If you stop and think for a second, there are several industries that are still heavily reliant on paper – and we’re not only talking about small companies that can’t afford to go digital or ones that are too stuck in their ways to do so. Even companies that are fully immersed in digital transformation still find uses for paper. As a medium for communication, it continues to enjoy a certain degree of authority.
Digital printers enable users to combine the authority of paper with the ability to produce jobs of varying lengths with a high degree of customisation, whereas analogue devices are designed to print millions of identical copies. Within the digital environment, inkjet is gaining the upper hand because it can produce high volumes more affordably than most toner devices. The TASKalfa Pro 15000c therefore offers a way to scale up your printing capabilities, so that you can produce customised content in large quantities on site. Rather than outsourcing to a potentially expensive and unreliable print service provider, there is now another, more attractive option.
Is it time for you to invest in inkjet? If you work in any of the following industries, the answer is probably yes:
Medical centres regularly churn out vast quantities of paper. On top of this, there are certain periods of the year when medical centres experience spikes in letter sending, such as during flu season. Just think about all the post that gets sent out to each patient to remind them of when their next appointment is. Medical bills also need to be printed for each individual. Here the difficulty lies in protecting personal data from unauthorised access, which may make using an external provider impossible.
If health centres could print their own bills and letters, no patient information would ever need to leave the premises, and they could save a serious amount of money. Research by Transcend360 found that a medium size NHS Trust spends around €990K each year on printing. That is a cost that can certainly be streamlined.
Paper is still popular in the financial sector, too. Many banks now offer the option to receive statements by email, but some also send out paper copies if requested. This is to provide customers with a hard copy that they can store away for safekeeping. Although all bank statements follow the same basic template, they’re personalised to include specific data according to how much money is in an account. Given the need to ensure privacy and limit the risk of identity theft or fraud, printing on site is pretty much a necessity for financial firms.
Similarly, insurance companies provide paper copies of contracts and policies to put customers’ minds at ease. Having a hard copy for safekeeping is reassuring for people, because a sheet of paper that you can touch gives the impression of authority.
Utility companies are also long-term fans of paper. A survey by Consumer Action revealed that 63% of people prefer to receive utility bills on paper because you don’t have to scroll and can keep them for future reference. Digital printers make it possible to produce jobs where every sheet is unique, so that each bill reflects a specific customer’s usage. Companies can also customise them to speak to customers on first-name terms, and variable data printing gives the ability to offer special discounts based on consumption.
In addition to this, digital printing allows billing data to be displayed in a more user-friendly manner, using charts and graphs for a detailed overview. The use of colour and images makes data more accessible and improves the customer experience.
Schools and universities are constantly producing printouts and photocopies for students and parents. Despite advances in digitalisation and the prevalence of computers, learning institutions still depend heavily on paper. Timetables, course notes, and reading materials all need to be printed out over the course of the academic year. The finishing options offered by production printers are especially useful in education, making it possible to print booklets or staple jobs together so that students don’t lose individual sheets.
Exams pose a further challenge for the education sector. Since you need to print high volumes while ensuring the contents are kept secret, outsourcing to a third party isn’t always an option. With inkjet technology on premises, you stand a better chance of controlling who can see the exam papers while they’re being printed. Plus, you can make each exam unique, scrambling questions in order to prevent students copying each other’s answers.
Paper-reliant businesses stand to benefit from acquiring an inkjet production print device. Most toner printers are designed for convenience rather than productivity, so once the output exceeds 1000 prints per job, printing can become incredibly expensive and inefficient. However, unless you’re producing millions of impressions a month, it’s not worth a substantial investment for an offset press either. The solution is inkjet.
Inkjet devices like the TASKalfa Pro 15000c are specifically designed to handle higher volumes while retaining the advantages of digital printing, such as faster turnaround speeds and personalisation using variable data. Although the initial cost of investment might seem high compared to outsourcing, you need to consider the return on investment and long-term benefits. You would instantly be able to cover your own printing needs and take complete control over costs. Plus, inkjet provides the flexibility to produce different volumes efficiently and costeffectively with just one device.
Looking beyond the cost benefits, you would also gain the independence by insourcing your highvolume printing. In industries where punctuality is important, such as healthcare and education, this is a clear advantage. With a reliable device such as the TASKalfa Pro 15000c, you know that you’ll meet deadlines with minimal downtime. In terms of security, bringing your print operations on site will prevent unauthorised access. No private or sensitive information will ever need to leave the premises, guaranteeing that patient details and exams are protected from prying eyes.
The TASKalfa Pro 15000c brings together more than 60 years of digital know-how and experience to meet your high-volume printing needs. Our debut production print device features unique print head and ink technologies developed by Kyocera to provide reliable image quality.
Reliability, efficiency and performance are the defining characteristics of our first production print device.