PRINT
IT
RESELLER.UK
41
MPS SOFTWARE
Our biggest
USP is that
we can
deliver
five to ten
times more
productivity
– in
comparision
with other
systems
We accurately record all usage
– we can consolidate the meter readings
from a levels perspective but from a
supply chain perspective. EKM Insight’s
intelligent demand forecasting and active
supply chain management, enables the
print service provider to ensure that
consumables are delivered efficiently and
at the right time, while simultaneously
minimising stock and inventory holding.
“We provide customisation into
the supply chain at the right level,
consumables can be auto-ordered and
shipped direct to the customer. It’s also
integrated with ‘stock in the channel’ so
resellers can buy at the best price and
achieve the best possible margin with
minimum human touch,” he added.
Incident management:
The software
is intelligent, it learns from the print
environment, helping both end-users and
service providers to achieve an optimised
print service. The status of every machine
is recorded and linked into an incident
management system.
“We accurately record all usage – we
can consolidate the meter readings – for
example mono vs. colour volumes or large
pages vs. small pages – making it very
simple to understand and we make that
information meaningful so it’s service
oriented,” McRae explained, adding: “For
resellers, service needs to be effectively
planned and organised to ensure minimum
cost of service delivery. The ability to
monitor equipment capability, performance
and usage, provides them with the
opportunity to ensure the right assets are in
the right locations, deliver optimal value for
the end-user and reduce the cost to serve.”
Channel opportunity
Available as a secure private cloud
service or on-premise service, EKM Insight
provides the flexibility and value to meet
the most diverse and demanding operating
requirements.
For MSPs, IT resellers and dealers, the
key benefits include the flexibility to provide
full managed services, consumable sales
automation and collaborative customer
services, with the lowest operational cost.
“Our service provider clients span from
SMEs, to country, regional and global
companies. We also have a significant
number of channel customers who use
the service to manage large fleets across
multiple sites. We are now going through
the process of scaling the system so it
meets the needs of SMEs through to large
enterprises, opening it up to many more IT
channel resellers,” McRae added.
He continued: “Our strategy is to
enable better services to be delivered at
lower prices. We enable our customers
to find unique value through providing a
flexible software user experience, efficient
service workflows, tailored user roles,
which enables collaborative work between
the service provider and customer. This
solution drives productivity at every point
in the service and supply chain.
“Our biggest USP is that we can deliver
five to ten times more productivity – in
comparision with other systems. With EKM
Insight, an individual can handle five to
ten more devices per person. We’re able to
demonstrate the ROI for our larger clients
and we are confident that we will be able
to deliver the same degree of productivity
gains to clients with smaller fleets.”
McRae says there is an opportunity for
vendors where print is not the mainstay. He
said: “IT resellers are looking for ways to
drive incremental sales with minimum cost,
maximum margin and minimal inventory
overheads. Some have piloted managed
print services but with limited success, and
this is where EKM Insight can help.”
Automation step by step
EKM Insight has been designed to support
channel vendors to seamlessly transform
from a traditional product supply model to
delivering services as an annuity revenue
stream. It enables them to deliver new
value to customers and reduce sales cost
by incrementally adding automation step
by step.
For example, EKM Insight provides
a dedicated workflow that enables
resellers to generate automated leads
from customers for consumables. They can
use the live monitoring functionality for
demand forecasting and lead generation
for consumables and engineering fit
maintenance items, check distribution
availability and purchase at the best
market price, then dropship directly to
customers incurring no inventory holding
costs. Furthermore the order and invoice
information can be fed directly into their
accounting systems.
The software will also automate
processes such as new product staging
and configuration, moves and change
management, break/fix services and
incident management. And this wholly
flexible service enables the reseller to
choose whether to build the services
themselves or to access as a white label
service. The latter enables them to benefit
from a new revenue stream without
investment in upfront infrastructure and
service operation development.
New functionality and value
The most recent development has been the
integration of EKM Insight with HP Smart
Device Services, a move that McRae says
provides the most advanced and leading
print service management system on the
market today.
Key features include the ability to fix
issues remotely without VPN access, and to
diagnose before dispatching an engineer,
enabling faster first-time fix rates. With
is solution, service providers can also
cut onsite service visits by 25 per cent.
The software provides fault alerts when
parts need to be replaced, resellers can
group these together and replace all in a
single visit, reducing the cost to serve and
minimising end-user disruption.
Supplies management functionality
enables resellers to reduce risk and early
cartridge replacement, delivering additional
savings, as well as monitor and track all
HP devices to get accurate page counts
for every billing cycle, minimising invoice
dispute overheads.
“The HP Smart Device Services
integration with EKM Insight provides
a logical extension to and builds on the
core concepts at the heart of EKM Insight
with its predictive services, powerful
remote control, active asset management,
advanced consumable supply chain
management and pre-emptive service
engineering management,” said McRae in
conclusion.
