MPS: The other audit you should consider in the New Year

Recently, we wrote that every business should get off to the best possible start in 2023 with a comprehensive audit of its IT (Managed Services).

Hand in hand with that audit should be a Managed Print Services (MPS) audit… a check-in with your MPS partner/provider to discuss what may have changed over the last year and what specific adjustments, if any, need to be made in your program.

Your Managed Print Services partner may well initiate this check-up (we do with all our MPS customers). MPS is more mainstream with forward-thinking businesses today than a decade ago, with very good reason. Any business or non-profit organization which relies on printed materials as part of its business is essentially leaving money on the table without an MPS program that tracks, monitors and adjusts to its business needs.

How much money is left “on the table” without MPS, you ask?

For businesses without a formal MPS program in place, it could be quite a bit. Consider the case of a commercial real estate firm in the Chicago suburbs, with annual revenues of $3,000,000. That agency probably spends close to $90,000 annually on print-related expenditures: copying, printing, repair and maintenance of equipment and more.

With a properly implemented and executed Managed Print Services program, that $90,000 annual expenditure could be reduced by $22,000 or more.

Research reveals that the average company spends between 1% and 3% of its total bottom line on print-related expenses – and that the right MPS program can save a company up to 25% of its total costs.

But there’s more to MPS than the dollars and cents savings on printing costs. It also saves you and your staff time and energy better spent elsewhere. Who wants to call around to find a service tech when a machine breaks down? Or to call a parts store you are unfamiliar with only to be told that their toner is “back ordered”?

Having an MPS vendor/partner takes the stress off your team. Someone else is watching over your system and anticipating what it needs and when it’s needed so that you save on costs and avoid unnecessary down time.

If you have an MPS program in place, you and your team should review your current situation and needs with your MPS provider.

The conversation should begin with a review of the data collected about equipment usage over the last year. And you should proactively inform your provider of any changes or needs. For example:

• Does it seem that your needs may have changed over the last year? Are you doing more printing? Less? Are your printed document needs different? Are you doing more color copies, or fewer?
  
  
• Has your staffing situation changed? Are there additional – or fewer – people using equipment than in the previous year? Does your company have hybrid workers and what accommodations are made in those cases? Are there new employees who should receive training on the benefits and the workings of MPS? Are your employees and their work functions properly aligned with the machines that they are using?
  
  
• How does the overall number of copies made on each machine in the system compare to the previous year? Do any potential changes signal the need for a modification of the MPS system? Remember that each piece of equipment is designed with a specific function in mind. The so-called “big box” desktop printers, for example, may serve a purpose if you are printing out a small number of documents each year, but for ongoing and regular printing the replacement cartridge costs quickly show the per-page price of copies skyrocketing. An audit should look at not only total copies, but copies made per unit and an analysis of whether the machines are being used efficiently and economically. An MPS system will include a number of copiers, printers and/or multi-function printers.
  
  
• Hardware: Is there any hardware in need of upgrade or replacement?
  
  
• Parts/supplies: What replacements/upgrades may be appropriate?
  
  
• Usage of each specific machine (copiers, multi-function printers, and fax machines). In evaluating the data, are there any pieces of equipment that should be upgraded or retired?
  
  
• Is your tracking software functioning properly? Did it notify your provider of potential misfeeds or low toner or other challenges?

MPS saves money, but it also saves time. For MPS users, having an outside partner monitor and anticipate small problems before they become larger ones is a big value.

If you don’t yet have an MPS program in place, it’s time! Find a trusted partner to provide this service for you. Seek someone who knows how to anticipate your needs, has sufficient inventory for quick replacement of parts, toner, and what your system needs, and who has dedicated technicians on staff for repairs should they become necessary.

Continue this new year in a proactive way, with an MPS audit. Give us a call at (888) 357-4277 or email us at info@pulsetechnology.com to learn more!