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How do dealers use computers in their businesses?
Graphic arts dealers, like all businesses, use computers for a variety of purposes. Predictably, most dealers' use of computers centers around accounting functions such as accounts receivable, accounts payable, and inventory valuation. At other dealers, where accounts are apparently maintained manually, computers are used for word processing and spreadsheet functions.
Some 57 dealers responded to the first ever NAGASA FlashStudy. These 57 dealers operate 292 outlets, or an average of more than five outlets per dealer. Just under 60 percent of the responding dealers operate only one outlet. See figure 1.
Two-thirds of the dealers indicated that their business consists primarily of supplies. See figure 2.
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The 57 dealers who responded to the two-page fax study provided the following insights to their operations and computer usage.
What kind of computer system do you operate at your dealership?
The responding dealers were split nearly evenly-with slightly more than half using a PC based system, and 42 percent using a minicomputer. Only seven percent of the responding dealers reported using mainframe computers in their operations.
A few dealers use both minicomputers and PCs, thus the percentages in figure 3 total more than 100.
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