Ontario – Ottawa – Ottawa
Corporation
www.digialt.com
Ontario
Ottawa
Ottawa
Corporation
active
1.) Providing business consulting services: namely application of a standardized set of methods and techniques to identify how organizations will benefit from technology changes before new equipment is purchased or changes are made.
2.) Computer consulting services related to the aforementioned services, namely, computer network design and support, printer and copier management, computer network security, computer support, and web page development.
Country of Ownership: Canada
Year Established: 1998
Exporting: No
Primary Industry (NAICS): 541510 - Computer Systems Design and Related Services
Alternate Industries (NAICS): 518210 - Data Processing, Hosting, and Related Services
541619 - Other Management Consulting Services
Primary Business Activity: Services
Total Sales ($CDN): $200,000 to $499,999
Number of Employees: 4
Services:
Information technology
Sector:
Key / Major Clients: CVS
CEUDA
P.W.G.S.C
C.M.H.C.
Alberta Provicial Government
NAV CANADA
Canadian Heritage
Carleton University
Success Stories: Carleton University
Print assessment and optimization strategy
Background
Carleton University is located in Ottawa, Ontario and has earned the reputation of a world-class educational institution.
Behind the scene, there is a large active business community associated with the delivery of educational services. Access to reliable and conveniently located copiers and printers is viewed as a key service and used throughout the campus by 20,000 students, and 2,000 staff members.
Although the September to April school session is a peak period for output volumes, the school is open throughout the entire year. A number of summer programs and activities keep a constant demand on the copier and printer fleet. Throughout the year approximately 20 million pages are copied and printed in total.
Carleton University has made a significant investment in campus wide printing and photocopying services to meet the needs of staff and students. Unlike printers the photocopier fleet does not consist of purchased assets. Rather, the copier fleet is acquired on a single large negotiated contract by way of a bidding process for a 4 to 5 year time period.
Historically, the fleet of analogue copiers was refreshed every 5 years, and with leases to expire in 6 months, decisions had to be made as to how the University was going to manage the upcoming copier replacement initiative. A number of factors were different this time that resulted in the need to involve expertise from the copier/print industry.
The influencing factors for the upcoming fleet renewal initiative included: • Copier technology advances in the form of multi-functional equipment
• The new approach of consolidating printing/copying output
• Need to reduce costs everywhere
• Need to align new acquisitions with cost-recovery and/or revenue generation programs
• Double co-hort (Elimination of grade 13 resulted in double student enrollment in a single year)
• Concerns that printer/copier volumes were shifting towards increased printing and reduced copying
Carleton University selected Digital Alternatives Group for our industry experience and vendor-neutral position. For the first time ever, the University was able to obtain an objective perspective of their copy/print environment from someone other than an equipment vendor. This resulted in an analysis and recommendations made in their best interest. With an anticipated investment of more than 200 copiers, the idea of an impartial opinion not tied to equipment sales made sense.
Challenge
The University needed detailed information regarding their true costs of ownership (TCO), and a solid long-term strategy for cost reduction.
The copier/printer fleet stretched across 26 campus buildings and included 170 copiers and literally hundreds of network and locally attached printers. In addition to the large equipment quantities and wide geographical placement, there were a number of other interesting design considerations, including: • Requirement for numerous student service locations
• Requirement for separation of staff equipment from student accessible equipment
• Security requirements to eliminate theft and control access
• Cost recovery and job tracking on all systems
• Serve the needs of intense areas of usage (library, laboratories and study areas)
Action
The innovative Digital Alternatives Group project plan leveraged our industry experience and the University‘s well managed copier fleet to provide the information needed to make the most informed decision possible. By way of our proven fleet optimization methodology, we were able to gather and review a wide-range of business and technical aspects of the University€™s printing and copying infrastructure. This lead to an in-depth understanding of the University€™s copy/print environment and the establishment a performance baseline view point for the entire fleet.
The resulting information formed the basis of a series of valuable recommendations that influenced decisions related to the upcoming fleet replacement. For example, we determined that over 85% of the existing copier equipment fleet was operating below 50% capacity. With some exceptions (areas of intense usage or with peak periods) this meant the University had invested in equipment 2 times more powerful and expensive than required.
Prepared detailed report with the following information: • Results of detailed examination of the copy infrastructure, with a TCO (Total cost of ownership) summary of current costs.
• Determination of student and staff requirements as a result of over 100 students and 40 staff interviews.
• Provision of solid suggestions concerning industry ‘best practices€™ and how they impact the copy/print environment.
• Development of a realistic roadmap with clear options and steps outlining how to achieve results.
• In-depth analysis of a number of large representative departments to identify to gain a better understanding of copier/printer requirements and emerging trends.
• Many solid business recommendations including current and future financial impact.
Result
Carleton University was able to make informed business decisions regarding rightsizing their fleet (worth $4 million – approx). The results of the Digital Alternatives Group fleet optimization analysis allowed the University to match their fleet specifications with real requirements and reduce cost.
Additionally, study findings have allowed the University to proactively manage their copy/print infrastructure, increasing productivity and reducing overall costs.
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