e views - January 2009 - (Page 15)

Creating a print intelligent enterprise continued documents to be quickly and easily stored, retrieved, and delivered. Leveraging existing MFPs, or investing in new MFP technology, as a means of document capture and distribution, enables the full value of these devices to be exploited. Most MFPs are compatible with leading document management applications and also often have their own embedded document capture and distribution capabilities. Optimise the infrastructure Once the ideal resource model and document workflow have been established, the next stage is to develop an optimised printing and imaging infrastructure. A balanced deployment model aims to strike a balance between maximum productivity and minimum cost. In a maximum productivity model, there may be an all-in-one device on every employee’s desktop. Although more costly, this deployment strategy can be appropriate for employees such as law firm executives whose time is valuable. At the other end of the scale is the minimum cost deployment model, which is based on a centralised deployment strategy using high performance departmental MFPs. While this model does save the most money, this strategy can create employee dissatisfaction when employees have to walk a long distance or wait in a queue—and can consequently lead to ad-hoc purchases of personal printers again. A balanced deployment approach considers user needs and the impact on their productivity, aiming to provide a mix of personal, workgroup, and department class printers and MFPs along with software and services that can satisfy users and can be easily configured and managed by administrators. Manage the environment The optimised printing and imaging environment must be monitored and managed on an ongoing basis to ensure that it continues to deliver maximum efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Implementing a print management solution to monitor usage and performance is critical to ensure that networked printing and imaging devices are operating efficiently, and so that problems are detected before they interfere with user productivity. addressing the natural resistance to change that end users may feel regarding consolidated devices. This requires educating staff as to how and why changes will be made, and explaining how productivity improvements will benefit them and the organisation. Managed print services: passing the print gauntlet As organisations have realised the scale, complexity, and escalating costs of their printer usage, many have decided that managing the printing infrastructure is best handled by an outside specialist. These specialists may be the printer or copier manufacturer, specialist managed print providers, or channel partners who are able to provide an outsourced service to reduce the costs related to owning a diverse and complex printing and imaging environment. Through consolidation of existing equipment, management of supplies and ordering, and remote print management, businesses not only benefit from financial savings but also improved customer satisfaction and improved productivity. As with any outsourcing activity, services can be tailored to the business requirements and can include some or all of the following elements: Document assessments Document assessments must be the starting point for optimising an organisation’s office print environment. An effective assessment can analyse the actual costs of printing and device ownership to establish a baseline spend. The assessment should then offer a strategy for how to achieve cost savings through rightsizing the printer fleet and adapting document workflows. Utility-based pricing models The traditional method of purchasing printers is typically a ‘pay-as-you-go’ model where consumables are purchased as required. Increasingly, printers are now being sold using a usage-based cost model, similar to the click-charges traditionally offered by copier companies. Cost-per-page schemes aim to tell the customer upfront what the cost of printing will be each month, and can cover everything from the equipment, consumables, maintenance, and helpdesk support as well as reporting usage through device management software. For example, a ‘pay-per-page’ approach establishes a monthly price for a minimum predicted volume of pages. Different page costs can be defined; the first is the cost for each page (colour and mono) up to and including the minimum volume (for example €0.06 per colour page for a minimum volume of 12,000 pages will give a monthly cost of €720, even if only 10,000 pages have been printed). The second page cost is called the overage and is the cost for each page beyond the minimum volume count. Pricing structures vary in detail as minimum page volumes and payment options differ across vendors—for instance, some vendors offer a fixed price per page across all print volumes. Given that a pay-per-page scheme is based on estimated print volumes, businesses should ensure that they have an accurate understanding of the monochrome and Organisations should take a phased approach to a managed print environment that starts small and scales as required as there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. What is fundamental to this process is obtaining the acceptance from the relevant business groups—including facilities management and IT. Critical success factors include 15 Issue 7 January 2009 e• views Journal, Xplor UK & Ireland Edition

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of e views - January 2009

e views - January 2009 Contents Technology Management Creating a Print Intelligent Enterprise The Future of Broadband Connectivity: @ 320 kph? TPE Master Class Cover Story TransPromo and the Credit Crunch Xplor Europe News Service Directory

e views - January 2009

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