IPMA recently polled

in-plants to discover how long graphic files are typically archived. Responses varied significantly -- from never archiving to maintaining files indefinitely.

 

Shared Drive Delivers Solution

I put in place a document shared drive for the Print Center that allows each department to view and maintain their own documents that are sent to the Print Center. This has cleaned up several problems. The Print Center is no longer running into, "That was the wrong form." It has also cleaned up our network drives so there is not file duplication. Files, too large for email, can be easily retrieved. 

 

It has also allowed the Directors of each department to see what is being printed by their faculty. Templates from our Marketing Department can be shared so a uniform branding and signage is obtained around campus.  Currently we are under our accreditation and this form of shared network is being used for everyone to see and obtain their evidence. It is a digital way of keeping the whole school on the same page.  This concept is not new. It is used in multiple forms throughout the campus in various departments.  All I did is open the concept up to the whole. It has also brought unity and a sense of we are here as a team. This concept can be easily duplicated by any in-plant by using a shared drive or an FTP site.

 

Never

We don't offer an archiving service. Any files that are kept are complicated builds that will be printed frequently. Our shared server is limited in size so we just use it for transferring the files.

 

Daily or Weekly

Our company has a record retention policy for documents which are purged based on record types. Any graphic files that are sent to our printers for work in progress are deleted either daily or weekly depending on the memory capacity on the device. Our internal customers or pre-press re-submit a graphic file each time, unless we are instructed to "archive" it on a network drive. Archiving would be done if we frequently reprint an item or we want to store the job specs of a complex manual with tabs and variable paper options. The internal customer always maintains the "Master" document (without job specs).

 

30 Days

We keep graphics files for at least 30 days after delivery. We don't utilize automated tool deletions, so we have files for longer periods, but the following steps are taken to ensure the validity of what we produce.

• When the customer asks for a reprint of a file they provided, even if we have the previous file, we require that they provide another native file. If they don't have the native file, we send the version we have and require confirmation by email that the file is correct.
• If they ask for a reprint of a file we created, we still send the file to them and require confirmation by email that the file is correct.
• For company forms a thumbnail pdf is attached to each inventory item. Their on-line order is their confirmation that the form is the correct one.

One Year

All our files, graphics and forms are mostly done in house and we keep them for our client. Once a year or so we will contact the owner of the form or files and ask if we should keep or delete the job.

 

Four Years

Per our auditors, we keep job tickets for four years. We have fewer plates and negs to keep since more printing is done digitally, but the longest archiving would be four years. The saved digital file can be retrieved for as long as ten years, but if it is something that changes annually it won't be saved. We do not have a procedure to call every customer to see if they want to retain files.

 

Indefinitely

For about five years we have kept all graphic files in PDF format to use with our DPM. We store the files free of charge on the Main Frame indefinitely. We do not charge departments for this, nor do we charge for any typesetting or changes. I used the pricing guide and set the price for a poly plate and the preflight at $36. If a run is longer than one plate will last, we don't charge for the second or third plates. We also do not charge for proof copies. 

 

One of the nicest parts of holding the files is knowing that when they reorder we can send them a digital or hard proof and know that what we ran last time is what they will get this time.  This is especially helpful when someone leaves a department after several years.  We get to be the hero (for the new person) when we tell them we have everything they need. 

 

Indefinitely

Since we are not only the printer, but the creator of all printed piece for our company, we keep files forever. We have been here 15 years and still have the original Quark and now Indesign files for all of our printed projects. We have 4tb of data stored and archived.

 

Indefinitely

Until our server went down we had files dating back many years. We lost all of that a year ago. With our volume of production and the space we share with the program, we don't have a storage issue. We are considering an archival system. From staff experience, they shared that you never know when the customer will request a file and you can be the hero. We would recommend that as a customer service provider and value to the customer, maintain the files for the customers for an unlimited amount of time.  Retrieving or updating the file or just ensuring that the file is the one that was used previously, benefits everyone.