Evaluating the printing solutions space is enormously complex, as manufacturers bring out new models and feature innovations on a quarterly basis. Comprehensive evaluation of functionality and operating costs across so many options simply isn’t possible without neglecting more urgent organizational priorities. “Most of the time, the CIOs don’t want to know where the printrs are and what they’re doing. They have bigger fish to fry,” says John Eckstrom, President and CEO, Carolina Business Equipment (CBE). While this is certainly true, the cumulative result is a tangle of inefficiency. Organizations gradually come to rely on dozens of different models, with unique supply requirements, maintenance costs, and suitability for their daily tasks. What seemed like a trivial element—putting printed material on a page—becomes a source of daily waste and frustration.

CBE’s managed print services standardize equipment, supply, and maintenance through intelligent workflow analysis and strategic manufacturer partnerships. “It’s our job,” Eckstrom says, “to understand what options are out there and how they fit into a customer’s particular marketplace.” CBE performs a full review of their client’s equipment, develops a streamlined and robust managed print solution to meet their needs, and provides maintenance, often at a fraction of existing costs.

Hawthorne Pharmacy, an independent pharmacy with five locations, cut their printing and copying costs by 2/3 by partnering with CBE. “Two representatives from CBE came in and assessed our entire fleet of copiers and printers,” says Kristie Cassidy, Hawthorne’s office manager. Hawthorne was using 20 different models of printers, each with its own supply requirements, and had maintenance contracts with three different companies. CBE standardized Hawthorne’s print fleet with modern equipment, simplified their supply chain, and extended full maintenance coverage. If anything goes wrong, CBE repairs or replaces the unit immediately. “All of this was done for essentially the same amount of money we were spending on our equipment supply cost and maintenance for a third of our fleet prior to their involvement,” adds Cassidy.

CBE’s operations extend far beyond Hawthorne’s usage case, however. As the business world evolved over the last 20 years, Eckstrom expanded CBE’s capabilities to match.