---
title: Solving Print Labor Shortages: 2 Real-World Case Studies in Full Automation from Order to Delivery
lang: en
source: https://mindsprt.dev/en/knowledge/obility-insight-automation-new-business-models/
---

# Solving Print Labor Shortages: 2 Real-World Case Studies in Full Automation from Order to Delivery

*Industry Insights · 4 min read · 2026-09-07*

> At Obility Insight, we saw European small and mid-sized print shops breaking out of the contract manufacturing rut.
By solving labor shortages through system automation and expanding into cold chain logistics and equipment maintenance, they offer a great roadmap for print shops looking to upgrade and brands rethinking their supply chains

**Quick answer:** To escape price wars, print shops need digital review and automated workflows like Mai Strategy's Three Gates of Print, tie together prepress, quoting, and inventory, and boldly step into higher-margin services like logistics or maintenance to unlock more customer value amid labor shortages

## Why Competing on Machine Capacity Alone No Longer Works

Labor shortages and fragmented custom orders are eating away at the razor-thin margins of traditional print shops.

That has been my clearest takeaway from visiting shop floors and talking with clients lately.

At the recent Obility Insight event, Frank Siegel from Obility's leadership team pointed out a clear pain point: everyone is buying faster machines, but job tickets and files are still stuck in manual prepress and customer service checks.

To me, the fix is straightforward: systematize your workflows.

Let's define it here. Print Workflow Automation means using software to connect quoting, preflight, production scheduling, and shipping. It removes manual bottlenecks and lets data flow automatically to cut turnaround times.

In practice, this transformation happens in a few stages:

・Integrate quoting and inventory to eliminate duplicate data entry

・Build dedicated customer portals to standardize order intake

・Connect digital dashboards so systems direct the production floor instead of relying on a veteran foreman's memory

## How a Traditional Print Shop Rebuilt Its Systems in 1.5 Years

German print shop Schwall took a step-by-step approach: consolidate first, then expand. They unified three disconnected legacy quoting systems onto a single platform.

A family business originally focused on traditional printing, they began wrapping vehicles and EV charging stations back in 2016.

They realized that getting out of the red ocean meant taking on the messy jobs clients hated doing.

They launched Schwall Service Solution, which now employs 80 people dedicated to cleaning and maintaining thousands of EV chargers across Germany.

To support this cross-industry operation, project lead John Haag spent a year and a half rolling out a new system.

They brought together quoting, inventory, and a private customer portal, with a digital scheduling board coming next.

Looking at this phased consolidation strategy, here are the key takeaways:

Pros:

・Reduces reliance on individual skilled operators

・Expands service offerings and locks in major end clients

Cons:

・Long transition pains as staff take time to adapt

・High upfront capital and management costs for cross-industry expansion

## How Did a Print Shop Branch into Cold Chain Logistics?

To win a major contract for personalized packaging from Storck (merci chocolate), Germany's Traffic Media Group built out a complete food-grade cold chain logistics and tracking system for the client.

The company started in document management and direct marketing, but they saw brand demand for small-batch, high-variety runs that go straight to consumers.

To handle custom merci packaging and web store orders, they did not stop at printing boxes. They handled food-grade temperature-controlled logistics and production tracking too.

This aligns closely with the market trends we have been seeing lately.

Brand clients now want full end-to-end traceability all the way into the consumer's hands.

If Taiwanese small and mid-sized shops cannot take on heavy capital investments right now, outsourcing mid-to-high-end jobs to a partner like MINDS, with its full customization and supply chain integration capabilities, is a far more practical route.

## What Should Taiwanese Print Shops and Brands Do Next?

Brands should add data integration capabilities to their print vendor scorecards. Print shops, meanwhile, need to audit how many manual bottlenecks are still choking their floor.

If you are a brand buyer, check whether your suppliers can provide API integrations or automated status updates.

If you run a print shop, labor shortages will only get worse. Automation is the only way to fill the capacity gap.

If you are not sure where to start, reach out to the [Mai Strategy Knowledge Academy consulting team](https://mindsprt.dev).

We will help you pinpoint where manual steps create the biggest logjams before deciding whether to bring in new systems or rethink your business model.

Don't rush.

Getting your internal information flow sorted out is what really matters.

## Key Takeaways

・With labor in short supply, a print shop's edge is no longer machine speed, but how smoothly data flows from quote to delivery

・Step beyond contract printing. Taking on logistics and end maintenance like German peers is how you raise margins

・Do not rush system rollouts. Taking a year and a half to consolidate existing quoting and inventory is the solid play

・Brands should re-evaluate their vendors, making digital integration capability a decisive factor in awarding print jobs

## Food for Thought

Automation and new business models have never been reserved for big players.

Smaller print shops actually carry less baggage. They can move quickly to tailor custom services, from print to logistics, for specific key accounts.

Software and systems are just tools. The real value lies in your willingness to take on the headaches your clients want off their plates.

SaaS providers should notice this gap too. Instead of pushing bloated systems, offer lightweight, easy-to-integrate modules that solve one specific pain point.

## Further Reading

・[Automation and New Business Models at Obility Insight](https://www.print.de/allgemein/automatisierung-und-neue-geschaeftsmodelle-auf-der-obility-insight/)

## FAQ

### Will bringing in new systems trigger pushback from veteran staff?

It certainly will, which is why you should never roll everything out at once. Follow Schwall's example in Germany: take a year and a half to launch in phases, starting with quoting modules that save them from repetitive data entry.

### We are just a small print shop. Do we really need to get into logistics?

You don't need to buy your own trucks, but you do need the ability to track shipments for your clients. Driven by ESG and targeted marketing, this has become a non-negotiable requirement for brands.

### We can't find skilled press operators due to labor shortages. Can automation fix that?

Software cannot match colors for you, but it can automate prepress file checks and job scheduling so your press operators can spend their valuable time running the machines.


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