Seton Hall University

Managed Print Program Policy

Purpose

The Department of Information Technology (DoIT) at Seton Hall University offers a managed print program to support the printing needs of the community.  This document defines the policy governing the management of the University’s fleet of printers, including funding, deployment, and responsible maintenance and disposal of all printing related devices.  The managed print program, or BluePrint, ensures that departments have reliable, secure, up-to-date, and supported printing, copying and scanning resources while also ensuring the University is providing this service in a sustainable and cost-efficient manner.

Scope

This policy encompasses the initial purchase, replacement, management, support, and funding of the University’s printer fleet. It includes all Legacy Devices previously purchased with University funds as well as newly leased devices. DoIT is responsible for the procurement, delivery and installation of new print systems, and for the orderly removal and secure disposal of replaced printers. The University printer fleet includes Multi-Function Print Devices (MFD) sized to accommodate 10-20 users work teams; and department printers sized to accommodate 3-10 users teams. Both color and black/white printers will be included in the printer fleet and will be provisioned based on an analysis of the work teams needs

Definitions

Click Charge(s) - An operating expense that is charged back to departments for the number of prints or copies produced by a printer.  The Click Charge covers the cost of consumables like toner.    Desktop or Personal Printer - A printer which is directly connected to a personal computer rather than connected to and shared across the University network.    BluePrint - The name of the University’s managed print program.   Legacy Printer - A deployed printer which was either leased or purchased from a former print supplier and continues to be supported by the former supplier.     Multi-Function Print Device(s) (MFD) - A network-connected, shared resource that consolidates the functionality of a printer, copier, scanner and/or fax into a single device.   Pharos Secure Release - A solution that places print jobs into a holding state until the user authenticates and releases their print job at a designated MFD.  Users can release their print jobs by swiping with their University ID card or entering their username and password at the selected MFD.  Secure Release protects privacy, supports compliance mandates (e.g. FERPA, PCI) and reduces the amount of paper, toner and electricity used. 

Policy

The University must seek to ensure that its print assets are procured, deployed and managed effectively.  To that end, the DoIT is responsible for the acquisition and management of the University’s fleet of print devices and the Chief Information Officer is responsible for oversight of the BluePrint program.  Printer acquisitions will be centrally funded by the University and administered by DoIT.  All printers must be acquired from the University’s preferred supplier and each printer will be leased and under warranty for five years.  Departments are responsible for the operating costs associated with their print devices.  In order to reduce cost and manage its resources more effectively, the University will consolidate its print assets wherever possible by deploying MFD’s in place of less efficient and more costly Desktop Printers.  All print devices will be networked and the use of locally-connected, Desktop Printers will not be permitted unless approved by Human Resources.  All printers will be centrally managed and supported by DoIT with support from the University’s printing partner.  

Benefits and Features

The benefits and key features of BluePrint include:

  1. Predictable replacement of print devices and the ability to schedule deployments throughout the fiscal year.
  2. Adoption of standard printer configurations which will reduce support costs and improve service response times.
  3. A five-year warranty for all printers, which covers support and service. 
  4. Enhanced security features with the requirement of Pharos Secure Release printing.  
  5. An environmentally sustainable approach to print management, through the deployment of more energy efficient devices, and the reduction of consumable supplies.
  6. Reduction of the waste and cost associated with unused supplies through the automated delivery and replenishment of toner and maintenance kits to each department when designated thresholds are reached.  Elimination of desktop printers replaced by shared printers having enhanced features and a lower per-page cost.
  7. Additional convenience for faculty and employees to “print anywhere”.  Faculty and employees will be able to release their print job on any device around the campus.

Renewal and Support 

Devices included in the University fleet will be placed on a five-year warranty and replacement cycle.  All printers in the fleet will be serviced and supported by DoIT with support from the University’s vendor partner. When printers are scheduled for replacement, DoIT will work with department representatives to assess current usage and print requirements for the future and will identify an appropriate print solution. 

Funding

The BluePrint program will be supported by a central University budget that will be established at the beginning of each fiscal year by DoIT in collaboration with the Division of Finance.  The BluePrint fund will be administered by DoIT, which will also manage the inventory of all University printers in the fleet.  The BluePrint budget will be set annually based on the number of high-end, MFD’s in the fleet and the approved number of new MFD’s to be added.  This University fund will be used exclusively for the acquisition and renewal of the devices in the printer fleet.  

Departments will be responsible for their print use on whichever device they release a print job on.   Usage will be charged back to each department pursuant to the Click Charge for that device and the paper cost.  Charges will be automatically be billed to the faculty member’s or employee’s home department monthly.   

Program Oversight and Management

The BluePrint program is administered by the DoIT and the Chief Information Officer is responsible for oversight.  On a semi-annual basis, the outcomes of the BluePrint program will be shared with the Administrative Computing Steering Committee who will jointly assess printing, scanning and copying needs of the University.  Each year, the Division of Finance will work with DoIT to establish the University fund to support BluePrint.  The Division of Finance will seek to ensure that chargebacks to departments are processed each month based on Click Charges.

Printer Deployment

With the BluePrint program, the process of deploying departmental printers will consist of several steps. The first step is assessment, in which all Legacy Printers are evaluated, and departmental usage and printing practices are documented.  The next step is configuration, where DoIT works with the University's managed print partner to design a departmental solution, based on best practices, that identifies printers to be installed and their corresponding locations.  Once this design is complete, the solution will be reviewed with departmental representatives, and any requested changes will be considered. Following this, printers will be ordered, installed and configured for use by all departmental personnel.  

After a BluePrint solution is fully deployed in a department, DoIT can provide post implementation analytics and usage statistics so that department representatives can assess the effectiveness of this new solution. Adjustments can be made if the post implementation assessment suggests a need for change.

Questions

Questions about the BluePrint program may be directed to the Technology Service Desk at (973) 275-2222

Responsible Offices

  • Department of Information Technology

Approval

Approved

This policy was approved by Dr. Mary Meehan, Interim President, on the recommendation of the Executive Cabinet, on May 9, 2019.

Effective Date

May 9th, 2019