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IBM and Ricoh Unveil Printer Management Tool
Published: March 2, 2010
by Alex Woodie
IBM and Ricoh last week unveiled a new software product that allows companies to monitor and manage multi-function printers (MFPs) from a central location. Reducing waste and limiting carbon footprints are goals of the new software, which will also be used for managed remote printing services.
The new offering, which was not given a formal name, is based on Tivoli software from IBM, and will be pre-loaded onto MFPs and production printers from Ricoh and, presumably, from InfoPrint Solutions Company, the joint IBM-Ricoh operation based at IBM's former printing headquarters in Boulder, Colorado.
Last week's announcement, which was made at the Pulse industry conference in Las Vegas, was all about cost savings. The new Tivoli software can restrict the printing capabilities available to end users, and track the energy usage and carbon footprints of individual users, as well as at device and departmental levels.
IBM and Ricoh quoted a Gartner study that found companies can reduce their printing-related costs by 10 to 30 percent by monitoring and managing their printers more pro-actively.
The new software is part of IBM and Ricoh efforts to bring a new level of "smart" to offices, says Bruce Anderson, general manager of IBM Electronics Industry. "As CIOs work to drive down costs, printers and other office devices offer an attractive target for improvement," he states in a press release.
It is unclear how much the new Tivoli software will cost. Additional product information was not available as this newsletter reached its deadline.
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