Stationery - Money Saving Tips

Don’t fax orders to PSS - it consumes electricity, paper and printing costs. Plan your requirements and manage your stock levels so urgent orders are not required.

Combine stationery orders rather than sending separate sheets for individual recipients. This uses fewer sheets of paper and labels. Once the items are received, you can then distribute them within your department.

Order Lyreco branded products - they offer better value for money.

Order products with a green tick - these are environmentally friendly.

Don’t hoard. Only keep small stocks of stationery, e.g. ink and toner cartridges, which degrade over time, and self-seal envelopes, as the glue degrades quickly.

Ensure you rotate stocks that have a limited shelf life such as printer cartridges and self-seal envelopes so the oldest are used first.

Don’t have separate stationery cupboards – combine and control stocks appropriately.

Use the correct envelope. A DL or C5 envelope should always be used in preference to a larger envelope as postage is now charged on size as well as weight. A C4 envelope is 60% more expensive to post than a DL or C5. For detailed guidance visit the Mail Services intranet page.

Never use a gusset envelope unless the contents won’t fit in a smaller envelope.

Re-use envelopes for internal post. Write the address in the top corner to allow the envelope to be re-used many times. Open envelopes carefully so they can be re-used.

Load whole reams of paper at a time into printers to reduce the amount of jams.

Store paper correctly - don’t store reams anywhere the paper can get cold, hot or damp as this is one of the biggest causes of paper jamming in the machines. Never store on window sills or on top of radiators.

PSS have now introduced re-manufactured ink and toner cartridges for printers. These give savings of up to 60% against the branded equivalent and give similar (or better) yields and equal print quality.

Recycled paper - PSS are also offering two additional types of A4 paper as alternatives to EP4 (the standard paper supplied). They are both 100% recycled and are recommended by Greenpeace Germany. Whilst not as white as EP4 either are perfectly acceptable for internal use and saves up to 16% against the cost of EP4.

Only order special items if vital to the business of the University. When ordering ensure you quote sufficient information to allow the right product to be ordered first time to avoid unnecessarily returned goods. PSS have been instructed to refuse orders for certain items (novelty mouse mats, shaped post-it notes etc).

Don’t try to purchase items directly from suppliers – the order would be a breach of the University’s regulations, adds cost to the organisation as a whole and causes embarrassment when the order has to be blocked and investigated.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Q. Why do I have to get all my stationery requirements from Printing and Stationery Services (PSS)?
A. PSS either produce the goods in-house or buy from companies who offer good value for money, volume discounts and have been appointed through the public sector purchasing processes. PSS also ensure that the University’s brand guidelines are followed accurately.

Q. My order is urgent and there isn’t enough time to send to PSS, what can I do?
A. Contact PSS immediately to see if they can accommodate your deadline. They will order your items as quickly as possible and arrange for urgent delivery by Facilities as soon as the good arrive. You may not, however, order from other suppliers. You should anticipate your requirements to avoid urgent orders. Poor planning costs the University real money!

Q. How much notice do PSS need?
A. Ideally you will give PSS a minimum of 7 days to turn work around, but they understand that from time to time customers have short lead times imposed on them. PSS will work with you to achieve your dates.

Q. My project is funded externally. Can I buy stationery direct?
A. No. All purchases have to be routed through PSS to protect the UWE brand, follow correct procurement processes and ensure full use is made of University assets. The only exception is where the external funder raises the orders and pays the invoices direct. Even then, you should try to route these through PSS so the University benefits from additional external revenue.

Q. My project is funded by the European Regional Development Fund and they have strict rules about internal supply. Does this mean I should place orders with external suppliers?
A. No. You must still use PSS. Finance and PSS are investigating how the ERDF’s strict financial reporting requirements can be met. In the meantime, special arrangements allow PSS to manage the supply of goods and still meet the reporting requirements.

Q. I’ve already ordered/received the goods without involving PSS.
A. This is a breach of Financial Regulations. Send all correspondence, the original invoice and a stationery order form quoting your cost centre, to PSS. They will review the order, settle the invoice with the supplier and charge your cost centre. They will also refer the matter to the Head of Procurement who will decide whether a ‘Breach of Financial Regulations’ form has to be completed.

Q. We used to order stationery direct from the supplier using our Purchasing card – is this still OK?
A. No. All stationery must be ordered through Printing and Stationery Services.

Q. Why does an order cost more from PSS than a supplier I have found?
A. PSS costs are inclusive of VAT and delivery. Some suppliers do not have items in stock so lead times will be longer and the quality of goods may not match the University’s requirements. PSS are obliged to add a ‘mark-up’ to recover the cost of their overheads. Have you added the cost of your time in unnecessarily searching for the goods?

Q. I want to order higher quality paper than the standard paper, can I?
A. The standard paper (EP4) is 75% recycled, manufactured from UK waste and works well in all printers. PSS are able to supply a better quality paper for colour laser printers, but as colour printing costs 10 times as much, it should only be used when necessary.

Q. The prices in the catalogue issued by PSS are very expensive!
A. The price in the catalogue is the supplier’s recommended retail price; the price actually paid by UWE is considerably lower. The stationery order form shows the current prices.

Q. I was happy with a product from the old supplier; the replacement isn’t suitable.
A. Please raise your concerns with PSS who will discuss with the supplier. PSS will take all necessary steps to correct the situation as quickly as possible.

Q. The product I need is not available in the catalogue issued so can I order direct?
A. No. PSS will obtain it from a specialist supplier. By ordering centrally from specialist suppliers we will understand the demand for similar products and should be able to negotiate better discounts for the University.

Q. Why do PSS add VAT to the prices charged when this is internal supply?
A. PSS are simply passing on the VAT that has been charged on the raw materials. They are not charging VAT on the ‘added value’.

Q. I’ve found a supplier who is very environmentally friendly. Can I use them?
A. No. The materials PSS procure already carry strong environmentally-friendly credentials – a high proportion of the paper is recycled (some with 100% recycled content), the rest comes from FSC or PEFC certified sources.