The Challenge
THI faced a multitude of challenges with their existing print setup before contracting with Function4. An existing national service contract through a greater partnership with St. Luke’s Hospital network was not living up to service expectations, and THI was unable to receive the support they needed in a timely manner, if at all. Because different departments within THI were operating off different grants and donations, they were buying their own hardware and software, which resulted in a massive variation of equipment models and manufacturers across the board, as well as multiple invoices on different schedules.
In addition, the usability of THI’s existing equipment was a struggle for end-users. Scanning was the most highly performed task among employees, and documents were typically being scanned to a small number of recipients. However, to find the intended recipient, users had to hunt and peck through an entire roster of THI employees to find the proper address.
Finally, document waste was high due to an influx of unclaimed print jobs that ended up in the trash.
The Function4 Solution
Function4 implemented solutions in three phases:
- Hardware
- Software
- Managed Print Services (MPS)
During the hardware phase, they performed a company-wide analysis to understand not just what equipment THI was using, but also how end-users used the equipment. Many outdated, obsolete devices were recycled, and the entire hospital was outfitted with Konica Minolta MFDs to streamline usage. The MFDs came pre-loaded with MyPanel software, which allows users to customize the input screen to their desired settings. This allowed for much easier scanning to a small number of recipients. Devices also included PaperCut software, enabling users to print to the cloud server and print wherever was most convenient for them. Since jobs are not printed unless the user withdraws them at the MFD, this resulted in a huge decrease of document waste.
The MPS phase addressed the variance in invoicing and accounting issues throughout THI. By implementing a streamlined approach to hardware, Function4 alleviated the burden on THI’s IT staff to support many different device types and manufacturers, and allowed the accounting department to track print usage by department and correct any invoicing discrepancies.