ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Deploying managed print services (MPS) is a strategic priority for companies looking to uncover new ways to save money, according to a survey undertaken in the U.S. and Europe by research and analysis company Quocirca and co-sponsored by Xerox Corporation .
 
Nearly 70 percent of survey respondents say better management of their print infrastructure is a strategic imperative, with cost savings driving the MPS investment. Even during the economic recession, more than 90 percent say they will continue with plans to deploy MPS to reduce the cost of printing, sharing and updating documents.
 
"The survey findings support the fact that the economic downturn is actually raising the profile for the cost savings potential that comes with MPS," said Stephen Cronin, president, Xerox Global Services. "Now more than ever, companies are calling on Xerox as the MPS market leader to proactively manage print output and spur growth by giving back valuable employee time."
 
Specific survey findings support the cost-savings opportunity provided by MPS:
 
-41 percent of respondents say printing accounts for more than 10 percent of their IT budget; in the financial services sector this number rises to 65 percent.
-Nearly half of U.S. respondents expect to gain savings of more than 30 percent through an MPS contract.
-60 percent of current MPS users are satisfied with the cost savings achieved since implementing MPS, with an additional 25 percent indicating that the cost savings exceeded expectations.
 
"MPS users stand to gain additional cost savings by extending MPS beyond the office print environment to include their in-house print center," said Louella Fernandes, principal analyst, Quocirca. "Seventy-five percent of our respondents manage the print center internally or use a separate print vendor; this means they would still benefit from a comprehensive MPS plan to keep printing cost effective across the entire enterprise, not just in the office."
 
Xerox recently became the first vendor to connect the office environment with the in-house or in plant production print center. Xerox Enterprise Print Services extends the MPS cost-savings opportunity by making print more efficient in the print center and in the home or virtual office.
 
The survey also indicates that companies want MPS to work for the print infrastructure and equipment they have invested in already. Eighty percent of respondents rated the capacity for a partner to manage devices from multiple vendors as either important or very important. Xerox currently monitors approximately 1.5 million devices from multiple vendors worldwide.
 
Xerox was positioned by Gartner, Inc., in the Leaders Quadrant in the "Magic Quadrant for Managed Print Services Worldwide" for 2008 and 2009 and named MPS market leader in Quocirca's 2009 European MPS report.