Risk and return, cash flow, productivity and operating efficiencies – these are all big considerations when small businesses are making a capital investment in new office machines.
Ensuring that the equipment is appropriate for the required function is all –important and there are many other practical considerations. Fancy software or the latest multifunction copier may be very appealing – but are they right for your needs?. For a small business, a mistake can be very costly as margins are generally under pressure and resources are limited. And that’s all very well to say – but when management resources are often stretched to the limit, there isn’t always the luxury of time to do all the necessary research and groundwork.
So when it comes to purchasing a new copier, fax machine, printer, scanner etc – these few hints may help. Whilst every business has its own specific needs, taking the time to go through a structured, well-prepared process for capital investment is an investment in the well-being of any small or medium-sized enterprise.
· 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.
· Are you intending to produce your own high quality, full colour marketing collateral documents, sales presentations, etc?
· Are you looking to save costs by doing more printing in-house?
· Do you need the new machine to multitask? Some machines are said to be ‘multifunctional’ but they are actually only able to one task at a time, they can’t do several jobs concurrently.
· What are your networking requirements and do you require the device to operate wirelessly?
· Functionality is vital. Is it user-friendly, is much training required and how many people will need to be familiar with its operation?
· Copy volume is an important consideration – think how much time is wasted by frustrated employees standing around a copier.
· Maintenance and servicing requirements.
· Does your small business need a document management solution? Software is available that enables files and data to be electronically organised and stored, which can be a very useful asset to a small business.
· Printer and photocopier peripherals, eg ink cartridges.
Small businesses are usually pressed for space which brings into question some other aspects of office equipment namely noise levels (need minimal disturbance to people working close by), size, aesthetics (does it fit in with the office interior decorating etc). A leading Perth photocopiers supplier, Adscopiers, say that Samsung recently announced the evolution of the smallest and quietest multifunction laser printer in the world, with market research showing that the Samsung CLP-300 colour laser printer series was the best-seller in Australia in 2007.
The advance of technology has meant there is very little price difference between a stand-alone copier and a multifunction office device. When it comes to small businesses and office equipment, the right choice can be a key success factor in growing the business.