What does First Copy advise to cope with paper and stock supply issues?

Firstly, flexibility. Can you find another rated stock that can fulfil your needs for a particular job? First Copy's specialists can help you access approved lists and the expertise to find another solution if your preferred stock is harder to get hold of. If you have a particularly large press such as a Xerox Baltoro, then talk to us about roll sheet feeders, as rolls may be simpler to get hold of. 

Secondly, planning ahead. Try to order further in advance than you might have done six months ago.

Lastly, keep in touch with us. If you are worried about an order, let us know and we will do our best to help you.

Semiconductor shortages

Modern electronics have 'brains' known as semiconductors or chips. These are present in thousands of products, not just the most obvious ones such as laptops and smartphones, but in furniture, appliances, toner and medical supplies. A global chip shortage has been evident for a couple of years now. Increasing demand (as we become increasingly connected), a boom in personal devices during the pandemic, and enormous supply chain disruptions have led to well-publicised reports of shortages, particularly from car makers. 

Demand has been rising year on year, but existing manufacturing facilities are already running flat out to make electronic components. Countries worldwide are trying to increase (or initiate) domestic semiconductor production to try to ease containerage and transport issues. However, there are already fears (as discussed in Wired) that the Russian invasion of Ukraine will spur another shortage of semiconductor components; a company in Odesa makes neon gas (used to power lasers that etch patterns into computer chips), and until last week Ukraine supplied around half of the globe's neon.

Toners and printers alike need semiconductors, and all printer manufacturers are factoring chip supply into their supply chain plans. First Copy recommends discussing lead times if you’re investing in a new press. Currently, the semiconductor shortage alone doesn’t mean that every device and toner will have a long wait time. Still, there are variations between products, often caused by the other issues discussed in this blog. 

First Copy will work hard to source the machines and consumables you need. While we can’t solve supply issues single-handedly, we’ll do our best to keep you informed about lead times from the word 'go'. 

Conclusion

While print supplies delays are (at best) frustrating, there’s a glimmer of good news: demand is high because print businesses are bouncing back strongly, perhaps more strongly than was expected in some quarters. We cannot predict how the Russian invasion of Ukraine will affect supply chains, and for now, it’s perhaps not appropriate to guess. However, we would like to say that the team here is thinking about our print colleagues and their families in Ukraine.

First Copy doesn’t expect consumables problems to go away in the coming weeks but is hopeful that supply will catch up with demand in time. Until that happens, we promise to advocate for our customers and escalate consumables orders with Xerox where possible to keep your presses running. We ask that you let us know as soon as you become aware that your order may not arrive in time so that we can follow it up as quickly as possible. 

As a business, we endeavour to keep you updated over the coming months through customer communications, our website and newsletters. You can sign up to receive emails here.