Case Study: Langara College

• Bring print environment in-line with 2020 Strategic Plan
• Replace obsolete and inefficient printing technology
• Decrease downtime and improve student, staff and faculty printing experience

As part of Langara's 2020 Strategic Plan, Langara College leadership created an ambitious roadmap to improve the experience of their staff, faculty and students.

“Langara's strategic plan has five vision categories, three of which are very important to my areas," explains Mark Adams, Director of Ancillary Services at Langara College. “These include more financial independence, business processes being improved, and highly robust IT systems."

When examining the printing technology on campus, Adams realized that it had become obsolete and no longer met the requirements of a growing and more digitally progressive institution.

“The older technology and the processes that we had in place were not very efficient," says Adams. Specifically, he recognized the need to decrease downtime and improve student accessibility and engagement in order to better align with Langara's strategic goals.

• 40% increase in devices on campus within budget
• Time and effort savings for administrators utilizing reports, monthly billing and insights into departmental printing needs
• IT staff freed from printer management due to Ricoh onsite manager
• More cohesive, user-friendly and efficient print experience for students, staff and faculty

Now, students, staff and faculty at Langara enjoy a more consistent and efficient print experience, while administrators are saving money and time with improved reporting and reduced IT strain.

“If we compare the number of devices and the associated cost, Ricoh has roughly increased our devices on campus by 40 percent over the last vendor and still within the same budget," explains Adams. “That is huge."

The new print management software has saved administrators time and effort preparing reports and examining monthly billing, while also providing fresh insights into each department's specific printing needs.

IT staff has also seen improvements in their day-to-day work experience, as they no longer have to respond to smaller print-related requests. These are now entirely delegated to Ricoh's onsite manager.

“Having a project manager on Ricoh's side and one on our side was huge, and I think it made all the difference," says Adams. He explains that after the entirely new fleet was rolled out within a tight four-month timeframe, “…we heard a lot of comments about how smoothly everything went because of those two roles."

And it's not just the staff that has benefitted from Ricoh's new print environment. Students and faculty can now quickly and efficiently access their print jobs without outdated technology getting in the way.

“We have the same interface for all of the equipment now, so user adaptability and usability is a lot better," says Adams. “Nobody wanted to have a copier impede their tasks, and we have now removed a big block from their workflow."

“Every post-secondary institution is different and has their own idiosyncrasies. My best advice would be to see what Ricoh has to offer, and what other software is out there to put on top of that solution, and how it can help with your own specific needs."

• Campus-wide multifunctional printing fleet from Ricoh
• Powerful and user-friendly fleet management software
• Managed Print Services solution via onsite manager

With an eye toward a total printing fleet upgrade and improved print environment, Langara College leveraged its membership in BCNET, a non-profit shared services provider supporting 25 public post-secondary institutions in BC. They set out to find a vendor with the experience and common values to support their vision. Having discovered the ideal partner in Ricoh, Langara moved forward with a multi-year contract for multifunction printers and fleet management software.

Ricoh immediately began rolling out state-of-the-art multifunction printers across campus. To ensure a seamless new print environment, Ricoh provided Langara with its Managed Print Services solution via an onsite manager to handle all print services functions.

“We went with a Ricoh onsite manager to help with the first level triage of the equipment, which freed up our IT department to focus on other important elements of serving the Langara community," says Adams.

In addition, Ricoh deployed print management software to provide Langara with detailed insights into their print environment, including robust reporting capabilities and billing functions.

“The entire implementation of our solution here was extremely smooth, especially considering the tight timelines that we were under," says Adams.