Phase 2. Design
For output savings to be sustainable, it is important to take an end-to-end approach to developing an efficient device fleet. Involve key stakeholders in the process from an early stage to ensure that they (as well as the service provider) truly understand and support the objectives.
It is crucial for the design to reallocate or consolidate unnecessary devices to realise efficiencies. However, designers must take into account the specific needs of each business department and user, along with any specialised applications that might have special output requirements. The design should also incorporate a phased transition and provide for checkpoints during the transition to ensure that special user requirements haven’t been overlooked.
We can’t overstate the importance of protecting existing output investment; the final design must be able to manage the current infrastructure and introduce new devices only when necessary to realize true, tangible cost reductions or improvements in efficiency. It’s important that the service provider responds to the business needs and doesn’t just look upon this as an opportunity to sell new equipment.
It is essential to choose a service provider who can easily manage third-party devices cost-effectively. If not, it’s highly likely that the provider will recommend significant equipment refresh at the outset of the project. However it’s presented, such a strategy will likely prove costly, and reduce returns on the MPS investment. The MPS contract must support all vendors represented in the output fleet design, with the service provider taking control of spend and processes associated with each retained device. These costs should be covered in the cost-per-page utility agreement.
The service provider’s design should also cover all types of output devices in the fleet, i.e., not just printers but also copiers and fax machines. Most especially, it should cover non-networked devices. This ensures that the stated TCO and projected cost savings are real; they incorporate the entire fleet, not just networked printers.
