Welcome to our three part series on service contracts. Service contracts can vary for copiers, fax
machines and laser printers, so in this series I will cover them individually
in three separate articles. Just for
clarification the type of machines that I am covering in these articles are the
commercial types. Inkjet copiers, inkjet fax machines and inkjet printers are
not covered in this article. The need
for contracts on equipment such as these may not be cost effective. The equipment that I believe you should cover
on a service contract are high volume copy machines that are designed to make
thousands of copies, prints, scans or faxes per month.
Service contracts are similar to an insurance policy. They may or may not save you money. Your costs are fixed so you will know how much
per year you will spend instead of hoping that it won't break down too much or
have a serious or expensive repair during the year. There are many ways of paying for a service
contract. Most service companies will
bill you monthly, quarterly or annually.
If you choose to be billed monthly, your service company
will call at the end of each month and gather your meter reading. Then they will multiply the amount of copies
by your cost per copy. Some copiers can
also be equipped with a device that can send in the meter reading automatically
each month and eliminate this part of the procedure. If you don't make many copies I would choose
either an annual or quarterly billing or none at all. This is because most service companies charge
a monthly billing minimum and you might end up paying more. Another reason to choose quarterly or annually
would be the job of having to write a check each month and deal with getting
the meter readings. On an annual
contract make sure that you keep an eye on how many copies you produce or you
will be paying for copies that you don't use or you may have to renew too soon.
Cost per copy
Cost per copy is the most common way of determining the
price for service contracts. Each time
you make a copy the meter clicks just like the odometer on your car. Many shoppers buy their machine according to
the price of the cost per copy, since the service contract costs can often
exceed the price of the copier. An
average cost per copy is around 1.5 cents per copy. This could be lower or higher depending upon
some variables.
o How many copies you make per month.
o What type and age of machine that is being covered.
o Environment plays a part because if it is in a dirty environment
it will need twice as much service than a machine that is in a clean
environment.
Figuring copies per month or per year
Determining the amount of copies per month is the most
important information you will need when shopping for a service contract. If you have an existing copier that has been
on a contract for awhile then this will be easy. Just look at your history. You need to also take in account for any slow
downs or increases in copying that your company is experiencing. If you do not
have a history there is a way of estimating. If you know how many reams of paper that you
use per month you can multiply by 500 because there are 500 sheets of paper in
a ream of paper. This will get you in
the ball park.
Coverage
Understanding what is covered and what is not covered is
very important to find out before you purchase a service contract. Many service contracts do not cover Staples,
Paper and document feeder belts and there may be some others, so check with
your service provider. Does the contract
include supplies? Some supply items are
toner, developer, heat rollers and drums. Find out what the hours they are available and
days of the week that they operate. Which
holidays do they take off? What is the
response time? Is their four hour response
time more expensive than their next day service? Most service contracts do not cover abuse or
neglect. So be cautious with those paper
clips and staples as they can cause an expensive repair and it probably won't
be covered. Get all of this in writing
then there will not be any surprises.
Accessories
Some companies charge extra for each individual accessory. Such as, an automatic document feeder,
finisher, and large capacity cassettes. Some
may still be charging a flat rate for each unit but I don't see this too often.
Scanning
We live in a new age and with digital copiers you can now
scan to your computers. Using the
scanner puts wear and tear on the automatic document feeder but the parts in
the copier are not being used. Digital copier machines can count scan only
images, so there may be an additional cost for this. I know that service companies in our industry
are kind of scratching their heads on this one because it may be hard to charge
for this type of service.
Color Copiers
Service contracts for full color copiers and MFP's are
essentially the same as black and white service contracts except that you will
be paying for a color copy or a black and white copy. Some average pricing will be around 1.5cents
per copy for black and white and 7.5-10 cents per copy for color. If you have ever purchased toner for a color
unit you know that color toner is always more expensive.
Connectivity
Some service companies will set up your newly installed
copier to your network free of charge. You should always have your IT person on-site
at the time of installation, so they can answer questions about your particular
network. Installing drivers and
connecting equipment to your network is fairly easy depending on your system. Existing network problems or additions, will
most likely not be covered on the copier service contract unless you make an
agreement with your service company ahead of time.
Most network issues can be
handled with your Computer specialist anyway.
You will have to decide for yourself or your company if you
will purchase a service contract for your copy machine. Many companies do pretty well without one. They always have the machine serviced and
parts and supplies replaced as needed. The
only problem is when you have a circuit board or a time consuming problem to
repair. This can sometimes cost you a
hefty amount of money and a service contract can really pay off then. Remember a service contract is like an
insurance policy. It can create peace of
mind and you will know in advance what your costs will be.
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