Many companies struggle with having enough IT Team resources to cover critical operations, work on growth initiatives and still have time to update, maintain and repair their printers.
How do you know when your in-house IT Team has enough coverage or when it’s time to consider working with a Managed Print Services (MPS) partner?
Here’s some questions to consider while pondering this problem.
Sounds simple, but it might be more difficult than you think. Most companies have multiple machines and over time, have added onto their printer fleet. Often, a company may be aware of their networked printers, but not necessarily all the smaller, desktop printers that may be conveniently tucked in next to a personal workstation.
A MPS partner can assist you in mapping out where your printers are located. This will give a better idea of the size of your printer fleet and guide you toward thinking differently about what it might take to make your fleet more efficient.
Diving deep into the data will help you here. What are the printing needs of your company? Single sheets? Booklets? Black/white or color? Are color needs frequent or would black/white printing serve most project needs? How many pages does each of your machines print in an average month? These are all things that need to be known to properly determine how to construct your printer fleet more efficiently.
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Print management software helps to optimize the use of printers, copiers and multifunction devices (MFDs) as well as provide insights into who is printing, what they’re printing and why. It can also improve security and compliance with user authentication protocols and device monitoring while providing reporting cost analysis and user data.
If your IT Team is searching for more time to work on strategic initiatives instead of pausing during a project to replace a toner cartridge or fix a machine it might be time to add a MPS partner to the mix.
A MPS partner will allow your IT Team to offload the servicing of machines and will streamline your supply ordering too.
An app, such as myGFC, can also make opening a service ticket fast and easy by scanning the QR code on the machine needing service. Gordon Flesch Company’s myGFC app will also give you additional information on the service tech assigned to your ticket (feature available within our core service area) as well as ticket status.
Many companies have a “storage closet” of replacement toner cartridges. Sometimes the supply runs out, or maybe there’s a style/brand of cartridge that you seem to replace frequently. Having left over, non-returnable, toner cartridges on-hand when you replace a print machine is also a common conundrum.
Why spend extra time and money to purchase an inventory of toner cartridges and estimate their use? A MPS partner can provide just-in-time toner replenishment. This process can even be automated with a Data Collection Agent (DCA) which will keep track of how much your machine is being used and will send toner when it is running low.
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If you are not sure what your monthly printing costs are, now might be the time to consider working with a MPS partner.
The first step, when working with a MPS partner is to conduct a needs assessment. This process will ask many of the same questions we’ve listed above as well as loading a DCA to collect data for approximately a month or two.
The results are then presented to the company along with suggestions of how to streamline their processes by modifying their printer fleet. Condensing, optimizing, or economizing are common recommendations.
In fact, many clients are surprised to learn that a new machine might be more efficient and cost-effective than their old one. That’s why working with a MPS partner can offer some surprising benefits to both your staff and your bottom line. Condensing the number of different types of machines will also simplify the ordering process for toner replacements too. A double win!
A needs assessment only takes 30 minutes. And it creates minimal disruption to your IT Team’s everyday activities. When faced with the chance to improve your IT Team’s focus, enhance security and save money – it might be time to compare the differences between in-house print management and working with a MPS partner.
