Why do small businesses, schools, and large corporations all turn to Managed Print Services (MPS)? Because with MPS, you outsource the management of your printing environment to a reputable third party provider like Orion , putting the day-to-day responsibilities that come along with your fleet in the hands of our trained professionals.
Through MPS, you’ll:
Eliminate service and supply headaches through automatic printer supply ordering and routine device servicing.
Experience lower costs and predictable monthly billing by removing unnecessary, redundant, inefficient, or obsolete devices and eliminating wasteful printing.
Increase document security through rules-based printing, firmware updates, and system monitoring.
Managed Print Services allows organizations of any size to achieve more with less.
If you have travelled anywhere in Australia by plane since 2010 you probably have visited a WHSmith store. Their first store opened in 2010 in Melbourne Airport and within a short period of time they have grown to over 50 stores operating in Australia and over 500 employees.
WH Smith is a leading global retailer with a presence in over 25 countries, serving its customers from over 1,300 stores across the globe. With such an extensive presence worldwide, WHSmith was proud to open their first store in Australia back in 2010. Their first store opened its doors in Melbourne Airport and within a short period of time, the business has grown substantially – and it continues to grow – with stores now open in Sydney, Adelaide and Perth.
Their goal is to be the leading retailer in convenience, books and news for the world’s travelling customer. They understand our customers and know that in the locations in which they operate people have less time to browse and their focus on instore design and excellent customer service reflects this. Early in 2012 the business acquired the brand Fresh+ – a hospital café business, serving fresh food and refreshments to visitors and patients.
As they have continued to grow the business, innovation has been at the heart of everything they do. Their aim is to move at the same pace as their customers, always ensuring they are at the forefront of everything they do
The Challenge
Challenge WH Smith had two major challenges when it came to their printing requirements – their multiple locations and where they were placed, along with a busy customer-facing environment where uptime was of prime importance. The challenge for every WHSmith was that the device was either in a regional, or difficult-to-get-to, location (such as a hospital or Airport).Epson’s Heat-Free print technology means less moving parts so more reliable printing and increased up time. The high-yield inks (up to 8 times longer than comparative lasers) gave staff less disruptions and more time to attend to their customers needs..
The Solution, The Benefits
With minimal interventions – both service and consumables replacement – as one of their buying criteria, along with price-performance, WH Smith was keen to understand the benefits Epson could bring to the table.
Epson excelled on both counts, the reliability of their Heat-Free technology not only improved staff morale but also customer service capability. The Epson high-yield ink consumables for both the A4 (up to 50,000 pages) and A3 (up to 100,000 pages) models not only provided WHSmith with the minimal disruptions they were looking for, it also enabled them to dramatically reduce their overall running costs. In fact Orion Print Management, Epson’s Premier Partner, quantified the total cost savings over the contract period to be just over 80% in power and running cost.
The Return-on-Investment
As much as WHSmith appreciated the cost savings of the Epson devices, the real return-on-investment here was the extra time staff could spend with their customers. And with Orion Print Management proactively and professionally managing their fleet, the WHSmith IT Management team could now focus their time on key IT projects.
Orion is Epson Australia’s Premier Partners. We improve organisational effectiveness by providing comprehensive content management, accelerating shared business processes by facilitating information-sharing across boundaries for better business insight. The measure of their company is reflected in the testimony of their customers, and WHSmith is an excellent example of what positive impact they can bring to your business.
We get it—picking out the right toner can be confusing at times. When dealing with printer consumables, such as toner, you need to match up the right ink cartridge with your particular device. But it goes beyond just one option per device make and model. With so many different manufacturers offering printer consumables at various price points, this is where the purchase decision gets difficult. With that in mind, take a look at the following breakdown of pros and cons of some of the different toner options that are out there.
OEM Toner
Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) toner cartridges are made by the original manufacturer of your device. This is the toner that came with the device on day one.
Pros: OEM toner is the highest quality toner you can find for your device. It may also help your device last longer since this toner is specifically designed to work with this device.
Cons: It’s the most expensive toner option out there. It’s also not as environmentally friendly as other toners, since no OEM toners come from recycled parts.
Remanufactured Toner
This is toner made up of some pre-used parts that have gone through a thorough recycling process. All cartridges are meticulously refurbished to meet the standards of OEM toner.
Pros: Remanufactured toner tends to be very affordable—especially in comparison to OEM toner. It’s also an eco-friendly option with a light carbon footprint.
Cons: At times, not all remanufactured toner is held to the same standards as OEM toner, so be sure to work with a reputable company to ensure that you receive high-quality parts.
Compatible Toner
Compatible toner cartridges are created by third-party, independent companies. These are usually overseas products created from all new parts.
Pros: Compatible toner is usually the most affordable option on the market when it comes to printing consumables.
Cons: Quality control can be an issue with international ink manufacturers, as there are no internationally enforced quality assurance measures to hold manufacturers accountable for their products. Therefore, it’s important to ensure that you are using a top-of-the-line manufacturer and trusted vendor when going with compatible toner.
Understanding the pros and cons of each type of toner makes the purchasing decision a little easier. For more information on toner or any of our other consumables, contact us today.
Arthur GhelisOEM, Remanufactured, and Compatible Toner — What’s the Difference?
