Pharmacies pose a unique challenge for printing documents. There is rarely enough space for a larger photocopier, and limited counter space is dedicated service customers prescriptions. This means that printers nearly always need to be installed under a bench, with a top or front output tray.

It's also common to have numerous devices around the store, for example 1 at reception in front, 2-3 under benches towards the back of the store where customer prescriptions are being serviced, and 1-2 devices at the back of the store for miscellaneous printing or customer orders.

Pharmacies usually purchase these printers as they need them. As one machine breaks, they purchase a replacement. This often leads to an assortment of printer brands and models, which take various toners/inks.

Managing this quickly becomes costly & time consuming, as we found when we did a print health check on a Cherrybrook pharmacy.

Pain Points

Limited Space
Printing devices were required at different stations around the store where counter space was either limited or already in use.

Consumable cost
Assorted machines were purchased mainly from the major office supply chain stores and the printers used toners with small yields, which cost much more per page than higher yield cartridges and require more frequent replacement.

Consumable management
The pharmacy was managing the supply of toners themselves & held spares for all the different printer models to avoid the risk of running out. If a machine broke down and a different replacement was bought, the toners then became unusable.

No maintenance agreement
The printers were not intended for high volumes, resulting in frequent breakdowns, and needing to be replaced within 12-months.

Review and Analysis

Our account manager offered a free print health check, which is a simple process:

The account manager visited the store and printed from each machine a status report showing the number of pages printed since purchase.
The account manager returned one month later to extract the status reports again, to calculate the print volume of each device over a month.
The client gave the account manager invoices for the inks and toners they purchase for those machines.
The account manager then used the cost of these consumables, their manufacturer yields and the monthly volumes to calculate a monthly cost for each device and found the below.

He then submitted a summary of his finding:

Monthly usage

Monthly cost of toner

1 x Kyocera B&W multifunction printer – prescription area (needed for faxing)

Monthly usage - 1,271 b&w pages

Monthly cost of toner - $107.00

3 x Brother B&W printer – under counter at prescription desk. One for each customer service station

Monthly usage - 12,985 b&w pages

Monthly cost of toner - $467.80

HP Colour multifunction printer – Back office

Monthly usage - 856 b&w pages

Monthly cost of toner - $173.25

Total volumes & cost per month: B&W: 15,439 | Colour: 1,579 | Total cost = $834.45

THE AXIA OFFICE SOLUTION

The account manager created a Managed Print Services replacing all 6 devices with current model Canon devices.

The results: 28% less than current spend

Keep in mind that also included equipment and service, whereas the above costs are just for inks and toners!

This plan gave the customer:

Transparent costs
One monthly invoice was supplied to the accounts team with breakdowns of equipment under locations. A mono and colour cost per page which included the rental of the equipment gave a true print cost that was easy to track.

Preventative maintenance
to ensure high print quality throughout the life of the equipment; backed up by a guaranteed 4-hour COMPLETION time to fix breakdowns.

Consumable management
Axia now remotely track the usage of all 6 machines and send the customer toners before they are required.

Flexibility
Throughout the agreement new machines can be added or upgraded if needed

Access to higher end machines that reduced the time staff would need to wait for prints.

Conclusion

Are you ready to say goodbye to printing headaches? Axia Office offers affordable managed print solutions to businesses in the Sydney metropolitan area, providing high-quality printers from the top names in the industry, and quick, reliable service when you need it.