When it comes to capital expenditure on office equipment, small businesses can’t afford to make the wrong decisions.
Ensuring that the equipment is appropriate for the required function is all –important and there are many other practical considerations. It’s all very well buying expensive software or a multifunction printer/photocopier only to find that they’re not compatible with your needs. Small businesses can ill-afford to make expensive mistakes and now more than ever, smaller entities have to make very carefully considered investment decisions. Easy to say, not so easy to do with management resources at full stretch – and not enough time or manpower to always do the requisite research.
So if you’re in the market for a new printer, photocopier, scanner, fax machine or all-in-one machine, the following suggestions may help. Each business will have different needs, but a structured approach will save time and money in the long-term.
· Establish your current and future requirements . Does your photocopier have to be full colour or will black and white be sufficient? Some other issues to think about are copier speed, scan resolution, printing on both sides of the page, collating and paper handling etc.
· Do you need full colour capabilities for producing quality marketing materials, business presentation documents etc?
· Are you hoping to reduce the amount of printing outsourcing ?
· Do you need the new machine to multitask? Many multifunctional machines can do several different jobs, and it may be worth considering whether you need a truly multifunctional machine (one that is able to do several jobs concurrently) or whether a regular device would be sufficient.
· Do you want the device to operate wirelessly and what are your networking requirements?
· The device has to be functional and easy to use. Is the machine user-friendly, how many people will have access to it and will they need training?
· Copy volume is an important consideration – think how much time is wasted by frustrated employees standing around a copier.
· Maintenance requirements.
· Do you have a need for document management software?? There is software available that enables electronic organisation of files and data and this can be a vital asset to a small business, but always check the compatibility of the software and the device.
· Printer and photocopier peripherals, eg ink cartridges.
Small businesses often operate in confined spaces, so issues around the size of the device, noise levels etc are important considerations when buying new photocopiers, printers etc. The world’s smallest and quietest multifunction laser printer is manufactured by Samsung, with market research indicating that the Samsung CLP-300 series was the best selling colour laser printer in Australia, say Perth copier and document management solutions supplier, Adscopiers.
Technological advances have meant that there can be very little difference in cost between a stand-alone photocopier and a multifunction machine. For a small business, making the right choice of office equipment first time could be the difference between staying small or making it big.