EVANSTON, Ill. and NEW YORK, March 10 -- On Demand 2004 -- Kinko's, an operating company of FedEx Corp., today announced an expansion of its comprehensive document outsourcing services agreement with Northwestern University aimed at reducing costs and providing increased flexibility for students, faculty and staff. "Northwestern University chose Kinko's over other competitors because of their innovative use of technology and variable-cost approach to document outsourcing," said Bill Johnston, executive director of Norris Center, who led the evaluation and selection process. "With Kinko's Commercial Solutions, we'll be able to support our ever-changing needs for printing, copying and storing documents without the added pressure of managing vendor contracts and obsolete equipment." Kinko's Commercial Solutions provides a unique approach to traditional document outsourcing with no fixed contracts or monthly minimum charges. Kinko's flexible, scalable model, which includes customized on-site, near-site or distributed document production, will allow the university to reduce costs and access new technology. As part of the agreement, Kinko's Commercial Solutions will provide Northwestern University users several options for document production and mobile professional productivity including: -- Managed Services -- Kinko's recently opened an on-site location in the university's Norris Center, offering convenient on-campus copying, printing and finishing services. This new Kinko's is a satellite operation of the near-site Evanston branch, which operates 24/7. Benefiting from Kinko's global network of 1,200 digitally connected locations, Northwestern University is electronically linked to the Evanston location enabling work to be completed 24/7 to meet the critical needs of students, faculty and staff. Kinko's will also provide document services to Northwestern University faculty and staff from a closed door production center located in downtown Chicago. -- Kinko's DocStore -- This powerful Web-based solution will enable Northwestern staff and faculty to create a customized online catalog of the college's most frequently printed documents. With Kinko's DocStore, document waste and obsolescence will be reduced, allowing users to print on demand and only the quantity needed. -- Mobile Professional Program -- Faculty members will also use Kinko's Mobile Professional Program to gain access to affordable, consistent document services nationwide. Northwestern professors can now turn to Kinko's network of digitally connected locations for services such as digital printing, presentation support, high-speed wireless Internet access and FedEx transportation services. According to John McDonald, senior vice president of Kinko's Commercial Solutions, "Our relationship with Northwestern University is a good example of Kinko's transformation from the corner copy shop originating on a college campus to a leading provider of business services in 10 countries. With our variable-cost model, we are definitely changing the rules of traditional document outsourcing." A dedicated account manager will work directly with the Northwestern team to review and recommend options that offer the most flexibility and biggest cost advantage. And as campus customer needs change, Kinko's will continue to explore new options to ensure that the university is always receiving the optimal level of service.