The importance of green print functionality

Improve the eco-friendliness of your print functionality and see reputational benefitsPrinters and related devices use a huge amount of electricity. In fact, recent estimates suggest that for the majority of companies print functionality accounts for a third of the electricity the company uses.

This not only reduces the profit-making capacity of the business but paints a very negative environmental profile that can damage reputation and prevent new client uptake. As the government puts increasing pressure on businesses to cut carbon emissions in order to meet aggressive carbon reduction targets, companies must look to maximise the overall efficiency of their green investments to ensure they don't impact too heavily on profitability.

Print functionality is one of the best areas to improve the company's environmental profile without sacrificing revenue. There are a number of ways in which green printing can be implemented and encouraged:

• Turn devices off at night: Leaving printers idling can waste a huge amount of energy. Today's modern devices have very low warm-up times so you won't lose efficiency by turning your computers off. Encourage staff to always turn devices off at the end of the day, or organise a rota to ensure it happens
• Use managed print services: Having full control over your fleet allows the business to more effectively manage consumables, device-to-employee ratios and printer maintenance. Managed print services are one of the most effective methods of improving print functionality at the same time as reducing carbon-intensity
• Recycle paper efficiently: Cheap and very effective, recycling used paper can improve your company's reputation enormously. Encourage best practice amongst staff and distribute leaflets accordingly
• Only print when you need to: Staff should be told to only print emails when absolutely necessary. A lot of printing is undertaken when it's not really necessary - effective use of newer communication methods such as instant messaging can help cut down on unecessary usage.

For more information how your business can efficiently cut the environmental impact of its print functionality, please call First Choice Business Systems on 0800 072 3747. They offer free consultation and can advise you how Xerox printers can help proactively manage your print spend and environmental profile.