Frankly Speaking

How to Extend the Life of Your Printer Cartridges

Stop right there! You may be abusing your printer cartridges without even knowing it. From how much toner you specify when printing, to printing out everything in color, bad habits can significantly impact your cost per copy—and your bottom line. As business owners, saving money is something we all want to do on a regular basis.

How Bad Habits Affect Print Costs

It is a proven fact that printer cartridges are easily abused, and you may not even realize that you are a culprit. Depending on how much toner/ink you specify for a copy, i.e. what resolution you choose, you can shorten the life of the cartridge. If you look at a toner package, it gives a yield number based on how many prints you should get out of the cartridge. This is based on a 5 percent fill rate, which means there will be 5 percent toner on a single copy.

It is mathematical. For example, toner for an HP printer at one of the major office supply stores costs $147.99. That toner yields up to 6,000 pages. $147.99 divided by 6,000 equals .024665 cents per copy (which is outrageous, but more on that later). If you specify a higher rate of toner per page, you may only get 4,000 prints out of that cartridge. That brings the cost per copy up to .0369975—even more outrageous!

How to Break Free From Printer Cartridge Excesses

Perhaps you print anything and everything, or you tend to print everything in color. No matter what bad habits you have developed, rest assured that you can turn things around.

• Only print what you need. This sounds simple, but it can be hard to do. Think before you print and decide if you will really need to reference a hard copy of that email.
• Use black and white or grayscale printing. If you print in color to better see that chart or pie graph, using grayscale printing provides enough shade variation to see the distinct categories.
• Buy high-capacity toners. Not only will you get more copies per cartridge, but you also will not have to change the toner as often.

Finally, consider managed print services for all your printer and copier needs. Here at Graphic Enterprises, we base our contracts on cost per copy, which varies per account depending on the type of printer or copier, and print volume. On average, the cost per copy for a managed print service contract is between .012-.016. That is much more affordable than in my example above!

When you consider that service and maintenance also is included in managed print service contracts, you will see why they are a popular choice among our customers. If you are a business owner in Canton, Akron, Youngstown or Western Pennsylvania, we can help you, too. Contact us today!

Image Credit: amorphis / 123RF Stock Photo

Graphic Enterprises Presents Teacher of the Month Award

Here at Graphic Enterprises, we love teachers! We admire them for working tirelessly each day to educate our children and prepare them for tomorrow’s challenges. We also appreciate how they motivate their students and provide them with positive role models.

To show our appreciation, Denise Dennewitz, our marketing director, recently had the pleasure of presenting the first Graphic Enterprises Office Solutions Teacher of the Month award to Mrs. Sharon Diehl, second grade teacher at Champion Central Elementary School in Warren, OH.

Mrs. Diehl has been teaching for 35 years and is still the most requested teacher, a testament to her dedication to her students. Her principal says she is a high-quality teacher who goes out of her way to reach each and every student. She is also very organized, a trait that she teaches to her students, and is often described as sweet and loving.

Denise presented a surprised and honored Mrs. Diehl with flowers, a balloon, a banner, and a GEI/Konica Minolta swag bag to commemorate the event. Her 22 students were so well behaved and appreciated the “Color Me Green” Konica Minolta coloring books and crayons they received as well. When Mrs. Diehl asked the class to read the banner she received, Denise said she thought “congratulations” might be a big word for second graders, but they had no trouble, shouting in unison, “Congratulations Mrs. Diehl!”

The kids also loved the cookies donated by the local Sparkle Market. Denise told them to listen for their teacher’s name on Youngstown Hot101 radio station and to look for her name in the local newspaper. One little boy proclaimed, “Mrs. Diehl, you’re going to be famous!”

To top it all off, Mrs. Diehl said she uses our Konica Minolta copier all the time and loves it! What a rewarding experience for all involved. We plan to continue our Teacher of the Month program each school year, recognizing a different teacher October through May with the cooperation of the school.

Once again, we applaud you, Mrs. Diehl!

Print App Adds Functionality to Konica Minolta Printers

As a user of Konica Minolta’s award-winning line of bizhub multifunctional printers, you are already aware of the many features that make everyday document handling fast and efficient. But did you know that our PageScope Mobile printing app allows you to print directly from your Android™-based smart phone? Now that is productivity at its finest.

In addition to using the print app to print directly from your Android device, you can also scan documents for instant access. PageScope is the perfect choice for hospital personnel who want to print reports or patient files; teachers and students who need to print reports, student records or assignments; and corporate user who want access to information anywhere, anytime from their corporate network via Wi-Fi.

