PrintIT Reseller - issue 58

01732 759725 MPS 24 ...continued understand their business and how managed print and digital transformation will help them. That support removes the fear factor for the reseller. They may not have that expertise or may only have a part of it and when they engage with a customer and sell a solution, if there is any issue, they have got us for back-up.” UTAX’s support is wholly flexible. “It’s a menu system, resellers can either do everything themselves or we can do it all – or anywhere in between the two. They can buy say a service or solution from us, sell on to a customer and simply add their own margin, or they can ask us to go in and we will operate on a profit share arrangement. It really depends on how they see it fitting in within their business, and they will also benefit on an ongoing basis from our expertise and nationwide service,”Wilkinson explained. UTAX is also in the process of transforming its own business. “The market is tight and that’s not just because of Brexit,” he said. “We have to be more efficient in how we go to market, so we’re introducing more cloud-based solutions and we have the ability to do more remotely in terms of fixing machines for example.” UTAX Fleet Services (U.FS) is one such solution that been adopted by its partners. U.FS provides partners with the ability to perform key maintenance tasks and remotely troubleshoot issues on UTAX devices as well as perform firmware upgrades and setting adjustments. “Our partners recognise that a technician in a car is costly and not very efficient especially in the greater London area where traffic is a constraint, so if you can fix a customers’ problem within minutes rather than hours, then you have a much happier customer and a more efficient way of keeping the hardware in check,”Wilkinson explained. Encourage more resellers to engage IT resellers traditionally have a good relationship with their customers which paves the way for them to offer more. “The barrier has always been whether or not they have the expertise to expand into print – can they get an engineer onsite to fix something? And the answer was probably no, whereas now by partnering with us, they can go to their customers and confidently say ‘we can now provide the printing infrastructure as well as other IT services’, knowing they can deliver the right service levels,” Wilkinson said. He continued: “It’s been a long slow process, but we are seeing success with IT companies with long standing customer relationships who are looking to offer other services.” In terms of the distribution channel, Wilkinson says UTAX is open to conversations. “From our perspective, if a distie is focussed and wants to take this seriously, then it will work. It does need a real change of mind-set to move from selling a box to selling a solution, but continuing to lose consumables business to MPS isn’t good in the long-term," he concluded. www.utaxuk.co.uk UTAX revamps A4 portfolio UTAX (UK) has refreshed its complete A4 portfolio. There are 15 new products in its new line-up including six A4 mono MFPs, six A4 colour MFPs and three A4 colour printers. The devices boast increased functionalities in the form of swift and intelligent scanning, Wi-Fi and additional WLAN card connectivity for digital working methods, as well as certification according to ISO 15408 EAL2 for enhanced security. The product portfolio is aligned with the current RAL-UZ 205 guidelines of the Blue Angel environmental Ecolabel. In addition to the environmental changes, the focus for optimisation was on criteria that would support digital working environments and meet ever changing security requirements. In the course of the revamping process, UTAX took into account feedback from customers and the market and incorporated this into tangible functional improvements visible in the new devices. Digitalisation processes, for instance, require fast and intelligent scanning, which has resulted in three A4 colour and two A4 mono multifunctional systems being upgraded with a dual-scan feeder for 100 pages, facilitating a higher scanning speed. Five A4 colour and four A4 mono MFPs now offer the addition of an optional Scan Extension Kit, capable of generating editable and searchable digital files. Mobile working has been made easier across the entire UTAX A4 product portfolio with the provision of Wi-Fi connectivity and optional WLAN cards. For the first time ever, three of the A4 colour and four of the A4 mono MFPs have been registered for certification according to ISO 15408 EAL2, a standard that identifies products that fulfil specific security standards. Furthermore, within the new A4 series, all colour MFPs and four of the mono MFPs are HyPAS-enabled so that applications and software solutions can be facilitated and individual document workflows can be integrated. Managing Director Shaun Wilkinson said: “Earlier this year UTAX introduced a revamped A3 portfolio to meet the provisions of the Blue Angel standard and we’re delighted that the renewal process is now being extended to the A4 product range. As a company we feel that this revamped range not only technologically advances our product offering but also validates our position on meeting and exceeding environmental standards.” BLI awarded UTAX with five Winter 2018 Pick Awards for Outstanding 40-80 ppm MFPs; Outstanding MFP for Small Workgroups and Outstanding Printer for Small Workgroups. Four other UTAX devices received certificates of recommendations and BLI’s Highly Recommended rating and seal of approval. www.utaxuk.co.uk UTAX : A4 MFPS & PRINTERS