Firms were first dealers to join MPSA, now renewing under Ricoh ChaMPS program

Columbus, OH – MT Business Technologies and RJ Young, the first dealers to join the Managed Print Services Association (MPSA), have renewed their commitment to the group as corporate standard members. In addition, they took advantage of the membership discount available through the Ricoh ChaMPS program. This lets Ricoh Family Group (RFG) dealers join the MPSA for a significant reduction of 50 percent off the regular corporate membership fee.

"MTBT and RJ Young were the first two MPS providers to join the MPSA as corporate standard members in July 2010. It's gratifying to see them both renew their commitment to the emerging managed print services industry and the association. We're happy to see them take advantage of the Ricoh ChaMPS program as well," said MPSA President, Joe Barganier. "Both organizations have a tradition of leadership in the traditional copier industry, serving on numerous industry boards, panels and advisory groups. They were also inaugural members of the PrintFleet User Group in 2008, prior to the formation of the MPSA."

MTBT: Learning and Sharing Best Practices

MT Business Technologies specializes in helping businesses optimize office productivity and efficiency through improved document workflow and office document technology. Solutions include managed print services; office equipment for printing and copying; and document storage and retrieval systems. MT's sister company, Meridian Technology Group, offers a full suite of IT solutions including remote network monitoring, disaster recovery, data back up and security solutions. Founded in 1918, the privately held, third generation Ohio-based company has offices in Mansfield, Avon Lake, Akron/Canton, Cleveland, Columbus, Defiance, Newark, and Toledo.  (For more information visit www.mtbt.com.)

"We decided early on to support the MPSA, because we saw this was the future of our industry, and it would require a pooling of resources for the industry to grow effectively. We joined to learn best practices for our MPS program and to network with fellow MPS professionals, programs and publications. Today MPSA provides a community for sharing and growing. It keeps us in touch with trends in the industry, and with resources and education for our sales team and company management," said Carl Fernyak, CEO of MT Business Technologies.

MT Business Technologies began offering managed print services in 2007, with the launch of the Total Output Management Program. "We recognized right away that this required new systems within our organization to promote and support the program. Our internal staff has spent a lot of time and effort on developing the infrastructure to support the Total Output Management Program. We are now helping other dealers understand these trends, which is very rewarding."

"I'm proud to say that MTBT has provided additional assistance to the MPSA through its ongoing support of me, as I served on the Board of Directors–Dealers 2009, and since November 2010, when I was asked to serve as president of the MPSA," noted Barganier, who is also an MPS Consultant with MTBT.

RJ Young: Source for Objective Information and New Ideas

RJ Young is the largest independent digital office equipment provider in the Southeast, with solutions to manage clients' copiers, printers and documents. Headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, RJ Young has been in business for over 56 years and has 350 employees throughout five states and 16 locations. (For RJ Young's complete range of products and services, visit http://www.rjyoung.com.)

"We continue to support MPSA because it is a large group of people with a common interest. It's a repository of everything that's happening in the industry, and we can find information on what other people are doing. I can pick and choose what interests me, and the information is very forward thinking. That helps us visualize where want to go with MPS," said Lee Rummage, Director of Image Works for RJ Young.

Brantley Pearce, MPS Program Manager, noted that RJ Young can also contribute to the organization as a member. "I think there are ways for us to participate in ways that benefit our fellow members and the industry. RJ Young is a fairly significant copier dealer and reseller, and from that angle, we can help people in a similar position regarding MPS."

Rummage added, "MPSA offers unbiased, objective information and connections from people who are actually in the game. Every company is an island, and we all do things a certain way. If we talk to each other, we can discover ways of doing things we hadn't thought of. MPSA is a good forum for seeing what others are doing and for making contacts and networking. Being part of large organization gives us exposure to a wider range of perspective and experience. MPSA is valuable as a clearinghouse for everything that is going on in the industry."