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How to Put Konica Minolta’s Printing App to Work for iPads/iPhones

Want to get the most out your Apple iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch device and your Konica Minolta printer? Konica Minolta’s PageScope Mobile app is a cutting-edge application that connects your mobile Apple device with our line of bizhub multi-function printers. After installing the printing app from the iTunes Store, you can print directly from your Apple device, as well as scan documents for instant access on those devices.

Setting up a wi-fi connection between your Apple mobile device and Konica Minolta printer is simple, and I will explain how to add a printer to your device. Before you get started, make sure you have the following:

• iPad/iPad 2/iPad 3: iOS 4.2, 4.3, 5.0, 5.1; or iPhone 3GS/iPhone 4: iOS 4.3, 5.0, 5.1; or iPod touch fourth generation: iOS 4.2, 4.3, 5.0, 5.1
• Wireless LAN Connection
• Compatible bizhub multifunction printer
• PageScope Mobile App downloaded from the App Store.

Setting Up Your Mobile Print App

The first step in using the printing app is to ensure you have a Wi-Fi connection set up correctly between your Konica Minolta printer and your mobile device.

1. Turn on your mobile device.
2. Tap “Settings.”
3. Tap “Wi-Fi.”
4. From the “Choose a Network” menu, select the network you wish to use for printing, scanning and accessing the web. The  list of available networks detected will automatically appear.
5. Return to the home page.

Add a Copier or Printer to Your Mobile Device

The next step is to choose the printer you want to use in conjunction with the PageScope print app.

1. From the Home page, tap the PageScope Mobile icon.
2. Tap the Select Printer icon.
3. Tap Add Printer.
4. If your mobile device automatically detects the available bizhub printers on the wireless LAN network, they will appear in Add Printer List.
5. Tap the desired printer and press the Add button.
6. If you wish to communicate with more than one available printer, tap each desired printer and press the Add button for each one.
7. If your mobile device does not automatically detect the available printers, tap Manual.
8. Tap IP address or DNS Name field.
9. Enter the IP address of the printer.
10. Press Return or Search.
11. Press Add to add the printer.
12. Return to Home page.

There you have it! Just by following a few simple steps, you’ll be ready to scan or print documents from your Apple mobile device in no time using Konica Minolta’s PageScope printing app. And check out our next blog post for a how-to on using PageScope for Android.

If you’re a business owner in Canton, North Canton, Green, Akron, Youngstown or elsewhere in Ohio or Western Pennsylvania, we would be happy to help you get the most out of your office equipment. Contact us if you’d like to learn more about the many product features of Konica Minolta copiers and printers.

Image Credit

A Copier and Printer Company That Cares About Core Values

It seems that everyone is talking about core values these days.  For us, our core values define fundamental standards and guidelines for our employees and represent ‘who we are’ as a company. 

As a provider of quality copiers, printers and office solutions for Northeast Ohio – including Canton, Akron, Youngstown and even Western Pennsylvania – we take our responsibility to our customers and to the communities we serve very seriously. Here is what you can expect from Graphic Enterprises each and every time you interact with us.

Service Excellence  

We provide service that goes beyond expectations. From award-winning service technicians and local service dispatch to a knowledgeable sales staff and an efficient administrative team, we work together to deliver an exceptional experience to our valued customers, partners, co-workers and vendors.

Passion for Our Business and Yours

We are passionate about building a better business, about helping you build a better business, about embracing new technology and about empowering our people to make good decisions based on our core values. We respond to our customers’ specific needs and are not happy until they are satisfied with every level of service we provide.  

Commitment to Employees

We are committed to our employees and strive for open communication at all times. We encourage growth and learning and help our people enjoy success through additional opportunity. We support a positive work environment and promote a healthy team and family spirit. We encourage employees to take part in creating increased automation and efficiencies. Ultimately, we hope to unlock the potential in each employee because we believe a satisfied employee makes an excellent customer service ambassador.

Resourcefulness with Technology and Operations

Do more with less while maintaining operational excellence is our creed. We are always looking for improved processes through innovation, improving operations and working more efficiently. We believe in combining and sharing resources, working collaboratively and eliciting creativity – all with a goal of becoming a better business partner for you.

Integrity, Plain and Simple

We strive to be fair and consistent, to act with honesty and integrity and to deliver the best solutions for our customers.  We do what is right for our company and our customers. We know that when a customer wins, we win.

Quality Products and Partnerships

For over 30 years, we have had a strong relationship with Konica Minolta, a worldwide leader in the manufacturing of copiers and printers, and have been awarded its Pro-Tech award for service excellence every year since its inception in 1988. Our long-term partnership with Konica Minolta allows us to take advantage of programs that benefit our customers. We take great pride in our Konica Minolta recognition, as well as their continued support of our success.

Emphasis on Building Relationships

Our success is the result of long-term relationships we strive to build. Customers that we keep, tenured employees and strong vendor partnerships allow us to accomplish great things. We learn from our past experience and share our knowledge with those we work closely with. We offer ongoing training and development for employees and customers and deliver added value with every new copier.

