If you are in the market for a Document Infrastructure solution, or even if you just started learning about managed services and how it impacts your business, you probably know that many of the large office equipment manufacturers and resellers offer variations on a managed print services model that primarily address the Assets dimension of your Document Infrastructure.  Hardware-centric providers are primarily motivated to develop solutions around their own, or chosen brands and technologies.  However, hardware assets and related components are only one dimension of Document Infrastructure.  Hardware-centric providers are focused primarily on an agenda of placing new assets and are likely discounting, or even disregarding the other important dimensions of Document Infrastructure – the overall environment, workflows and costs.

You may also be working with, or have considered working with a company that provides service and supplies for your document output fleet on a contracted basis.  They typically have access to more than one equipment manufacturer, so they are generally may be more objective than an office equipment company.  They adequately service and repair equipment, and provide supplies.

What they generally lack is the skill and experience to look deeply into your business and processes, examine and evaluate all aspects of how Document Infrastructure impacts your business, propose and implement holistic solutions, and then manage and continuously improve them over time.

Finally, there are also consulting companies in the market that offer comprehensive Document Infrastructure assessment services and solutions architecture.  One advantage of this type of provider is that they are generally more objective in component recommendations than a hardware manufacturer, and will recommend the best combination of products and technologies for an individual customer’s environment.  The disadvantage with consultants is they typically only provide a paper roadmap.  They may recommend or offer to work with implementation partners, but at the end of the day they are not accountable for implementing solutions, managing them on an ongoing basis, or continuously improving them to align with constantly changing business needs.

What sets Laser Technologies apart from competitors is our business model, and the fundamental core competencies that allow us to effectively address all dimensions of a customer’s unique DM – Environment, Assets and Costs.
Laser Technologies Document Infrastructure managed service customer-centric model is based on established best practices, and remains unequaled in the quality, scope and value it delivers to our customers.  We are the only organization in the market focused exclusively on delivering customer-centric, optimized DM solutions as a discipline.  It’s our core competency, and it’s all we do.

Laser Technologies uses a set of scalable tools and methodologies to analyze Document Infrastructure costs. We define your current environment and partner with you to improve your bottom line. 

We do this in the following three step method:
1. Understanding the requirements of your company requirements and those of your users to maximize productivity.
2. To ensure maximum productivity and efficiency by fully comprehending your document infrastructure process and the way people work.
3. Accurately measure and analyze data from your Document Infrastructure to establish a true cost of ownership.

Laser Technologies is vendor neutral in its approach. 
We simply do not count machines and apply some industry average. We take a holistic approach to understanding your Document Infrastructure cost. We provide accurate data about your business processes and the cost of doing business.

Define Your Needs – 
We hold work shops within your organization to exchange information ideas and gather information. From these meetings we are able to develop goals, objectives and a list of requirements.

Measure –
Laser Technologies has innovative technology and methodologies to collect data on document costs, volumes, device utilization and business processes. Workflow Document Infrastructure costs diagrams and device mapping are developed. When completed your company will have a base line for improvement and a set of processes capabilities defined.

Analyze – 
Cost modeling tools are developed to drive cost reduction, dissemination of knowledge and a transition plan for satisfaction and performance improvement.

Control –
Implementing a set of tools provided by Laser Technologies ensures ongoing monitoring of measurable and management practices providing continuous improvement and control.

On Going Management –
Our assessment provides a detailed report provides a recommendation for change.  This report is a road map designed to yield achievable and measurable results over time.  Reports and presentations compare benefits to costs over a specified time.  Your company will gain control of your Document Infrastructure costs and the ability to sustain long term improvement and cost reduction.  Regular account reviews with your consultant will work with you to implement control and a reporting mechanism that will include printing tracking, management software to ensure that improvement plans established are followed.  Our print Document Infrastructure program will define pools for device types, locations or department. Budgets are allocated to actual consumption on a cost per page.  By establishing pools and their associated budgets, research has shown that employees and their management develop a greater awareness and discipline of their printing habits.  Studies conducted indicated implementing a Document Infrastructure control mechanism alone can reduce printing cost by as much 20%.

 
A small number of organizations recognize the advantages of actively managing printing resources or building an infrastructure to optimize document workflows.  Many realize there are challenges but don't know how to overcome them. Some know that change is in order, but don't know where to turn.  Worse still, many simply assume that their existing systems provide adequate efficiencies.

According to the research firm IDC, the global document management market generated nearly $3 billion in revenue in 2003 and is expected to grow to more than $4.5 billion by 2008.  This growth is credited to numerous factors.

First, while it’s true that new technologies have transformed how we obtain, share and store information, the proliferation of e-mail communication and almost universal access to the Internet have only resulted in more document production, not less. 

Second, there is growing awareness of the serious financial and productivity consequences of an unmanaged DMI.  While many organizations commit vast resources to proactively optimize and manage computing-related elements of their information infrastructure, they often allow document imaging, production, sharing and storage processes and assets to operate virtually unmanaged, adversely impacting priorities such as revenue generation, costs, and productivity. 

In fact, most organizations don’t have accurate data on the most obvious component of their DMI – their output assets, much less the magnitude of spending for hardware, software, service and supplies. Left unmanaged, those costs can total 5% or more of annual revenue in a typical organization, according to analysts.  On top of that are the soft costs associated with inefficient workflows and lost productivity that are inherent in an unmanaged environment.