August 11, 2009

Department of Licensing printing redesign saves state money

OLYMPIA — The Department of Licensing (DOL) has redesigned a number of recurring printing projects to achieve significant cost savings and sustain local jobs.

A team with members from the Department of Printing, the Department of General Administration's Consolidated Mail Services (CMS), and Department of Licensing worked extensively to identify ways to make the design and printing of some of DOL's largest mailings more efficient. Improvements to these products, which include vehicle titles, vessel titles and vehicle renewal notices, are expected to save more than $360,000 per year.

"The economic and environmental benefits coming out of our new partnership with the Department of Printing are fantastic," DOL Director Liz Luce said. "We are saving taxpayer dollars, using paper made in our State, and Washingtonians are doing the job."

Department of Printing Director Jean-Luc Devis said, "We are very excited to partner with the Department of Licensing and General Administration to bring over $3 million of work back into Washington state. As the first State Printer certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, we are proud to run the Department of Licensing work on paper that is sustainably harvested and produced at the Grays Harbor Mill."

The agencies began mailing the newly designed materials, including the vehicle and vessel titles, to the public in April 2009. The new vehicle license renewal notices will start showing up in vehicle owners' mailboxes this autumn. The new renewal notices will continue to be printed on letter-size paper, but the use of colored inks is being eliminated.

"This is another example of state agencies working smarter to save money and improve the way they go about their business," said General Administration Director Linda Villegas Bremer whose mail services program, CMS, manages the mailing of all of the redesigned products.