How to Remove a Blank Page Using a Konica Minolta Printer

Looking for a quick way to save paper with your Konica Minolta copier or printer while

Removing pages while copying

making your two-sided, multi-page documents look more professional? One of the easiest things you can do is the remove blank pages.

It is a very simple process because Konica Minolta’s advanced technology easily detects

blank pages. Below are three step-by-step procedures for deleting blank pages from a document. The right one for you will depend on your task: copying, scanning or printing.
 
 
 

Removing a Blank Page While Copying

1. From the copy main screen, touch Application and then No Original Settings.
2. Next, touch Blank Page Removal, followed by OK and Start.
3. The blank pages are automatically removed from your copies.

Removing a Blank Page While Scanning

Before Konica Minolta’s page removal feature can be enabled for scanned documents, a one-touch email or SMB button should be registered on your device through Pagescope Web Connection.

Removing pages while scanning

1. Place your original document in the Document Feeder.
2. Select a Registered One-touch Destination.
3. From the Scan/Fax main screen, touch Application and then Original Settings.
4. Next, touch Blank Page Removal, OK, Close and Start.
5. Open the file or email attachment generated by your Konica Minolta printer.
6. The blank pages are automatically removed from the scanned version of your document.

Removing a Blank Page While Printing

To delete pages from a Microsoft Office Word document or a PDF:

Removing a blank page while printing

1. Open your file that contains blank pages and select File Print.
2. Click on Properties on your print dialogue box.
3. Select the Layout tab and place a check mark next to Skip Blank Pages.
4. Click OK to save that selection and then click OK to print.

And that is all there is to it! At Graphic Enterprises, we love to help our customers throughout Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania learn how to use all the unique facets of the printers and copiers we provide. If you would like to learn how a Konica Minolta can help you do more, contact us.

Spirit of the Season: Graphic Enterprises Gives Back for the Needy in Northeast Ohio

One of our core values at Graphic Enterprises is operating as a faith-based business. Throughout the year, and especially at the Christmas season, we want to share the blessings we have received and to give back to the community where we live, work and raise our families.

One organization that does so much for our area is the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. Supporting Carroll, Holmes, Medina, Portage, Stark, Summit, Tuscarawas and Wayne Counties, the foodbank is a distribution center the purchases large quantities of food at reduced prices, sorts it and then distributes it to agencies in its eight-county service area. About 180,000 people receive nutritious meals each year because of the foodbank’s network.

Our program is called Helping Hands for the Hungry, and each time an employee donates, they get to put a “hand” on the wall display in our office. In 2011 we collected approximately 300 pounds of food to give to the foodbank. This year our goal was 500 pounds, but we are well on our way to 1,000 pounds already! The generosity of the team is wonderful.

In addition, we’re participating in Coats for Christmas, an initiative of A Community Christmas, a local, non-profit, all-volunteer organization that strives to coordinate Christmas giving efforts in Stark County. Our North Canton location is one of 81 places that people can donate new and gently used coats in all sizes for infants, children and adults. All coats stay in Stark County and are given away at no charge at Goodwill stores and at Calvary Mission. Last year A Community Christmas distributed more than 2,200 coats.

We are privileged to support two worthy causes. I hope that what we and many others are doing throughout the area will make an important difference for neighbors in need. Merry Christmas!

How to Set Up and Operate a Konica Minolta User Box

User boxes are among the most valuable features of Konica Minolta copiers and printers. If you work in a busy office where numerous people must use one multi-function printer or there are sensitive documents that require protection, setting up user boxes for each person is an excellent solution.

What Is a User Box?

Designed to control when documents are printed, a user box is, as you might guess, user-specific and functions as a holding area for electronic documents of all types that a person would like to print and/or electronically file at some point.

There are several great reasons for creating user boxes:

• Prevents confidential or sensitive documents from printing before an authorized person can pick them up.
• Minimizes the need to run back and forth between the printer and your computer if you need to print multiple items. With a user box, you can make one trip and print everything!
• Keeps the workflow between printing and copying running smoothly. The printer output no longer has to interfere with copying.
• Ensures that authorized users have the opportunity to enter a PIN number, if required, before printing.

Creating a User Box

Setting up a user box is relatively simple and can be done from the convenience of your work station computer. You will need the IP address of your bizhub printer before you get started. Then you will be ready to follow these step-by-step instructions.

1. Type the bizhub IP address into your web browser and follow the prompts to enter your bizhub logon information.
2. Once in bizhub, select the box feature tab and then “set up new box.” At this time, you can name the box and even give it a secure passcode, if you wish.
3. Log out.
4. Go back to bizhub via your web browser and again select the box tab. You should see the new box you set up. If you assigned it a passcode, you will see a yellow lock in the corner of the box.

