CIOs told to wise up to printing... of all things

Printers and photocopiers may be among the most taken for granted pieces of kit in the office but CIOs are being told not to leave the responsibility for running them with the office manager.

With such machines becoming increasingly integrated with corporate networks, they are posing a security risk if mismanaged and also account for serious sums of money. IT chiefs are being told not to assume the task of running them is beneath them.

Industry giant Ricoh invites companies to visit its Technoportal in New City to see its array of products and services in action and told silicon.com that only around 40 per cent of visitors bring staff from the IT side of the business.

This figure is rising however as the kit becomes more sophisticated and more attuned to the enterprise's business and technological needs.

According to Gartner, printing costs account for between one and three per cent of a company's total annual revenue.

Chas Moloney, marketing director at Ricoh, said: "I can't think of a CIO who, if you told them they're spending three per cent of their company's turnover on print, wouldn't be interested."

And yet Moloney said many businesses are losing money to ineffective print strategies and escalating running costs. They are also opening themselves up to serious security issues if they fail to address their printing and copying needs with the same level of care and planning given to other IT projects, according to Andrew Young, the manager of the Ricoh Technoportal.

Stronger authentication and comprehensive audit trails of all documents processed are two factors which have come along in the printing industry in recent years, and the role they play in compliance means it is a technological issue which CIOs must wise up to, said Young.

Young said: "Within the average company few know exactly what they have in place. Even fewer monitor what is being printed off, copied or faxed and fewer still know who's using what."

According to another player in the printing space, CIOs tired long ago of having to give time or consideration to printing and, as such, many now favour managed print services as opposed to the hassle and unquantifiable costs of running the operation themselves.

Josh Claman, UK MD of Dell, said: "Managed print services are a result of CIOs and CFOs saying 'for Christ's sake just show me what I'm paying'."

He added: "We don't see a major benefit to the customer but at least they know what they're paying."

Ricoh is bringing its Technoportal model to the UK with a site opening later this year in Coventry.