As the name suggests, your office multifunction printer (MFP) has a variety of different functions, some more obvious than others. Beyond acting as the centralized hub where all printing, copying, faxing, and scanning takes place, today’s multifunction printers have additional features to further workplace efficiency and productivity. Here are the top five overlooked MFP features companies need to be aware of to streamline their print environment and ensure they get the most out of their MFP investment.
1. Proactive Service Notifications
Configuring proactive service notifications can be one of the easiest ways to quickly boost efficiency and reduce maintenance costs. Robust multifunction printers have the capability to send service alerts to notify internal IT departments or a managed print service provider when a particular MFP feature or part is malfunctioning, preventing catastrophic equipment failure and costly downtime.
Keeping technicians informed through proactive service notifications encourages corrective intervention that prevents issues from escalating. Organizations should turn on service notifications to monitor:
- Software updates
- Low toner levels
- Fusers
- Developers
- Drum units
2. Password Protection
Advanced multifunction printers include sophisticated security features to ensure uncompromising security protection for network data. However, most organizations don’t realize these advanced security features need to be proactively enabled in order to maximize their capabilities. When organizations overlook MFP security features, they widen their vulnerability to data leakages if the printer is eventually sold or recycled.
Instead of relying on default settings, organizations need to enable password protection features such as changing the default MFP password and applying user access restrictions. Enabling user access restrictions with passwords provides IT administrators a tool to track MFP usage from internal and external team members, limiting exposure to data breaches and preventing unauthorized access. This feature takes the guesswork out of data protection and gives organizations the confidence to operate in an increasingly hostile digital environment.
3. Customizable Intuitive User Interface
The right MFP should not only have an intuitive user interface, it should be customizable and tailored to integrate seamlessly with business-critical workflows to maximize productivity. A customizable MFP user interface allows businesses to remove unnecessary modules, highlight important features and reduce the number of button clicks to perform common functions. Organizations that tailor their user interface to their business streamline workflows resulting in faster and more productive printing, scanning, and copying.
The right MFP user interface is designed to enable easy access to all basic settings and touch navigation for a smooth and pleasant user experience. To do that, it should have the following features:
- User-friendly touch screen design that suits people of all abilities
- Wide range of customization abilities to suit specific business’s needs and preferences
- Connectivity to popular cloud applications such as OneDrive, Dropbox, and Google Drive
4. Cost-Effective Automatic Duplexing
Automatic duplexing is a feature designed to automatically enable printing on both sides of the paper when appropriate, providing a convenient way for businesses to quickly reduce waste and paper costs. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), automatic duplexing enables organizations to reduce paper costs by a staggering 30-50%.
Not only can automatic duplexing save money on paper, the overlooked feature can drastically reduce energy consumption. MFPs with automatic duplexing only need to send a print job once to print a double-sided page, greatly cutting down on energy consumption compared to traditional one-sided printing. The automatic duplexing feature knocks out two birds with one stone by helping organizations reduce their paper cost and carbon footprint dramatically.
To prevent overlooking this useful feature, make sure to change all multifunction printer settings from default to duplex printing.
5. Secure Pull Printing
A comprehensive multifunction printer will come with additional security features such as pull printing to mitigate the risk of sensitive data falling into the hands of unauthorized users. When enabled, the secure pull printing feature holds an employee’s print job on a server until that same employee manually releases it at the physical printing device. The print job is only released when the employee enters a password or pin. This extra layer of document security provides employees with full document control from start to finish, ensuring the document ends up in the right hands.
Organizations that enable pull printing should also provide their employees the necessary MFP employee training needed to ensure efficient use.
Get the Most Out of Your Multifunction Printer Investment
The right multifunction printer for your business has many advanced features to leverage to boost productivity and bolster cybersecurity protection. Organizations that take the time to understand the full functionality of their MFP can further streamline workflows and ensure they get the most out of their investment.
If your organization is ready to build an optimized and secure print environment, partner with a trusted multifunction printer specialist to implement a top-of-the-line MFP model that best fits your business’s printing needs.
