CAD Printing In-House vs. Outsourcing: The Real Cost Comparison for Engineering Firms

For a mid-size engineering consultancy printing 200 A1 drawings per week, the question of CAD printing in-house vs. outsourcing is not a marginal one. The difference in annual cost runs to tens of thousands of pounds. The difference in deadline reliability is harder to quantify and more damaging to get wrong.

This analysis models the real economics for a firm at this volume — not the simplified version that compares hardware cost to bureau price, but the full model that includes courier costs, staff time, deadline risk, and the operational value of on-demand print capability.

The True Cost of Outsourcing at Volume

A UK reprographics bureau charges approximately £1.00–£2.50 per A1 colour print and £0.40–£1.00 per A1 mono print. At 200 A1 mono prints per week — a moderate volume for a mid-size engineering consultancy — the weekly bureau cost is approximately £80–£200, or £4,000–£10,000 per year in print charges alone before courier costs.

Courier delivery for a 20-sheet drawing set typically runs £10–£25 per delivery in London and South England. For a firm issuing drawing sets three times per week, annual courier costs add £1,500–£4,000 to the bureau total. The staff time cost — sourcing, ordering, tracking, collecting, and re-ordering corrected sets — is typically 2–4 hours per week, adding a further £3,000–£8,000 in internal overhead at a junior project manager's hourly rate.

Total annual outsourcing cost for a firm at this volume: approximately £8,500–£22,000.

The In-House Economics

A mid-range large-format plotter suitable for 200 A1 sheets per week — HP DesignJet T830 MFP or equivalent — costs approximately £4,500–£6,500 to purchase or £130–£190 per month on a 36-month operating lease. In-house print cost per A1 mono sheet runs approximately £0.06–£0.15 in ink and media. At 200 sheets per week, annual consumable cost is approximately £600–£1,500.

Adding a service contract (£800–£1,400 per year for a mid-range machine) and the lease cost if applicable, the all-in annual cost of in-house printing at this volume is approximately £3,000–£6,000 — a saving of £2,500–£16,000 per year compared to bureau outsourcing.

"The missed deadline is never on the bureau's invoice. But it is always on your programme."

The Risk Cost That the Invoice Never Shows

The economic case above is compelling. The operational case is more so. A drawing revision required at 5pm for a 9am site meeting cannot be outsourced without next-day courier risk and bureau availability uncertainty. An in-house plotter resolves this in 10 minutes.

For engineering firms working to programme-critical deadlines — infrastructure projects, framework submissions, contractor coordination — the value of on-demand print capability is not a luxury. It is a project delivery tool.

Colyer has worked with engineering consultancies across civil, structural, mechanical, and environmental disciplines. Browse our printer range or explore our managed print service for engineering firms. If you would like a cost model specific to your firm's volume profile and current outsourcing spend, our print audit process provides the numbers in a single working day.