Industry Production Standards (IPS) Guidelines
IPS Takes Mystery Out of
Document Production
What exactly is IPS?
Industry Production Standards is the methodology used by the business support services industry to compute time for all levels of document production. Suppose, for instance, you had to write a proposal for one of your clients. Finally, your greatest, most creative ideas are all together — some on paper, some on disk. Now it’s time to spin straw into gold — and get your creation produced by a professional word processor/desktop publisher. Industry Production Standards are published to solve that very problem: calculating “standard” time to complete the work.
The IPS Concept
Production Standards in our industry provide business support services owners with a guide and methodology to compute time for document production as if all work had been produced by the “model operator,” i.e., “average qualified operator.” Incoming projects are classified according to degree of difficulty. Elements evaluated are readability/audibility, grammar and sentence structure, organization, format, and technical content. Using Production Level Unit Classification Charts (PLUC Charts), IPS standard production time is calculated to determine the number of time units (in tenths of hours) it would take the model operator to produce the finished document.
Your invoice for production of a document is determined by multiplying that IPS time unit by the local service provider’s appropriate hourly rate for that level of service; then adding any additional actual time or charges for editing the document, comprehensive proofreading, extra printouts, photocopies, postage, supplies, etc.
Built in Ways to Save You Money
By presenting easier-to-produce source material to the provider, it is given a higher classification, so the work doesn’t take as long. Examples of ways to present better source material are: 1) typed (or on disk) instead of handwritten and randomly annotated 2) having the material better organized, clearly defining the format, etc. 3) proofread the document yourself. Spell check and formatting check on the computer screen are included in the production process you pay for in the basic IPS time unit. Comprehensive proofing and editing by provider involves additional billable time.
Actual time (also calculated in tenths of hours) is billed for non-keyboard and administrative activities that don’t fall under the purview of the PLUC Charts (for keyboard and computer activities). Examples are clerical, administrative or concierge services such as errands, phone calls, making photocopies, faxing, and filing.
The Industry Production Standards Guide is compiled and published by the Association of Business Support Services International, Inc. (ABSSI) and Executive Suite Association (ESA).
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Copyright 1998 by Executive Suite Association and Association of Business Support Services International, Inc.
