Oxford Products rides up front
with Annodata’s bespoke print solution
About Oxford Products
Oxford Products is a remarkable British success story! For over four decades the company has waved the flag for British ingenuity and innovation and is proud to have distribution partners in all corners of the globe. It is the UK’s largest distributor of motorcycle clothing, helmets, accessories and parts, as well as being a global cycle parts and accessory brand. With a turnover of approximately £40 million and around 200 employees, the company has a strategic focus to make life on two wheels, better.
The Challenge
Oxford Products depends heavily on its printers to process invoices and shipping forms, print product development documentation, and to keep the business running smoothly. However, faced with a print fleet that was reaching end-of-life, the print faults and reliability issues regularly disrupted the
working day and impacted the efficiency of its operations.
At the same time, Oxford Products was increasingly aware of the amount of money spent on print and the number of pages printed each day and was keen to both cut its expenditure and carbon footprint. However, with no print management software and no monitoring or reporting functionality, the IT department couldn’t get a clear picture on what was being printed or implement any rules to proactively encourage more sustainable and
safer print practices.
Chris Hughes, IT Manager at Oxford Products, explained: “We required a reliable managed print solution that would give us control and visibility over our printing activity. We were keen to drive down our printing costs, so we
needed a solution that enabled us to analyse our current printing activity, and a billing process that made clear what we were paying for. In addition, we needed devices that we were confident would function reliably and print management software that would eliminate the risk of staff printing sensitive information and leaving that lying on a printer.”
We look forward to progressing these conversations and working with Annodata in a strategic partnership to establish the further benefits its services can bring to our business
Chris Hughes, IT Manager
“
The solution
After a thorough audit of its print requirements, 17 existing devices were removed and a mix of 11 Kyocera multifunction printers (MFPs) were installed, to help Oxford Products regain control of its print activity. The Kyocera devices recently won a reliability award from Keypoint Intelligence-Buyers Lab (BLI) and offer unrivalled levels of reliability, performance, and quality. Annodata also installed PaperCut print management software on all devices.
PaperCut gives organisations total control of their devices, enabling Oxford Products to implement restrictions on staff printing activity. For example, printing can now be automatically defaulted to black and white, and staff have to enter their unique login details into the device before the document is printed, significantly reducing the level of waste.
To provide Oxford Products with greater insight into its printing activity, Annodata implemented its market-leading three-tier billing system. Jobs that only have a small amount of colour are billed at a lower rate than full colour prints, so Oxford Products only pays for what it uses. The billing process also clearly outlines how much Oxford Products is paying in total for its printing, then breaks down the cost by device and category, such as colour and black and white.
The result
With the deployment of PaperCut and a billing process that offers much greater clarity, the solution from Annodata has delivered a reduction of
45% in annual printing costs, cutting the company’s carbon footprint and reducing the number of pages printed by 15%. Chris Hughes, IT Manager at Oxford Products, explained: “We have seen a ream of benefits since the implementation of the Annodata managed print solution. Where we once had a wide array of old, unreliable machines, we now have a consolidated set of Kyocera’s advanced MFPs that we know we can rely on. We also know that, thanks to the level of service Annodata provides, any issues with the devices or software will be rapidly resolved. With Annodata’s help, we now have much greater visibility on how much we’re spending on printing and can start to make
cost reductions, making us a leaner, more efficient organisation.
“The work that Annodata has done with us, from preparation and audit,
through to the implementation and after-sales service, has been very
impressive and we are now looking to broaden the scope of our work
with Annodata. We are in early discussions with Annodata regarding the
provision of other services, as we look to transform the way we manage information and communicate as a business.”
Key points
- The solution delivered a 45% reduction in printing costs and a 15% reduction in pages printed for Oxford Products.
- Annodata’s managed print solution gives Oxford Products much greater control over its print estate.
- An advanced three-tier billing process simplifies and brings new visibility to Oxford Products’ print spend.
