MPS helps companies drive massive cost-savings in their print environments

Managed print services (MPS) enable South African companies to address their most pressing business challenges in the document output space, including slashing costs, boosting productivity and reducing their carbon footprints.

That's according to Kevin Johnstone, business development officer at Itec, who says MPS are expected to take off in South Africa over the next year as local companies embrace it as a means to address some of their most pressing business challenges.

"Not only do MPS empower companies to drive cost efficiencies, but they also help companies with risk mitigation, transformation of business processes and greening of their IT infrastructure. That makes them a strong proposition in a market where companies are struggling to get more done with fewer resources," says Johnstone.

"In addition to offering a way of driving infrastructure and operational cost savings in their document output environments, MPS are also a way for companies to drive business efficiencies that equip them to compete more effectively."

MPS can be defined as a model for outsourcing the running, management and optimisation of office automation services such as printing, copying and scanning. In this model, companies will usually pay the service provider a per-page or per-month fee for taking complete responsibility for running their office automation infrastructure.

The service provider should start out an MPS engagement by working with the client to find opportunities to reduce costs by consolidating infrastructure and better managing usage of print services by end-users. It should also help the client to streamline workflow and identify ways to reduce its carbon footprint.

Johnstone says the most immediate impact of a well-managed transition to MPS should be an immediate reduction of 20% to 30% in the total cost of running the print and copy infrastructure. These cost savings will accrue from consolidating printers, managing maintenance and consumables more effectively, and replacing legacy devices with more modern and efficient ones. With a single unified bill for all document output services, companies will have the transparent information they need for better forecasting and expense allocation.

Companies benefit from a more predictable and easier-to-control fleet. They have the insight they need into their fleet to continuously optimise cost and performance, says Johnstone. They can also reduce their carbon footprints by consolidating devices, ensuring that cartridges and other waste are disposed of in a responsible manner, and cutting down on unnecessary, wasteful printing.

More benefits come from freeing up IT, financial and procurement resources that were once focusing on managing the document output environment, says Johnstone. Rather than worrying about managing an out-of-control print fleet, companies can redirect funds and energy towards transforming business processes through integrating scanning into their workflow and investing in document management systems.

Johnstone says MPS are no longer the preserve of large enterprises. Mid-sized companies are also likely to move to managed services as they begin to understand the benefits of managing document output in a strategic rather than transactional manner.

The rise of MPS is likely to bring about profound changes in the document output market. Johnstone says traditional IT vendors are developing in-house capacity or aligning with print vendors to bring MPS to their customers while office automation and print players are seeking allegiance with IT integrators in order to expand their market reach.

To choose the right MPS partner in this changing market, companies need to look for a partner with an established infrastructure, good operational systems and processes, and a good set of skills at both the technical and business levels, says Johnstone.