Many factors go into designing the perfect print fleet. Common considerations include the cost of supplies and determining the ideal printer placement. A big modern question is determining how environmentally friendly your fleet is.
The first step to answering this is quantifying how to measure a green fleet. The traditional way is to determine energy efficiency. Your friendly local Managed Print Service (MPS) expert may manage this for you, but it’s helpful to know the factors determining the greenness of the fleet.
1. Device Age
There’s a strong correlation between device age and efficiency. The older the device, the less efficiently it uses ink, electricity, and toner. Cartos Suite, In Time Tec’s MPS Cloud Software Suite, easily distinguishes this data.
“If you put the data in the Cartos Suite and see that the fleet is older, it’s an opportunity to make the fleet more green,” said Tyler Martindale, Cartos Suite Product Manager.
Asset Advisor, part of the Cartos Suite, allows you easy access to the latest, most accurate fleet specs. Specs such as device age, energy use, and print output make it much quicker to conduct assessments, like an Energy Star Analysis, to see the energy efficiency of your fleet.
2. Presence of a Secure Print Solution
Secure Print Management Software, software that enforces printing to only happen under set requirements, also offers environmental benefits. By making users physically retrieve printouts, it helps ensure only necessary documents are printed. Plus, you can force all duplex and greyscale printing, which further guarantees less ink and paper waste.
3. Needed Devices
Most printer fleets get to the point of containing excess devices. Conducting an MPS assessment can help determine what printers are needed and which are just giant space wasters. Trimming down the device count allows you to refresh your fleet with newer or better devices. Plus, consolidating your print fleet to have one Multifunction Printer instead of a printer, copier, and scanner, saves energy in the long run.
Determining how green your fleet is is vital for future business planning. For help conducting MPS assessments, professionals use Cartos Suite.
