How to reduce SAP printing and labeling errors in manufacturing

Manufacturing teams rely on SAP to keep materials, inventory, production orders, and shipments organized. But that information has to make its way from the system to the shop floor, where employees use it to do their jobs. Labels help workers identify materials, move products through production, and get orders out the door. When the information on those documents is wrong, or the documents don't print when they're needed, work slows down.

Manual data entry is one common source of errors. Employees may copy information incorrectly between systems. Paper-based processes add delays, while disconnected workflows force workers to switch between SAP and spreadsheets. These problems can follow a product through the manufacturing process. An incorrect material label can create inventory discrepancies. A mislabeled component can disrupt production. A shipping label that won't print can prevent an order from leaving the facility.

Limited visibility makes these issues harder to catch. According to Zebra Technologies' Manufacturing Vision Study, only 16% of respondents report having real-time monitoring across the entire manufacturing process. Without that visibility, errors can go unnoticed as materials move from receiving to production and shipping. Printing and labeling are an important part of this process. Manufacturers need a reliable way to get the right information from SAP onto the labels employees use every day.

SAP contains the information manufacturers need to run their operations. Workers on the floor interact with that information through physical outputs, including labels. When printing works correctly, the information flows from SAP to the worker who needs it. Problems arise when that connection depends on manual steps.

For example, SAP may contain the correct material number and quantity, and an employee could accidentally enter the wrong information into a standalone labeling application. The resulting label wouldn't match the ERP record. Once it's attached to a component or pallet, that mistake can travel downstream and cause confusion during production, inventory handling, or shipping.

Print infrastructure creates another potential problem. If a printer goes offline, a print queue gets stuck, or a print server fails, workers may have to wait for IT to resolve the issue before continuing. Delays like these can push teams toward improvised workarounds, which introduce the same errors that automated printing is meant to prevent.

Print management won't correct inaccurate data already stored in SAP. But it can help prevent errors introduced during printing, reduce manual work, and make sure labels reach the right printers reliably.

Printing problems can disrupt receiving, production, and shipping.

Receiving and inventory

Labels identify incoming materials, quantities, batches, and storage locations. If a label contains incorrect information or doesn't reach the right printer, employees may record materials incorrectly or spend time reconciling physical inventory with system records. Automation can help reduce these errors by generating labels directly from the appropriate ERP workflow. Standardized templates also make it easier to ensure that materials are labeled consistently across facilities. Manufacturers are already looking to automation to address these challenges. Zebra Technologies' Warehousing Vision Study found that 73% of warehouse decision-makers currently automating or planning to automate workflows cite mitigating errors as a top catalyst.

Production and work in progress

Labels help employees identify components, work orders, and products as they move through production. If a label is incorrect or unavailable, workers may not be able to complete the next step. Production can slow or stop while someone investigates the problem or waits for IT to restore printing. 

The cost of downtime makes these disruptions especially important. According to Siemens' True Cost of Downtime Study, the cost of a lost hour ranges from $36,000 in fast-moving consumer goods to $2.3 million in the automotive sector. These figures represent broader manufacturing downtime costs, not the cost of a printing failure alone. Still, they show why manufacturers need reliable processes for delivering the labels and documents that production depends on.

Shipping

Shipping and compliance labels help ensure the right products reach the right customers with the correct information. When printing fails, orders can be delayed, shipments rejected, and employees forced to reprint documents or investigate errors. One Vasion customer in the construction materials industry described the impact of printing problems:

"If label printing was broken or experiencing problems—for example, if labels wouldn't print properly because they were not lined up on the paper—the consequences were considerable. We couldn't ship the product, and we couldn't get paid."

Manufacturers can reduce print-related errors by automating repetitive tasks, standardizing printing across locations, and making sure labels are available when workers need them. Two practices can help.

Automate printing from SAP workflows

When SAP triggers a label or document automatically, employees don't have to retype information or select templates manually. The process becomes more consistent, and there's less opportunity for mistakes. For example, a manufacturer can configure a workflow to generate a material label when a goods receipt is posted or a production label when an order reaches a specific stage. Printing becomes part of the process instead of a separate task employees have to remember.

Automation also depends on reliable print infrastructure. Print jobs need to reach the correct devices across plants and locations without relying on a series of manual steps or individual print servers. Manufacturers should review how SAP output is routed, identify potential points of failure, and establish a process for monitoring and recovering failed print jobs.

Standardize printing across plants and locations

Inconsistent printer configurations, naming conventions, and label templates make printing harder to manage, especially across multiple manufacturing sites. Employees may select the wrong printer, use an outdated template, or struggle to get help when every location operates differently. 

Manufacturers should maintain approved templates, standardize printer names and configurations, and establish a consistent process for updating and deploying changes across sites. They should also configure printing to happen at the appropriate point in the workflow. For example, generating a shipping label when the relevant shipment information is available reduces the need to sort through stacks of preprinted labels and helps employees use the correct output. 

Centralized print management makes these processes easier to manage across the business. Instead of supporting separate configurations at every site, IT teams can apply consistent practices and simplify troubleshooting. Vasion internal customer data shows that 70% of customers spend less time on print management and 66% see helpdesk calls reduced by more than half.

Printing is an important part of manufacturing operations, connecting the information stored in SAP with the labels and documents employees rely on throughout the production process. When printing is unreliable, even small issues can create delays, introduce errors, and make it harder for teams to keep work moving. 

Centralized print management helps manufacturers reduce these risks by simplifying how printing is configured, managed, and supported across facilities. Standardizing print environments and automating output from ERP workflows can reduce manual work for employees while giving IT teams greater control over the printing infrastructure. This is especially valuable for manufacturers operating across multiple plants, where consistent processes and reliable printing are essential to keeping operations running smoothly. 

Vasion helps manufacturers simplify print management by eliminating print servers and automating document and label output from SAP workflows. This allows IT teams to spend less time managing printing infrastructure and helps employees get the labels and documents they need without unnecessary delays.

See how a global construction materials leader with more than 212 manufacturing sites eliminated print disruptions with PrinterLogic and PrinterLogic Output.