Honestly, I sincerely do not mean - in any way - to be offensive...but this is an abuse of Word.

Word is a word-processor. It is not, nor ever has been, designed to be a graphical/layout type application. It processes words very very well. Using it for 186 graphical elements pushes it beyond what it is designed to be...a word-processor.

If you have need for so many graphical elements, you really should use a proper application designed for graphical elements.

The problem is that Word moves EVERYTHING through the printer-driver.

So...insert ONE graphical element, Word sends the whole document out and processes through the printer driver. Fine, not usually a problem.

Insert TWO graphical elements, Word sends the whole document out and processes through the printer driver, checking the first graphical element, then the second.

Insert THREE graphical elements, Word sends the whole document out and processes through the printer driver, checking the first graphical element, then the second, then the third.

And so on. So 186 elements...Words send the whole document out and processes through the printer driver and checks/validates each and every graphical element individually, one by one sequentially through the printer driver.

This slows things down, as you have discovered. This is the way Word works...through the printer driver, each and every time.

There are a couple of things that may help though.

1. Turn refresh off
2. Turn screen update off.
3. Turn Pagination off.

Bottom line though, is all those graphical elements are processed through the printer driver, and that takes I/O back and forth, and there is nothing you can do about it.

Except of course use a proper graphical/layout application.

PS. If I had my way, I would have Word have a built-in limit to graphical elements. Say 20. That way it could handle brochures and the like, but refuse to work with massive numbers like 186.