When businesses evaluate their IT costs, printing is frequently overlooked. Yet unmanaged print environments consistently account for a disproportionate share of operational expenditure — through inflated consumable costs, device downtime, and the hidden burden on IT teams. Pairing a well-structured managed print service with comprehensive IT managed support services creates a unified, efficient workplace technology environment that reduces waste and improves productivity.

This blog covers what each service involves, the tangible benefits they deliver, and how to approach implementation effectively.

Understanding a Managed Print Service

A managed print service (MPS) transfers responsibility for your organisation’s entire print fleet — including printers, multifunction devices, consumables, and maintenance — to a specialist provider. Rather than purchasing equipment outright and managing servicing internally, you pay a predictable cost per page or fixed monthly fee.

A comprehensive managed print service typically delivers:

• Fleet rationalisation — right-sizing the number and type of devices across your estate
• Automated consumable replenishment — toner and ink ordered and delivered before running out
• Proactive device monitoring — issues identified and resolved before they cause downtime
• Usage reporting — detailed analytics on print volumes, costs, and behaviours by department
• Environmental reporting — tracking paper and energy consumption to support sustainability goals
• Security — print job authentication, data-at-rest encryption, and secure release printing

The Business Case for Managed Print

Many organisations do not know how much they spend on printing until they measure it. A managed print service typically reduces print costs by 20–30% in the first year alone, with further savings realised through ongoing optimisation.

Beyond cost, the operational gains are equally significant:

• IT staff spend less time on printer calls and consumable orders
• Employees experience fewer device outages and print failures
• Compliance is improved through controlled, auditable print workflows
• New devices are maintained and replaced within the agreement, eliminating unexpected capital expenditure

What IT Managed Support Services Provide

IT managed support services extend the proactive management principle across your broader technology infrastructure. Where a managed print service handles your print estate, IT managed support services take ownership of your servers, networks, endpoints, cloud platforms, and cybersecurity posture.

The scope of a typical IT managed support services agreement includes:

Why Print and IT Support Work Better Together

Managing print devices and IT infrastructure through separate providers creates unnecessary complexity. When a printer issue is network-related, two support teams need to coordinate — slowing resolution and frustrating users. Bringing both under a unified managed print service and IT managed support services model through a single provider eliminates this friction.

Integration benefits include:

• A single point of contact for all workplace technology issues
• Unified monitoring that captures print device performance alongside broader infrastructure health
• Simplified billing and contract management
• Coordinated security policies covering both print and IT systems
• Faster incident resolution when issues cross device and network boundaries

Print Security: An Often-Overlooked Risk

Printers and multifunction devices are endpoints. They hold data in internal memory, connect to corporate networks, and can be exploited if not properly secured. A responsible managed print service addresses this by incorporating print security into your broader cybersecurity framework — something that becomes seamless when the same provider also delivers IT managed support services.

Key print security measures include secure print release (users authenticate at the device before documents print), automatic hard-drive encryption, firmware update management, and audit trails for all print activity.

Getting Started: A Practical Approach

The first step towards a managed print and IT support model is an honest assessment of the current environment. How many devices are in use? What does the print estate cost in total? What IT issues consume the most support time? Armed with this data, a provider can design a service that addresses real pain points rather than delivering a one-size-fits-all package.

Transition planning should include a clear communication timeline for staff, a defined handover period with parallel running where appropriate, and agreed escalation procedures from day one.

Conclusion

A well-implemented managed print service, combined with robust IT managed support services, gives businesses a technology foundation that is cost-controlled, secure, and operationally resilient. Renaissance Computer Services Limited provides both services under a unified management framework, ensuring that every layer of your workplace technology — from the printer on the floor to the server in the cloud — is performing at its best.