Fax Featured Article

When they were first introduced into the market, office printers – the offspring of the photocopier – were a little difficult to use, messy and expensive – although a very welcome addition to the workplace. At the time, despite the black toner powder spilling all over the desk, crooked page feeds and paper jams, office printers gave workers instant gratification in the form of a printed document right from their computer to a printer near their desk. 

Over the past two decades, that need for instant gratification has evolved to increased demand for printers that not only do more – print, make copies, scan and fax – but are smaller, less expensive, operate better and are easier to use.  Multi-function devices have been around for years, so what’s new?

Mobile printing

Mobile technology makes it easy for employees to stay connected, not only by voice, email and instant messaging, but also through document management and the ability to print directly from a smartphone or tablet. By making office printers part of the mobile network, employees can print documents directly from their hand-held devices using a cloud-based printing system. All-in-one, wireless printers that are network ready, such as models by Hewlett Packard and others, allow workers to print from down the hall or while on the road to the printer they designate. Some applications and services also make it easy to print directly to a local print shop from a mobile device – a capability valuable for telecommuters, other remote workers and professionals such as sales reps, who are frequently on the road.

Size might matter

Until now, wide-format printing has been a specialty service of professional print houses. Now, businesses of all sizes can purchase their own wide-format printers for projects like blueprints, maps, posters and banners in sizes up to 150 feet. Some desktop printers by Canon (News - Alert), Epson and Brother are specially designed for high-resolution color printing for photographs, art and marketing materials, and also accommodate non-standard paper sizes needed by certain industries.

No paper glasses required

Most people are familiar with 3D movies or images, but 3D printing technology by HP and others has become more common and affordable. The technology is useful for businesses that post high-quality images of items they sell to the Web. With 3D printing, a special scanner attached to the printer captures all sides of a three dimensional object, then prints or uploads the image directly to a website. These 3D printers are also useful for object fabricators and manufacturers to help with product development.

Secure data

Printers, like any computerized device, store data which can be vulnerable to security breaches. For industries that handle sensitive data, like healthcare, legal or financial services, there are printers by Lexmark and others that require proof of identification before a document will print. This can be accomplished by swiping a corporate ID card or entering a password right at the machine. Keep in mind that the internal hard drives will still need to be professionally wiped to remove data; if the printer is networked to the cloud, some services wipe data automatically.

Environmentally sound technology

Not only have office printers gone down in price, they have become much more environmentally preferable, using less energy through auto on/off and other energy efficient features required for ENERGY STAR (News - Alert) certification through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Corporate budgets and the environment can also benefit from the use of remanufactured ink and toner and recertified data cartridges. Many companies also take advantage of ink and toner recycling programs that further meet sustainability goals.

Enhance printing with best practices

With regard to printer use, employees can do their part to extend the life of printing devices, keep costs down and reduce their company’s carbon footprint. For example, companies can make sure employees are not taxing the office printers and hitting or exceeding the recommended printing capacity per device per month. If employees are exceeding the recommended page volume on a given printer, companies can consider adding more printers to the fleet, diverting printing traffic to other less-utilized devices or upgrading to devices that can handle the higher volume output. In addition, simple best practices, like lowering the DPI (dots per inch) of ink used on the page by printing in draft mode, printing double-sided and avoiding color printing unless it’s necessary can positively impact the bottom line. 

Printers have evolved to meet the rapidly changing needs of the workforce. From the convenience of printing from a smartphone or tablet, and the easy availability of wide-format and 3D printers, to new security features to protect sensitive documents and data, printers are an integral part of today’s business operations.