For most companies, the printing environment is invisible – in the sense that it completely blends in with their everyday work lives. It only becomes visible when it does not perform as hoped, users complain and then it eventually becomes an annoyance and an unwanted distraction. Companies and organizations, both large and small want to spend less and less time managing their print environments and focus on streamlining their critical line of business applications such as ERP and CRM. And for IT professionals, the rapid increase in the technological evolution and complexity of applications and emerging technologies means that it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to stay up-to-date with their IT systems - especially against the background of scarce IT resources, the constant cyber security threat and limited budgets.
In these unprecedented times with the COVID-19 pandemic, freeing up IT resources to allow them to focus on their core responsibilities is more important than ever.
IT professionals no longer want to manage print servers, drivers or queues. To them it is a necessary evil. Our clients now more than ever are asking for cloud-based print architecture.
There are many advantages to transitioning the management of the printing environment to the cloud:
- Improved efficiency
- Reduced capital and operational expenditures
- Optimized, simplified workflow
- Assured compliance with all necessary data and security regulations
With its recently launched Cloud Printing Service, Konica Minolta now offers all this on a global scale. Customers can use printing provided as a service without having to deal with infrastructure and software management. In addition, Konica Minolta will also offer solutions to utilize the new Universal Print from Microsoft, a modern print solution that organizations can use to manage their print infrastructure via the cloud from Microsoft through a subscription-based service. It runs entirely on Microsoft Azure and fully supports Office 365. Konica Minolta is developing firmware upgrades to our latest i-Series of MFPs which will add Universal Print communications protocols embedded inside our bizhub print devices. When deployed with Universal Print–compatible printers, it does not require any on-premises infrastructure, but it can also be deployed with legacy non-compatible printers by using Universal Print connector software from Microsoft.
Konica Minolta provides multifunction printers with hybrid print solutions, unified technology of on-premise and cloud printing to add more value to Universal Print - such as print management, secure printing and print-from-anywhere including home office to make remote work efficiently. These hybrid solutions and services with Universal Print allow for a smooth digital transformation from on-premise to cloud that keeps pace with each customer’s maturity level.
Konica Minolta is excited about the Universal Print technology from Microsoft that enhances our cloud printing services. Visit Konica Minolta online to find information for your specific location.