Printing Best Practices

Organizing shared printers

A shared printer needs a name people recognize and a location they can find. Label the device in the room and use a matching name on the computers that print to it. If two printers sit near each other, the names have to distinguish them. "Printer" and "Printer (Copy)" are how jobs end up in the wrong tray.

Agree on the small courtesies that keep a shared device usable: who refills paper, who may cancel a job, and how long printed pages should sit before someone sets them aside. Sensitive documents should have a device or a release habit that fits the work. Do not leave that as an unstated assumption.

Understanding business print requirements

Not every document needs the same printer. Note which jobs need color, a particular paper size, or a private location. If most work is ordinary black-and-white letters, do not send it by habit to the only color device in the office. That habit is how a shared color supply runs out for the jobs that actually need it.

Selecting appropriate print settings

Before you print, look at the selected printer, the paper size, and whether the job is set to color. These three checks prevent the majority of "the printer is broken" moments that are really a mismatch.

• Confirm the destination matches the device you intend to walk to.
• Match the paper size to the paper in the tray.
• Use color only when the document needs it.
• Print a single test page before a long packet you have not printed before.
• Avoid fitting a document onto the wrong paper size just to force it through.

Reducing unnecessary printing

Unnecessary printing is work that did not need a page. Review habits before you review hardware. Drafts that could stay on screen, packets printed because a file is hard to find, and extra copies made "just in case" are the usual sources.

This is not a promise that printing less will reduce cost by a stated amount. It is a way to keep devices and supplies available for the documents that still need to be on paper. If people print because a process requires a signature or a physical file, that is a requirement, not waste.

Organizing supplies

Keep paper near the devices that use it, in a dry place, and in the sizes those devices actually run. Keep toner and ink identified by model. A supply cabinet that mixes every cartridge in one bin will eventually send the wrong box to the wrong floor.

Tell people where to note a low supply. The note should name the device and the item. Ordering is easier when one list collects those notes. Nothing here means a cartridge is in stock or will arrive on a schedule.

Reviewing equipment usage

Once a quarter, or after a move, ask a simple question in each work area: which printer do you use, and which one do you avoid? Compare the answers with the devices on your list. A printer nobody claims is either a spare you have chosen to keep or a device that should come off the active list.

You can see usage without monitoring software. Paper refills, supply replacements, and the queues people select are enough for a practical review.

Keeping basic device information organized

Keep one record with the model, the location, the name people see when they print, and the supply the device takes. Add a line for repeated problems. That record is the difference between a five-minute answer and a search through old email.

Managed print services and print fleet management are both ways to get help with this kind of organization. Whether either service applies depends on the environment and the arrangement. The habits in this guide are useful either way.