Whitepapers

Recent IDC research suggests that “a large site with 1,000 plus employees is paying $200 plus per employee in direct hardcopy costs alone.”* So, not surprisingly Gartner research reveals a new trend in the way organizations think about managing their printing and imaging environments. “By YE05, 60 percent of all enterprises will have begun an enterprise wide effort to optimize document output fleet spending through changes to their purchasing and asset management policies.”** The same research suggests that there are significant savings to be had by those who turn their thinking into action, “Through YE08, enterprises that actively manage their document output fleets will be able to save between 10 percent and 30 percent of their recurrent spending.” continue reading...

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Many companies searching for areas where they can show operational improvements while also cutting costs have turned their focus to their imaging and printing infrastructure. A new set of tools, technologies, and processes – combined with more networked environments – has given companies the means to optimize their imaging operations.
Remote management of imaging assets now enables companies to centralize key functions, improve their ability to respond to changing business priorities, and ultimately reduce the cost of support and maintenance. Improved reporting capabilities have helped companies optimize their mix of imaging assets and streamline their imaging investments. Companies also have shown that core business processes can be made more efficient by improving the way documents are integrated into traditional workflows. Overall, the companies implementing these measures achieved direct cost savings of between 8% and 41%, with the greatest savings a result of reduced spending on hardcopy devices, reduced IT support costs, and lowered consumables spending. continue reading...

In today’s Internet-driven, knowledge-based economy, quick access to important information is critical to day-to-day business functions.

Document and content management systems now handle
a wide variety of information assets, including electronic
documents, audio, video, etc., and make them available
to anyone with access rights, regardless of their physical
location. Largely missing from this picture, however, is the
ability to share paper-based information. Except for specific
vertical applications (forms processing, records management,
etc.), knowledge that exists on paper tends to stay on paper. continue reading...

There has been a significant shift in the way organizations think about the cost and value associated with printing and imaging. In view of the findings of leading industry analysts such as Gartner and IDC (see Fast Facts on page 4), organizations are eager to trim document output costs, which are now estimated at between one and three percent of revenue. Productivity expenditures are thought to be even greater, with IT professionals typically spending up to 15 percent of their time on printing and related issues. These experts and others suggest that savings of as much as 30 percent of overall printing costs can be obtained through active management of the document output environment.

Because it pays to get rightsizing right
A growing majority of companies are turning to rightsizing as a strategy to optimize their document output fleet. It’s a move that is beginning to have a significant impact on fleet size. Yet smaller fleets do not automatically add up to lower management and support costs. The failure lies not in rightsizing as a strategy, but rather in the mistaken way some companies approach its implementation. Lacking a sound life-cycle management plan, such companies steadfastly hang on to document output devices until they are completely inoperable rather than invest in newer technology. Today it is not uncommon to find that as much as 50 percent of the devices in an organization’s printer fleet are more than five years old. Considering that supply costs for older workgroup printers can be as much as twice those for today’s multifunction printers (MFPs), this effort to stretch initial capital investment, and thereby maximize ROI, leaves many organizations spending more, not less. Thanks to recent technological advances, many newer output devices now offer significant savings in supplies and energy costs while enhancing productivity. continue reading...