Now you can scan to your user box or send documents from your computer to it for printing. To send a file from your computer to the user box, simply go through the same steps as you would to print. In the right hand corner of the print properties screen, you’ll see “print,” which is a drop-down menu. From that menu, choose “send to box” and press “send.” The document will be waiting for you when you’re ready to print.

How to Print from a User Box

Whenever you’re ready to print files from your user box, head over to your Konica Minolta all-in-one and enter your login code, if necessary. Select the “Box” button and then choose “System User Box.” From there, you can choose your user box, type in your password (if applicable) and choose the documents you want to print.

If you’d like to learn more about the many product features of Konica Minolta printers, contact us. We’re happy to help businesses and organizations in Canton, North Canton, Green, Akron, Youngstown and beyond get the most out of their office equipment.

Graphic Enterprises Honors Third Quarter Achievements!

The following employees were honored at the Graphic Enterprises Office Solutions Quarterly Awards Breakfast on Wednesday, October 17, 2012.

  Service Director Ed Croft recognized Service Employee of the Third Quarter Denny Clark.  

Other Third Quarter honorees include:

Support Employee of the Third Quarter:  Renea Howard

Sales Executive of the Third Quarter Tony Simeone with 371% of quota

Quota Achiever George Zambie – 111% of quota

Jodi Boron was also honored for 25 years of service!

Congratulations to all of our honorees!

Konica Minolta Debuts New Production Print Equipment

Just as technology has changed dramatically with business copiers and printers in recent years, the same holds true for commercial printing. You no longer need a large offset press to create quality, affordable printed materials at high volumes. Konica Minolta, for example, offers a wide range of high-end production printing equipment that makes it easy for printers and even in-house printing shops to:

• Lower costs
• Boost production efficiency and output
• Deliver even better-looking printed products

For a commercial printer, all that can add up to one thing: increased profitability. So, if you’re thinking about upgrading your digital printing machines, I would like to share some new options for you to consider.

High-volume, Digital Press Equipment for Color, B&W

bizhub® PRESS C8000 & C7000: Color
Certified by IDEAlliance Digital Press System, the bizhub PRESS C8000 and C7000 Color Digital Presses are designed to meet demands of the commercial offset, high-volume and mid-production digital environments. They offer superior color accuracy, enhanced media handling and impressive productivity.

bizhub PRESS C70hc: Color
Ideal for corporate environments, the bizhub PRESS C70hc creates a wide range of printed pieces – including marketing and advertising materials – with color and images that pop and clear, crisp text.

bizhub PRESS 1250 / 1052 Series: Black & White
These B&W digital presses combine superior strength, high-resolution image quality and simple operation with the versatile paper handling and finishing capabilities needed for maximum flexibility.

bizhub PRO 951: a Smaller Professional Press
Announced earlier this summer, the bizhub PRO 951 is a professional production print system that features superior image quality, fail-safe paper handling and long-run reliability all in a manageable footprint.

KM-1: on the Horizon
In the near future, Konica Minolta will roll out its B2 cut-sheet, UV inkjet press, called the KM-1. This upcoming inkjet press targets commercial printing environments for integration into existing pre- and post-press workflows.

Software and Systems for Production Printing Equipment

Color Care Software v2.2: Correct Color Output
The latest version of Konica Minolta’s Color Care Suite features

• Improved and streamlined GUI
• Statistics mode to plot and track color differences
• Optional CurveCore module for G7 tonal characteristics
• An FD-5 Spectrodensitometer that’s shown in conjunction with the Color Care Suite.

Printgroove® Queue/Ready: for Light Production Printing
CRD and small- to mid-sized print shop applications will like Printgroove. It’s the key to greater output power and increased satisfaction for customers and corporate clients. It can easily fit into your workflow, handling rising traffic volume and accommodating your business processes demand.

Dispatcher Pro
Dispatcher Pro is a simple yet powerful software application that automates document handling, printing and routing.

IT Services for Konica Minolta Digital Printing Machines

All Covered: Managed IT services from Konica Minolta
This service is specifically for commercial printers and supports the needs of small to medium-sized print service providers. All Covered offers help desk and on-site support, 24×7 monitoring, security, business continuity and cloud servers.

Fiery Central: Print Engine Management
Konica Minolta is now offering an updated version of its popular Fiery Central, which brings scalability and productivity to your existing printing assets by integrating into your production systems. Fiery Central manages a wide range of print engines from a consistent and centralized interface, extending operator capabilities.

If you’re a commercial printer in Canton, Akron, Youngstown, or elsewhere in Ohio or Western Pennsylvania, we can help you with all your production print equipment needs. Contact us for more information.