Ricoh Europe expands partner network to simplify web-to-print for print service providers
Tags: Partnerships / Ricoh / Trade Fairs 2010
Ricoh Europe PLC has entered into a partnership with NowDocs, a provider of Web-to-Print solutions and services. Through this partnership Ricoh will offer a range of NowPrint Web-to-Print solutions available in Europe for use with Ricoh production printers.
The partnership builds on Ricoh’s decades of experience in mission-critical printing, adding an innovative offering that can be tailored to the needs of individual printing operations. By using Ricoh’s network of experts, print service providers can take advantage of a myriad of products and solutions from Ricoh and its partners that help them enhance their range of value added services, better support their clients and solidify long-term relationships.
“Web-to-Print remains extremely topical in the printing industry and adoption continues to increase,” says Simon Tapley, Workflow Solutions Manager, Ricoh Europe Production Printing Business Group. “There also remain a wide number of views about the best way to implement it. For print businesses with limited in-house IT expertise, implementing web-to-print solutions can be challenging. Our goal in engaging in this partnership was to provide a solution that is extremely cost-effective, easy to use and hosted in Europe, while conforming to all European security requirements and standards. NowPrint from NowDocs meets all of these requirements and is scalable, so it will grow as the business grows.”
NowPrint from NowDocs, in the market for 10 years, is a hosted Software-as-a-Service platform built to serve a range of print service provider needs, from a small shop with two orders per day to the largest print service providers receiving two orders per second. Ricoh customers can now benefit from the Web 2.0 experience and easier ordering via the web. The solution features an active document previewer that allows the user to visualise the final job on screen before it has been printed. Its basic configuration offers the ability to submit adhoc print files, select items from a print-on-demand catalogue, order non-print items and perform basic personalisation. Each customer site has a unique URL which reflects the customer’s brand identity and will host unlimited numbers of product catalogues per customer.
Using a hosted web-to-print model means the print service provider can securely access the entire system using only a web browser, with no need for an on-site server. The NowPrint ASAP solution allows print service providers to establish a Web-to-Print portal within hours and begin receiving orders immediately. It also offers upgrade paths and easy integration with back-end systems, allowing customers to maximise previous technology investments. This allows print service providers to easily expand capabilities as their business grows and as their customers’ needs change.
”Ricoh’s affordable, customer-focused solutions and services help print service providers capture and retain more print opportunities, increase profitability and optimise automated production processes,” added Tapley. “We welcome this addition to our product portfolio and the new business opportunities it will present for our customers.”
Ricoh production print customers can sign-up to a ‘try before you buy’ scheme via the new Ricoh Business Driver Programme’s extranet. They can also find out more about Ricoh software, e-learning, consulting and services. While the solution is easy to install, print service providers also have the peace of mind that Ricoh Professional Services staff will be available to support any more complex implementations if required, including integration with internal or external systems for increased automation.
To find out more about Ricoh production printing solutions visit www.ricoh-europe.com or visit Ricoh at IPEX, Stand 12-D130 .
About Ricoh
Ricoh Company, Ltd (“Ricoh Company”) is a global technology leader, specialising in the office and production printing markets. Ricoh works with organisations around the world to modernise work environments and optimise document efficiency. With over 108,500 employees worldwide, it operates in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific, China and Japan.
Ricoh Europe Holdings Plc is a public limited company and the EMEA headquarters of Ricoh Company with operations located in London, United Kingdom and Amstelveen, the Netherlands. The EMEA operations comprise over 35 sales subsidiaries and affiliates.
In the fiscal year ended 31 March 2009, revenues from Ricoh’s EMEA operations totaled over YEN 523.4 billion accounting for 25.0 per cent of Ricoh Company’s global revenues. Ricoh Company’s worldwide sales totaled over YEN 2,091.7 billion during the year ended 31 March 2009.
About NowDocs
NowDocs® is an award winning provider of document distribution solutions. Since 1998, the company’s innovative technologies have helped more than 3,500 organizations worldwide reduce costs, improve information accuracy and accelerate business processes. From banks to government, hospitals to school districts, and manufacturers to distributors, our customers have come to rely on NowDocs for print on demand, electronic forms, intelligent check printing and scalable document distribution solutions. For more information on NowDocs® visit www.nowdocs.com
