Despite the ongoing move toward digital media and digital communications, the photocopier is still an essential piece of equipment in most offices. Getting the right photocopier for your company’s present and future needs is crucial to your day-to-day administrative works.

There are a few things to take into consideration when it comes to buying a photocopier. Let’s discuss.
 

Networking Capabilities:

Back in the good old days, standalone photocopiers were the only option. To use them, staff had to physically walk over to the photocopier with the document they wanted to copy and make their printing choices directly on the photocopier itself. Then, photocopiers were enhanced with networking capabilities, which meant they could be used as giant office printers, accepting printing instructions directly from people’s computers.
 

Copy Speed:

This key statistic tells you at what speed the business printer will produce copies and prints. Expressed as a number or pages per minute, this is normally one of the first requirements discussed when considering the purchase of a new office automation device. The copy speed also correlates to the copy volume with faster business printers generally having a larger copy volume. A typical business printer designed to be shared amongst between 3 to 10 people will normally have a print/copy speed of 25-45 pages per minute (ppm), placing the business printer in the mid-volume category.
 

Copy Volume:

This number relates to the number of pages the business printer has been designed to process per month. Generally, business printers with lower copy speeds are designed to process a lower number of prints and copies per month with the copy volume growing in relation to the speed of the office automation device. For ease of understanding, business printers are usually grouped into volume categories rather than dealing with the actual number. When considering the purchase of a business printer try to estimate how much the device will be used and select accordingly.
 

Color or Mono

While color photocopiers only carry a small upfront cost compared to black and white ones, there is a significant difference in the price of the ink. It may be tempting to choose a color photocopier to be on the safe side, but if the bulk of your printing requirements relate to standard typed office documents, then it may be more economical to choose a black and white copier and deal with occasional color requirements by outsourcing. However, the price of color copiers has gone down in the past years so even small businesses can enjoy them. Most models also have an ink saving feature to help owners control costs.
 

Paper Size

If printing requirements often extend to the use of larger paper sizes (A3 upwards), then there are photocopiers that can manage this. If, on the other hand, the majority of the printing is done on A4, then an A4 only photocopier may be a more affordable choice.
 

Multifunction Products (MFPs)

A multi-use copier may have scanning, printing, and fax capabilities in addition to basic photocopying features. Consider investing in a multifunction product with several capabilities and functions to save office space and even save money on equipment purchases. This type of investment may be justified if multiple departments will be sharing equipment on a regular basis. For example, marketing teams may need to take care of printing, scanning, and faxing tasks on tight deadlines. Accounting and finance departments may need to use a scanner and photocopier more often than others. Sales teams may need access to a fax and printer regularly. Consider the benefits of a multi-purpose machine instead of standard business copiers when you team members or employees from different departments will be sharing equipment.
 

Automatic Document Feeder

Automatic document feeders (ADFs) allow users to leave a stack of paper on top of the photocopier and come back to a pile of photocopied documents. While this may seem attractive, it should be noted that staff need to put paper on the photocopier the right way for this to work. Otherwise they’ll come back either to a pile of blank sheets, which can be recycled for further copying, or sheets with the wrong information on them.
 

Double-Side Printing

This can be a great way of saving money. Photocopiers with this option can often take documents printed on one side and create copies where the printing is on both sides. This feature is becoming increasingly common and is an effective way of cutting the cost of paper and increasing environmental consciousness in the office.
 

End Note

Once you have decided on the above factors, it is important to weigh up pros and cons of the photocopier you considering for your purchase. If you would like to get more advice from one of our expert consultants, feel free to visit any of our showrooms or knock us online, they will be able to recommend the perfect solution to suit your needs.