Brotherly love
Printing the future
Brother printer boss, Graham Walshe is a passionate believer in the future power of the printed page, despite the advances in digital technology.
Walshe, who is the executive chairman of Brother International in New Zealand, presided over the launch of a range of laser printers and multi-function machines in May, as the company continued to reposition itself to lure more business customers.
He said the notion that a paperless world was just around the corner was wrong.
‘‘Globally we are going more forcefully into the market. The market has changed so dramatically for us.
‘‘The trend towards centralisation of machines in the office environment has changed, as getting to the device was not taken into consideration. The cost of pages was cheaper, but there was another cost. Now the focus is on how to reduce costs and boost productivity.’’
Walshe said 70 per cent of documents printed out were three pages or less, with higher volume printing jobs making up the other 30 per cent.
But surely businesses are not bothering to print out huge documents these days? Not true, says Walshe
‘‘Government departments are still big users of printed materials, producing documents and reports with many pages.’’
According to figures published by industry firm IDC, the value of print hardware in New Zealand in the last 12 months was $312m, with the value of print consumables, such as ink cartridges and laser toners reaching $250m.
Brother’s new mono lasers have been developed to fit offices of all shapes and sizes and to fit a broad range of industries including healthcare, public sectors, hospitality and retail.
Walshe said they had faster printer speeds, a lower ownership cost, more flexible paper handling, advanced scanning and access to cloud services to allow businesses to store files.
Walshe added that managed print services would be important to Brother’s success in the business sphere.
‘‘The printer is just the start. Business customers are looking for a package of services including servicing, and a helpdesk for technical problems. Built into every one of our printers is a diagnostic tool which allows technicians to understand problems, ’’ he said.
Brother International’s chief operating officer, Matthew Stroud added that the company’s focus was on that idea of total service.
‘‘Our aim is to create bespoke solutions, no matter what the business size, as well as being an on-going, responsive partner.’’
Recycling issues are never far away from debate over printers and their waste product, but it’s a topic that Walshe believes is better tackled with education and selfregulation rather than legislation.
‘‘We educate our own staff to be environmentally aware. Technology can help reduce paper wastage - printing both sides for example can have a massive effect of useage.’’
Walshe said the market would move towards image management and printing and storage, and therefore the machine would evolve and grow with the customer.
‘Content sharing and collaboration is a key demand for businesses,’’ said Walshe. ‘‘In the US, 90 per cent of customers want both printing and storage.’’