Follow Me Printing
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As technology continues to advance, businesses and educational institutions are constantly seeking ways to improve their print environments. One of the latest trends that has gained significant popularity in recent years is follow me printing.
This innovative printing solution offers enhanced security, convenience, and cost savings, making it a prominent choice for organisations across various industries.
What is Follow Me Printing?
Follow me printing, also known as find me printing, is a network print queue system that provides users with greater control over their printing jobs.
Unlike traditional printing methods, where documents are automatically routed to a specific printer, follow me printing holds print jobs until the user authorises their release at the designated printer.
This approach, sometimes referred to as cloud printing or secure printing, allows users to submit their print jobs to a common network queue. The pages remain in the queue until the user is physically present at the printer and authenticates themselves using a PIN number, username, password, magnetic swipe card, or RF proximity card. This authentication process ensures the confidentiality of printed documents and reduces the risk of unauthorised access.
Follow Me Printing
Follow me printing, also known as find me printing, is a system that gives users more control over their print jobs on a network. Instead of sending documents directly to a printer, the system holds the print jobs until the user approves them at a specific printer. By either, logging in, or scanning an ID card.
What Are The Benefits of Follow Me Printing?
Follow me printing offers several key benefits that make it an attractive choice for organisations of all sizes. Let’s explore these benefits in detail:
Enhanced Print Roaming
With follow me printing, users can release their print jobs from any follow me-enabled printing device. This flexibility allows them to avoid disruptions when designated printers are busy or out of service. Additionally, users do not need to configure any print applications on their personal computers or laptops, simplifying the printing process.
Improved Document Security
Print security is a significant concern for organisations, especially when dealing with sensitive information. Follow me printing requires users to authenticate themselves at the printer, eliminating the need for the print-and-sprint strategy often used to protect confidential documents. By providing secure access to devices, follow me printing ensures that confidential information doesn’t end up in the wrong hands. This is particularly crucial for industries with strict compliance regulations, such as education and healthcare.
Delegated Printing for Increased Productivity
Follow me printing offers flexibility for users who need to share print jobs through delegated printing. Assistants can securely handle printing tasks on behalf of their managers without IT assistance. This feature allows departments to maintain productivity even during staff absences, as print jobs can be easily shared among team members.
Personalised Printing Experience
Each user enjoys a personalised printing experience with follow me printing. Users can confidently print confidential documents on shared devices, knowing that they will be securely released only when they are physically present at the printer. This eliminates the need to rush to the printer to collect sensitive prints, providing a seamless and convenient printing experience.
Can My Business Use Follow Me Printing?
Depending on the machines your business uses, you might be able to set up follow me printing. It’s important to take a close look at how you currently do printing to make sure it’s secure and cost-effective. Consider the types of printers and devices you have. By doing this, you can figure out if follow me printing will work well with your setup. Think about how secure your current printing process is and if follow me printing could make it better. Also, look at the costs and see if there are ways to save money by making printing more efficient. This way, you can choose the right follow me printing system that fits your needs and helps your business.
What Printers Use Follow Me Printing?
Follow me printing is a software-based solution, and it’s not limited to specific types or brands of printers. Instead, it is designed to work with a variety of printers and multifunction devices. The key requirement is that the printers should be compatible with the follow me printing software that you choose to implement.
Many leading printer manufacturers offer follow me printing solutions, and these solutions can typically be integrated with a range of printers, including those from brands such as HP, Canon, Xerox, Ricoh, and others.
Is Follow Me Printing Worth It?
Whether follow me printing is worth it for your business depends on various factors, including your specific needs, the scale of your printing operations, and your priorities.
Here are some considerations to help you decide:
Security
Follow me printing enhances document security by requiring user authentication before releasing print jobs. If safeguarding sensitive information is a top priority for your business, the added security features may be worth the investment.
Cost Savings
Follow me printing can contribute to cost savings by reducing paper waste and unnecessary printing. If your business has a high volume of printing, the efficiency gains and reduced waste may offset the initial setup costs over time.
Flexibility and Convenience
The ability to release print jobs from any authorised printer within the network provides flexibility and convenience for users. Follow me printing can be a worthwhile solution.
Integrating Follow Me Printing
Setting up follow me printing can be done through various methods, depending on the organisation’s needs and the type of devices used. Here are a few approaches to consider:
Leveraging Built-in Security Functions
Some printers and multifunction devices offer built-in security functions that allow organisations to enable follow me features on individual machines. This approach works well for smaller organisations or those with a limited number of printers and users.
Centralised Server Solution
Larger organisations may require a more advanced solution, where print jobs are stored in a central server until they are released by the user. This approach ensures that print jobs are securely managed and can be accessed from any follow me-enabled printer on the network.
Seeking Professional Expertise
Implementing follow me printing can be complex, especially for organisations with diverse printing environments. In such cases, partnering with experienced professionals, can simplify the process. These experts can integrate follow me printing solutions with existing infrastructure and provide ongoing support to ensure optimal performance.
Follow Me Printing For Your Business
Follow me printing has emerged as a powerful solution for organisations looking to enhance security, streamline print workflows, and reduce costs. With its ability to provide users with greater control over their print jobs and ensure the confidentiality of sensitive documents, follow me printing is revolutionising the print environment.
By implementing follow me printing, organisations can benefit from enhanced print roaming, improved document security, increased productivity through delegated printing, and a personalised printing experience. Whether leveraging built-in security functions, adopting a centralised server solution, or seeking professional expertise, organisations have various avenues to implement this innovative printing solution.