Print.IT Reseller
eseller
.co.uk
Why happy customers are
good for business
Word of mouth has more influence over
purchasing decisions than any other factor
according to a new study by Pitney Bowes
(Recommendations). Its survey of 2,000
consumers found that 62% of Britons were
swayed by the recommendations of friends
and colleagues and 39% by consumer reviews
on websites. Only around a fifth of purchase
decisions are influenced by authored reviews in
newspapers (23%), magazines (19%) and other
published guides (18%).
Green argument
Anyone selling print management solutions
might be interested in a new white paper from
Quocirca, which makes the environmental case
for controlling printing and reducing paper
consumption.
A Sustainable Print Agenda
is
sponsored by Nuance Communications and can
be downloaded from
/
quocirca-green-printing.
Simplicity essential
A new report from Photizo Group,
The Future of
Printing as Personal Computing Evolves,
looks at
changes in computing and the impact that they
will have on printing and the printer industry.
It points out that although mobile printing is
a growing market, it is unlikely to compensate
for diminishing desktop print volumes. It also
emphasises the need to simplify and universalise
the print functionality on smartphones and
tablets and slow down the inevitable adoption
of non-print alternatives for viewing and sharing
documents. Photizo warns that the ubiquity of
mobile devices is hastening the transformation
of paper-centric workflows to electronic business
processes that eliminate the need to print.
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bulletin
Hybrid vehicles help
Toshiba cut emissions
Toshiba TEC UK service engineers are
being supplied with Toyota Auris Hybrid
vehicles, as part of the company’s
strategy to achieve PAS 2060 compliance
and reduce its carbon emissions.
Toshiba has already taken delivery of 28
of the vehicles and plans to acquire more in
2014. The WhatGreenCar 2010 Car of the Year
boasts CO2 emissions of just 87g/km and a fuel
economy of 74mpg.
Toshiba is currently working towards PAS
2060, the British Standards Institute’s (BSI)
carbon neutrality standard. As part of the
process, it has measured its carbon footprint
and implemented a clearly defined strategy to
reduce emissions by 2%.
Altodigital says ‘You’re
hired!’
Altodigital is celebrating the success
of its inaugural apprenticeship scheme
after finding full time roles within the
company for the first six candidates to
have been through the programme.
The scheme launched in January 2013 is
designed to give 16-24 year-olds the experience
and skills needed to pursue a career as a print
hardware engineer.
Having gained prestigious PDI+, A+ and N+
qualifications, all six candidates will start work
with the company as full time field technicians
based across Altodigital’s Leeds, West Midlands
and London offices. Each employee will be
allocated a mentor to ensure they continue
learning and progressing their careers.
Andy Priestley and Ben King, both 17 years
old, will be based in Leeds; Jake Williams, 20, and
Ben Jones, 17, will work from the West Midlands
office in Kingswinford; and Olewale Lawal, 20,
and James Boylan, 18, will be based in London.
Darrell Polden, service director at Altodigital
and a former apprentice engineer himself,
said: “The scheme has been fantastic and has
restored my faith in the ability of the younger
generation. Every one of them has excelled and
we’re now looking forward to them becoming a
valuable part of the company as a whole.”
Jake Williams, who won a national award
for his outstanding achievement, said: “The
apprenticeship scheme has given me a fantastic
mix of on-the-job training and classroom-based
academic knowledge and it’s a great start to
my career.”
Altodigital is planning to repeat the
apprenticeship programme in 2014.
AIT expands portfolio
with OCM acquisition
Altman Integrated Technologies (AIT Ltd),
famous for its Pcounter and Everyone
Print solutions, is expanding its portfolio
with the acquisition of OCM print
management hardware and software. The
deal includes OCM’s products, intellectual
property and all worldwide OEM contracts,
distribution and reseller agreements.
Alan Christie, director of business
development at AIT Ltd, said: “The purchase of
the OCM intellectual property will strengthen
the AIT portfolio and firmly establish the
company as leaders in the field of Print and
Copy Management. The acquisition is part of our
strategic growth strategy and will allow us to
extend our market share.”
Peter O’Farrelly, chief executive of OCM,
added: “This agreement heralds a new exciting
era in the development of the OCM solutions
and will benefit our customer base by giving
them a greatly improved development and
support infrastructure. It will also open up wider
global markets for AIT Ltd.”
The office in a case
Dicota is meeting the evolving needs of
mobile workers with the launch of two
new cases that combine easy portability
with robust protection for electronic
devices.
For sales people and field service employees
who might need to print documents when away
from the office, it is launching the DataSmart Print
& Tablet S, which holds a Brother PJ663 mobile
printer, any make of external Bluetooth keyboard
and a stand for a smartphone or tablet.
Dicota has also launched a new mobile
presentation case designed for transporting an
Epson EB-1751 projector, JBL Flip speakers and a
tablet/smartphone.
Both cases have a central power connection
on the outside for charging devices; security locks;
and a detachable lid. Prices start at 599 euros,
excluding hardware.
Dicota also sells a range of cases and
backpacks for Canon and HP mobile printers.
Mobile devices are hastening the adoption of
electronic workflows
