Pressure on to Reduce and Control Office Print Costs as SMBs Bring More Print Tasks In-house

EGHAM, England, November 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ –

Usage tracking key to analysing and managing expenditure as businesses look

to print smarter

The way in which SMBs buy printers and manage their print infrastructure must change
if they are to benefit from smarter printing practices, according to the latest IDC White
Paper, SMB Buying Considerations for Smarter Business Printing, October 2012,
[http://www.okieurope.com/IDC-White-Paper ] sponsored by OKI Europe.

(Logo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121126/579563 )

In a challenging marketplace, sales of laser/LED printers to small and medium sized
businesses (SMBs) across Europe have increased by more than three per cent, as companies
take advantage of new technologies to bring more print tasks in-house (IDC Hardcopy Device
Usage: Applications Driving Print, 2011). “This is excellent news, reflecting the ability
of print solutions providers to respond successfully to the changing needs of the market,”
believes Terry Laidlaw, managing director, OKI Europe.

“The survey highlights how the growth in popularity of colour in particular is because
SMBs can now produce colour documents on in-house laser or LED printers cost-effectively,
without compromising on the professional quality that is expected from external print
houses. However, in many cases businesses do not know how much printing takes place in
their organisation or how much this often ‘forgotten’ expenditure is actually costing
them.

“With ever-increasing pressure to take control of spiralling costs in an uncertain
economic environment, printing is an area that businesses should urgently review in order
to benefit from significant savings quickly and with minimal negative impact on their
business.”

Tracking usage

In an age where vast quantities of information is consumed and shared, there is a
growing volume of printing taking place as users print this information in order to digest
it more easily. This often results in printing more copies than required, or using colour
when mono would do just as well.

Businesses need to gain a better understanding of the amount of printing that is
taking place in their organisation and to control it. To do this, SMBs should consider
software options that can identify, track and manage printing. “As IDC has identified, the
first step to controlling costs is to identify what these costs are,” confirms Laidlaw.

“By installing tracking software which sits on the network, the business can monitor
and manage print volume by department or user. For example, it can pinpoint which
employees are printing, whether the print jobs are colour or mono and the number of pages
in each case, the time of day jobs are sent and the type of files being printed.”

Armed with this information, usage software can then enable the setting of rules that
can help control print output and so reduce on-going costs. These can include:

        - Identifying individual user or department activity in order to charge
          specific departments or customers accordingly
        - Setting mono printing as standard, so that users have to change the driver
          settings to print in colour
        - Setting defaults so that all documents print in duplex unless the printer
          settings are changed to single-sided mode
        - Allowing only certain employees to print in colour, limit colour use for
          particular document types or set page limits for each user's colour output
        - Setting a draft or toner save mode as standard, so that users only change the
          settings if they expressly need higher quality print output

Reducing the need for external print services

The cost of external print services should be included in any analysis of overall
print costs and requirements. The availability of print devices that enable more printing
to move in-house means that SMBs can print what they need when they need it, rather than
printing large volumes in order to get the necessary economies of scale which can lead to
wastage and a requirement for extra storage space which can often be limited within SMBs.

In addition, it may make better economic sense to purchase an A3 rather than an A4
colour device, as this will enable the business to produce a wider range of brochures and
other marketing materials in-house. These can also be produced and amended as necessary,
enabling the business to be more proactive in responding quickly to changing customer and
market demands.

“It is not surprising therefore that A3 sales to SMBs out-performed the market, with
volume sales up by eight per cent in 2011 and set to continue this growth over the coming
year,” says Laidlaw. “Not only are smaller businesses using A3 to print high-quality
banners, posters, packaging mock-ups and direct mail, but they are also able to produce
anything required in larger scale, such as spreadsheets or technical plans.

“As the IDC SMB research shows, despite the rapid growth of sophisticated devices
enabling us to view information electronically, there is still a huge demand to
communicate messages and digest data on paper. However, for SMBs to take full advantage of
this opportunity and improve their competitiveness in a continuing tough economy, it is
essential that they realise the benefits of the latest print technologies like those
offered by OKI Europe, providing cost-effective in-house printing without compromising on
quality as well as keeping a tight control of all print output.”

The full white paper is available for download at:

http://www.okieurope.com/IDC-White-Paper

Notes to Editors:

About OKI Europe

OKI Europe is a division of OKI Data Corporation, a global business-to-business
organisation dedicated to creating professional in-house printed communications products,
applications and services which are designed to increase the efficiency of today’s and
tomorrow’s businesses. OKI Europe’s annual group turnover accounts for over 50% of OKI
Data Corporation’s group turnover.

The company is well-established as one of Europe’s leading printer brands, in terms of
value and units shipped. OKI Europe’s award winning, product portfolio comprises six
distinct segments: Colour and mono printers, multifunctional devices, which combine
printing, copying, scanning and faxing functionalities, as well as Serial Dot Matrix
printers, faxes and specialty printers for point-of-sales and manufacturing. Established
in 1990, today OKI Europe employs approximately 1,100 people in 21 production sites and
sales offices and is represented in 60 countries throughout the EMEA region.

OKI Data Corporation is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Oki Electric Industry Co. Ltd.,
established in 1881 and Japan’s first telecommunications manufacturer.

        Media Contacts:
        OKI Europe Ltd:  Pamela Ghosal: Pamela.Ghosal@okieurope.com, +44(0)208-2192127
        Whiteoaks: Simon Moss/Simon Reeves: simonm@whiteoaks.co.uk, +44(0)1252-727313

    Photo: 

http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121126/579563

SOURCE OKI Europe