PrintVision and its channel partner IKON Office Solutions, team up to bring intranet-based job submission and job management to IKON's outsourcing customer - Boston University. IKON ExpressPrint (SM) is a customized version of PrintVision packaged and sold through IKON's Outsourcing and Solutions businesses. In 2002, BU began evaluating ways to increase the efficiency and utilization of their existing print center. They determined that web-based job submission could greatly improve site utilization by enhancing ease of use and customer service. Boston University's Assistant Vice President, Peter Fiedler commented "IKON ExpressPrint (SM) fit the bill - it was easy to use and gave our faculty, staff and students a much easier way to get jobs to the site."

Formerly known as the Boston University Copy Center, Image X-Press serves over 27,000 students and 11,000 staff, and operates three facilities: a commercial store, a copy center at the Law School, and a production center for large printing and copying jobs.

The Challenge:

• Increase the efficiency and utilization of their existing print center
• Create an easier way to get "printable" jobs to the site and try to eliminate iterative paper approvals and re-submission of files
• Simplify the process of specifying jobs with an accurate, graphical electronic job ticket
• Simplify the process of creating "print-ready" PDF from within any application, Mac or PC

• End-to-end job specification, dynamic pricing and production tracking system available from the "print" menu
• Enable students and faculty to create and reliably produce professional looking materials from their desktop computer
• Link campus-wide users to a centralized production facility within the Boston University firewall

• Faster turnaround times
  
• Increased production productivity with minimal file submission errors and rework
  
• Better departmental cost control and reporting
  
• Improved quality and consistency across multiple product lines
  
• "Above all, submitting jobs must be simple and convenient. IKON ExpressPrint has certainly satisfied both of those requirements."

Boston University's use of IKON ExpressPrint/PrintVision for connecting campus-wide users, pricing the job online and submitting a print-ready PDF file saves time, money and aggravation for BU, while simultaneously driving increased volume to the print center.