Five Telltale Signs You Need Managed Print Solutions
Managed print solutions are a means to control or reduce costs related to printing in the office. The cost of office printing is a combination of direct and indirect expenses consisting of the purchase of hardware, supplies, service, parts, and administrative costs that an organization experiences.
Proper print fleet optimization requires much more than a “one size fits all” solution. Managed print solutions offer a clear benefit; allowing your company to have an optimized document imaging fleet. If you haven’t optimized your fleet of office equipment, here are the top five signs you may need a managed print solution:
Lack of continuity: Is there a lack of continuity in your office? Has your business chosen products from multiple manufacturers without considering how they will work together? This lack of continuity creates inefficiencies and operational problems. When all printing devices are networked, they can communicate a great deal of information that would otherwise be lost. Add the right software to centrally monitor and manage devices, and you’re enabling fleet standardization.
Maverick expenses: Impulsive or maverick spending on printing devices leads to overspending and sub-par equipment selection.
Missing metrics: Minimal or no tracking of device metrics means you may not know where the inefficiencies are or how to fix them. You can’t control what you can’t see, like page counts, visibility into over- or under-utilized devices, page coverage, service reports, alerts, and more. With access to the right metrics, organizations can harness purchasing power for smart, centralized fleet purchases rather than uninformed individual purchases from multiple locations.
Lack of Acquisition Processes: When metrics are missing, a business lacks the data it needs to apply to fleet purchasing decisions. Without metrics there will be no rational and strategic process. With the right standardization enabled by software and the right metrics, the company can implement strategic processes that lead to an optimized fleet.
Improper Amortization or Expense Structure: Another reason a company may not have an optimized document imaging fleet is that the devices have already been spent or purchased through a capital expense. The truth may be that capital budgets are being stretched with erratic purchases of production technology, reactive supply orders, and emergency service calls. Also, your business may not be aware of the hidden costs that are hurting your bottom line.
If you can identify with any of the above signs in your business, exploring a managed print solution would be a worthwhile investment of your time. A discussion with an experienced managed print specialist will help you determine the best course of action and should lead to substantial savings.
