The interest in managed print services (MPS) has been growing over recent years because of the need for cost savings, more complex printing, and shifting consumer needs. The ultimate goal is to help a customer achieve his targets – and the resulting spin-off of customer binding to his vendor. MPS, or fleet management, is the practice of outsourcing of a business’s imaging products. In most cases, the vendor will take-over certain print services that were previously performed by the customers’ staff. The amount of out-sourcing can range from simply buying all print products from one place, to having vendor employees in the office to manage the entire fleet of printers and products. Cost reductions on maintenance, printing, and staff, as well as control of resources, are the first two reasons a company may opt for MPS. A business can only focus on business process improvement after these needs are satisfied. Typically, we find it takes three stages to adopt an MPS as a viable solution. There are three stages in a customer’s adoption of MPS: Stage one - the customer needs to simply grasp control of their fleet, identify all costs, and centralize decision making. Stage two - the customer wants to optimize the fleet by installing the right devices in each work environment. Stage three - the customer wants to enhance the business/work processes by adding new capabilities to the copy fleet. Most vendors are focused on offering their customers stage one and two MPS solutions – which is also typically a customer’s first or second MPS contract. It is estimated that the cost of print can be as much as three percent of a company’s revenue and has even been called “the last great area of uncontrolled costs”. Improved work routines alone save 20 to 30 percent of printing costs.
