Fleet management IT-HAUS & Kyocera

In addition to replacing its printer fleet, an automotive supplier was looking for a service partner that could also deliver worldwide. The company already benefits from the Managed Print Services of IT-HAUS GmbH at all of its German sites. Thanks to a global partner network, devices can also be refueled and rolled out worldwide and installed or replaced on site at the customer's request. As a central point of contact, IT-HAUS ensures timely and cost-efficient delivery to the respective locations and integration into the existing IT system environment - from the ready-to-use installation of the printer at the end user's premises to the removal of old devices.

Added value for the customer

Starting position

Production reliability is one of the key success factors for automotive suppliers. The company supplies high-quality plastic parts to all leading automotive manufacturers. It is located in Germany and internationally in close proximity to the production sites of car manufacturers. This is not without reason, as the company is one of the most important components of the supply chain in the automotive industry. If it is unable to deliver, the production lines of the country's largest car manufacturers will soon grind to a halt. This makes it all the more important for the company to have highly available IT - after all, this forms the basis for uninterrupted production. This also applies to output management: the company's IT managers recently had to look after around 600 printers and multifunctional devices (MFPs) at a total of 14 locations across Germany. These included office equipment, central corridor systems and production machines. At the same time as the existing leasing contract expired, the customer intended to replace these across the board with new devices and a fleet management solution optimally tailored to the hardware and put the corresponding services out to tender internally.

Requirements

Initially, the customer compared current solutions from various manufacturers. As a Kyocera five-star partner, IT-HAUS succeeded in convincing those responsible of the high level of expertise of its employees in the installation, repair and maintenance of Kyocera printers. However, the Föhren-based company also knows how to flexibly implement individual requirements. For example, as the customer uses SAP in the company, excellent compatibility of the hardware was required. In addition, a smooth transition from the previous to the new manufacturer had to be ensured. No problem for the experienced IT-HAUS technicians: certified for all leading printer manufacturers, they were also able to guarantee service for the entire existing fleet until the rollout or rollback of the old devices. For this purpose, extra stocks were created so that the customer could be supplied with toner immediately if necessary. Ultimately, however, the decisive factor was the customer's desire for a service provider that would also be able to deliver to the customer's international locations - in nine countries on four continents. This is where IT-HAUS , in close cooperation with Kyocera, scored with an unprecedented concept that none of the competitors were able to offer.

Goals

In order to relieve the burden not only on internal IT, but also on purchasing, a kind of "all-round carefree package" including automated supply of consumables and service was envisaged. Fixed conditions were to ensure transparent and calculable printing costs. In order to sustainably reduce the costs for the infrastructure and operation of the output systems, it was also decided to consolidate the fleet to a total of six device classes and to replace most of the black and white devices with color devices.

Solution

Rollout: After successful testing, IT-HAUS began with the gradual replacement of the existing infrastructure. The rollout of the new devices was organized, coordinated and carried out by IT-HAUS in close consultation with the customer. The A3 systems were initially preconfigured at the headquarters of IT-HAUS GmbH in Föhren so that they could be delivered ready for operation on site, while the remaining systems were already stored and rolled out at the customer's premises. Commissioning and corresponding on-site training were carried out by IT-HAUS Field Service. The rollout of the production machines posed a particular logistical challenge: This took place after the end of each shift, as failures during ongoing operations would have meant considerable economic losses for the customer. In this way,
rolled out a total of 570 devices at 14 locations throughout Germany within four months.

Management: The print environment is managed centrally via the FMAudit software from ECI Software Solutions, which is installed at the customer's premises. This is a manufacturer-independent solution that records all relevant data from the existing printing and multifunctional systems. Daily counter readings, broken down by color, format, duplex, etc., are automatically transmitted, and an automated toner requirement message is sent to IT-HAUS as soon as a defined threshold value is not reached. The software also automatically reports faults via an encrypted connection so that IT-HAUS , as a service partner, can take quick and targeted action if necessary. By using FMAudit, the customer creates an optimal basis for reducing the direct costs of procurement and operation in the company, identifying hidden costs and subsequently reducing them.

Reporting: The data recorded via FMAudit can be used to easily compare devices, settings and fault frequency. The customer receives quarterly reports, for example, to check capacity utilization and coverage levels and thus avoid high recalculations.

Billing: The customer has concluded a framework agreement with IT-HAUS . This has a term of 60 months and regulates not only the supply of consumables to the customer but also the provision of corresponding services. The operation of the devices is billed based on consumption via a so-called click contract, i.e. in the form of a page price without a minimum volume. This includes all service costs such as consumables (toner), spare and wear parts, technician costs and the provision of fleet management software. Page-based billing and a low fixed price per page ensure transparent and manageable printing costs, while the hardware is billed via the lessor at the customer's request.

Service: As part of a managed services contract, IT-HAUS GmbH assumes responsibility for the smooth operation of the systems on behalf of the customer. This contract also includes proactive maintenance, both remotely and on-site. This means that IT-HAUS takes care of the entire printer fleet without being asked and also monitors the utilization of the devices using the monitoring tool in order to ensure the optimal use of all devices over the entire contract period.

Benefit

IT-HAUS GmbH is able to supply international customers around the globe and also offers them a service package that is second to none. A global framework agreement is concluded for this purpose, which each individual national company can access. In addition to centralized procurement (via the headquarters), decentralized procurement (from the respective national company) is therefore also possible at equally favourable conditions. The literally "limitless" service of IT-HAUS GmbH has also convinced the automotive supplier: Following the nationwide printer rollout, the customer decided to also implement a client project with IT-HAUS . More than 100 Dell workstations have already been rolled out at three locations within a week and refueled on site by IT-HAUS Field Service.