A university town with a thriving business community, Oxford’s City Council supports its residents, local businesses and visitors with a range of public services. As an essential communication tool for the council’s service delivery, dated technology was stalling basic print jobs and processes. If left unchecked this threatened to impact the turnaround of time-sensitive work. The council was also outsourcing more creative and complex print jobs, an extra financial burden. Sharp’s production print devices have moved professional print in-house, and the rapid Sharp-managed mono machines ensure that the council is operational 24/7.
Reliance on outsourcing
An increasing challenge for the council was the growth in colour volumes. Lidia Pocock, Facilities Manager at Oxford City Council says: “We decided that our customers would be much better served with professional colour documents, so our outsourcing bill was rising!”
The council is also heavily reliant on print for its tax statements and service sheets, but their existing ageing devices were slowing these basic processes. Lidia says: “Not only were our printers old and a bit tired, but we were also managing a lot of devices ourselves, which meant staff were spending more time away from their own duties.”
Reliable devices expertly managed
To meet the council’s colour requirements, Sharp installed an MX-6500 Pro Series production device. The high-performance system outputs vibrant documents of exceptionally high quality. Equipped with an edge-to-edge booklet finisher, it would enable the council’s print room to produce professional collateral, at pace with minimal effort.
To reduce the turnaround time of basic mono print, Sharp also installed an MX-M1204 high-volume mono production printer, and several rapid multifunction devices. Designed for long, intensive print runs, the production device powers through black and white professional collateral at pace and with minimal effort at 120 pages per minute, whilst the multifunction machines would keep on top of ad hoc print runs.
To alleviate the hassle of managing multiple machines, Sharp’s managed print service would proactively maintain the devices to ensure the council was operational 24/7.
Costs reduced and uptime increased
With the installation of the new Sharp MX-6500, Oxford City Council has revamped its print strategy. Lidia says: “Colour documents we’d have previously outsourced are now printed in-house, saving time and money.” Rather than ordering promotional leaflets and posters in bulk, council staff can print on demand, reducing waste and lead times.
Furthermore, the mono devices have streamlined basic print. Lidia says: “Our daily statement run used to take three hours to complete, it’s now ready in an hour, saving ten hours every week, it’s just invaluable.”
Lastly, Sharp’s managed print service ensures council staff can process work at all times. Lidia says: “Sharp maintain the machines so they’re always good to go, our staff now manage their own work loads and not broken printers.” Because the council now enjoys more uptime, the additional time and money can be reinvested into customer service.
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