Case Study Millersville University
Selling more than boxes, Ricoh helped Millersville navigates print migration quickly, cost-effectively.
ABOUT THE CUSTOMER
Millersville University is a top-ranked public university located in central Pennsylvania. With more than 8,700 students and nearly 900 faculty and staff, the university requires an extensive fleet of output devices throughout its scenic campus. The university is one of 14 in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) and follows state-approved procurement guidelines. Ricoh worked closely with the university to implement a print migration strategy and equipment upgrade that improves efficiency and reduces the total cost of ownership.
CHALLENGE
Ricoh was awarded the contract for digital multifunction products (MFPs) for the 14 state universities in Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). The timing was perfect when Ricoh representatives arrived on the campus of Millersville University.
“The printing procurement procedures were disparate and inconsistent,” said Ken Dearstyne, Associate Vice President of Finance and Administration. “It was unmanaged, with each department making its own purchasing decisions, including vendor preference.”
As a result of this decentralized strategy, there was a wide range of devices — up to 100 MFPs and 300 printers — from several different vendors. Nearly half of the fleet was more than five years old, with some devices at least 15 years old. Fewer than 20 percent were connected to the network.
Outdated, standalone output devices compromised performance and school officials were concerned that the lack of security controls would adversely affect data integrity. Images were stored directly on the hard drive of many of the devices, so confidential information could be retrieved by nearly anyone.
Maintenance was especially challenging with the decentralized fleet. The university-owned most of the devices, but most of the service contracts were expired or non-existent. In fact, individual departments had ordered inkjet printers by credit cards that went completely undetected by the IT team. The aging, disparate fleet required extensive maintenance, but the scattershot approach taxed the school’s financial resources.
“We realized that we needed to upgrade our print output fleet,” said Dearstyne. “But we lacked the resources to ensure optimal efficiency. Our IT team had few metrics for assessing usage and productivity.”
The Ricoh team wanted to do more than sell output devices. It wanted to conduct a comprehensive analysis to optimize efficiency throughout the campus. University officials, however, were skeptical. Another vendor had unsuccessfully tried to assess the print environment years earlier.
For about two years, Ricoh conducted a needs analysis for individual departments. A few MFPs were purchased based on the team’s recommendations. It served as the foundation for more significant initiatives. Ricoh’s extensive consulting and services expertise — combined with proven technologies — paved the way for campus-wide analysis.
With only about 30 of the 300 printers mapped, Ricoh’s four-person team of document management experts surveyed every building to identify the locations of every device and to define specific recommendations for consolidation. The university could eliminate unnecessary devices by installing networked MFPs that combine printing, copying, scanning, and faxing for faster, more efficient performance at a fraction of the cost. The devices also came equipped with automatic duplexing and required less energy to operate.
“We needed new MFPs that could improve energy efficiency, too,” said Dearstyne. “Pennsylvania had recently passed energy deregulation, so the ability to reduce our energy costs were a critical differentiator.”
The team installed @Remote on many of the devices to document a wide range of usage data. The compiled data was shared with university decision-makers. Ricoh used it to show how much-centralized fleet management could reduce the total cost of ownership.
RESULTS
The university was impressed with Ricoh’s analysis and recommendations. As a result, 46 MFPs that were more than five years old were replaced immediately with versatile Ricoh networked MFPs. Users were skeptical of the new powerful MFPs and centralized strategy. Soon after installation, however, they raved about the advanced capabilities of the new devices.
“Ricoh proved that it is about more than selling boxes,” said Dearstyne. “We were impressed with the service, analysis, and recommendations that helped us navigate the print migration process quickly and cost-effectively.”
The MFPs include DataOverwriteSecurity System (DOSS) to overwrite data temporarily stored on the hard drive, so confidential information is protected even after the job is completed. Scanning has enabled the university to begin transitioning from paper-based processes to a more cost-effective and accurate electronic workflow. For example, records can be scanned and stored in databases instead of being physically stored offsite. Ricoh is also providing extensive onsite training to ensure optimal performance
Incorporating a three-phased approach, the Ricoh team has installed almost 100 MFPs. About half of them offer color output. All of them provide network printing that is faster, more efficient and less expensive. With the previous printers, it cost the university about three cents for every printed page. After the transition to Ricoh MFPs, it costs about 1.2 cents to print. Considering that the university estimates that approximately four million pages will be printed in the next year, cost savings will be significant.
“We were wasting tens of thousands of dollars every year because we stuck with inefficient strategies and equipment long after they should have been discarded,” said Dearstyne. “Ricoh has shown us that a wise print migration investment can pay off now — and in the future.”
Print migration has enabled the university to maximize energy efficiency. The university targeted at least 50 percent duplex printing on the new devices. With 25 new printers in the student computer lab set for duplex printing, the university expects to save about 1.2 million pages of paper this year. Overall, the analysis shows that Ricoh MFPs offer approximately 60 percent savings in energy costs.
Help comes from other sources, too. A centralized fleet is easier to manage. Simple tasks, including toner replacement, can be handled with ease. An email is sent to the administrator when toner levels are low.
The print migration continues today. Ricoh experts are working with the university to transition to Ricoh technology throughout the campus. There are approximately 300 additional devices to install. Training will continue for the foreseeable future. The university even has plans for mobile printing.
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