The average employee in North America generates about two pounds of paper a day and nearly 3.7 million tons of copy paper are used annually in the continent according to some studies.
Clearly, predictions of the emergence of the paperless workplace have not come true as some analysts estimate that 95 per cent of business information is still stored on paper.
Printing machine maker Xerox Corp. believes organization can make a big dent in their printing expenses and improve document security as well with the use of better document management tools. The company recently rolled out a print management suite and analytics service designed to track printing stats and “uncover printing behaviours” in the workplace to enable firms to get a firmer grip on their printing expenses.
“As an enterprise’s knowledge capital grows – in both paper and electronic form – the challenge of unlocking it increases exponentially, “ said Mike Feldman, president of large enterprise operations at Xerox. “Without proper management it becomes lost since it lives in so many places and formats.”
He said the company has a three-stage approach to better document management: assess and optimize; secure and integrate; and automate and simplify.
Xerox’s new offerings include:
- Xerox Secure Print Management Suite: software that uses the Nuance Equitrac print management solution that integrates print security, control and reporting capabilities. The suite enables businesses to authenticate users, offer secure document release, track print jobs, automate print rules, accounting and chargeback tasks. The suite works with Xerox and non-Xerox devices
- Xerox Document Analytics Services: this service explains to users the how, where and why documents are used in their organization. Information and insights are gathered from data from devices and print jobs, audits of filed and unfiled paper and client interview to arrive at “printing behaviours” in the workplace. Insights can be used to help in deciding which information can best be digitized
- Xerox Workflow Assessment Services: Xerox works with clients to come up with more efficient work processes and document and device usage to cut cost and improve customer service.
Xerox is also offering a free software upgrade on the Xerox WorkCentre 3325 multi-function printer that will provide greater integration with the Xerox managed print services.