (Part 1)

In honor of back to school season, we’ve kicked off a new series with Pat McGrew on experimenting with your inkjet press that ties in nicely with tools available on Inkjet Insight. Experiment 1 discusses experimenting with paper to drive new opportunities.
Featured image for “Three Ways to Be a Successful Inkjet Printing Company”
August 13, 2019

Three Ways to Be a Successful Inkjet Printing Company

There are three things that will move the needle toward success with inkjet printing. Companies who are adopting production inkjet would do well to take stock of their current status across these vectors.
Featured image for “Print Enhancement is Hot!”
July 31, 2019

Print Enhancement is Hot!

Can inkjet-printed work be enhanced with foil, varnish and added-on spot colors, especially now that inkjet print quality is capturing more commercial work? The answer is an enthusiastic… perhaps! Learn about the opportunities and costs of print enhancement and inkjet.
Featured image for “Advances in Maintenance Protocols”
July 17, 2019

Advances in Maintenance Protocols

This 5th post in the inkjet maintenance series looks at OEM apps for smartphones and tablets, and the questions to ask about the availability of advanced maintenance capabilities using augmented or virtual reality.
Featured image for “Who Ya Gonna Call for Inkjet Press Maintenance?”
July 9, 2019

Who Ya Gonna Call for Inkjet Press Maintenance?

A fully trained operator is central to a maintenance protocol that ensures the machine will perform its best in your environment.  If you spend the necessary time and consumables during ramp up, you will reap the rewards of efficiency and fearlessness as new types of jobs come into the shop.
Featured image for “Zen and the Art of Inkjet Press Maintenance”
June 25, 2019

Zen and the Art of Inkjet Press Maintenance

In the third installment of her series on inkjet maintenance, Pat McGrew talks about maintenance considerations as you add work or shifts to your press. Like Motorcycle Maintenance, your mileage may vary.
May 30, 2019

Top Two Maintenance Questions to Ask

What is and is not included in the maintenance contract sound like basic questions – but listening for the RIGHT answers to these important questions is more nuanced than you might think. This is the second in a series on inkjet maintenance agreements.
Featured image for “Are You Asking the Right Questions About Maintenance?”
May 15, 2019

Are You Asking the Right Questions About Maintenance?

Whether you already own inkjet presses or you are in the market looking for your first, one of the big questions in the due diligence process revolves around maintenance programs. Pat McGrew provides top questions to ask and explains why they matter.

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