Print Management

November 17, 2008 -- A new study from the Photizo Group captures the nuances and preferences of the Western European Managed Print Services (MPS) market. The Western European MPS Decision Maker Tracking Study™ is the first dedicated research into managed print services in France, Germany and the UK. The first-of-its-kind study is available now.

"The practice of managed print services can be adopted by companies anywhere, but priorities, concerns and preferences can and do vary, according to our research. As vendors pursue MPS opportunities, this information can guide their efforts in productive directions. Companies in these countries considering MPS contracts will also benefit from understanding how others in their markets are evaluating and adopting MPS," said Ed Crowley, founder and president of the Photizo Group.

By Corey Smith

When considering the many costs that an organization has to expend, one of the most mis-understood is that of printing costs.

The Gartner Group estimates that as much as 30% of organizations' print costs can be eliminated with simple print device management.

The challenge organizations have is that often there is a division of responsibility for purchasing print devices and supplies for those print devices. Different departments have different responsibilities when it comes to creating efficiencies and cost control strategies.

I have spoken with many IT directors that simply don't care how much printer supplies costs. The cost can be 15 cents for a b/w print and 50 cents for a color print but as long as the cost of acquisition of the device is low, they will buy it.

One of of the most common, untracked costs associated with most organizations is the cost of printing and reproducing documents.

In most offices, employees have the ability to print any quantity of documents they choose. When the printer or multi-function system runs out of toner or paper, they simply order more. Many organizations have multiple printers to order toner for. They have inkjets and laserjets. They have personal printers, workgroup printers, department multi-function systems and often will have production level equipment.

There often is no clear strategy on how to contain those supply costs.

But supply costs aren't the only costs associated with printing. The acquisition cost may be nominal, but the servicing of that piece of hardware can be very costly. It can be time consuming for an IT professional to manage the various problems that will inevitably arise with these devices. Problems as simple as a paper jam to as complex as replacement of roller, gears or other internal parts.