Although everyone aims for a paperless office, in reality, printing is still an integral part of most organizations’ day-to-day operations. Unfortunately, printing is still prone to inefficiencies and high levels of waste.
By implementing Managed Print Services (MPS), organizations can set up print networks, purchase print equipment, track print usage, view meter readings, keep an eye on user authorization, and eliminate inefficiencies that lead to unnecessary waste. FMAudit and EKM are the best available Managed Print Services available in the market. Here’s how they compare to each other!
What Is EKM?
EKM is a modular Managed Print Service that is highly scalable, robust and secure. The goal of EKM is to deliver an optimized print solution. To boost your print productivity, EKM aims to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your organization’s print management workflow and minimize waste.
EKM helps with demand forecasting and supply chain management to maintain higher service with an optimum level of inventory holding. It is available as both a cloud-based and flexible service model.
What Is FMAudit?
FMAudit is a cloud-based service that simplifies meter collection, billing, service delivery, alert notification and remote monitoring. It takes away the complexity of managing the multi-location print environment by providing a unified view of all print devices.
FMAudit can work with your existing software, hardware or any IT resources without requiring additional installation. It automates inventory management by automatically placing purchase orders when necessary. For instance, when your toner or paper is almost empty, FMAudit will automatically send a notification to the MPS provider to supply paper or toner for that printer. It comes with a flexible subscription-based service.
EKM vs FMAudit
Both FMAudit and EKM are top leaders in the MPS market. They streamline printer management processes and minimize costs associated with printing. But there are certain areas where one tool excels compared to the other.
Which Offers Better Tools?
In today’s world, businesses are operating in multiple locations with an overwhelming number of print devices. As such, it would be cumbersome and inefficient to physically collect meter readings from every device at every site.
Both FMAudit and EKM report reliable meter readings while eliminating the burden of collecting and reporting meter readings. FMAudit manages the meter collection process as well as handles multiple billing and schedules service deliveries.
EKM does more than just providing meter readings. It reports on processed meter reading, allows you to check for errors quickly and reduces human involvement with its AI Algorithms. Its automated process can save you a lot of time because it lowers the likelihood of human error. In turn, this saves both you and your customers a lot of money.
Best: EKM
Which Has Better Reporting?
Reporting tools provide greater transparency regarding the usage of each device including total costs and overall waste. These tools also offer better insights into toner needs, printer repair, maintenance and supply chain management, helping you identify areas where your business can save money.
FMAudit automatically generates reports for managing your customer’s printing environment. It gives you access to cutting-edge features that can be used to build custom reports. You’re also able to send these reports based on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly schedule.
EKM provides reports as well in order to ensure optimal print value for your business. You’ll receive information about various printing behaviors and wastage reports. In addition, EKM will offer tailored recommendations that will help your business overcome printing challenges in your current print environment.
Best: FMAudit
Which Has Better Price for Value?
With a Managed Print Service, you can improve your print workflow efficiencies, reduce waste and save nearly 30% on printing costs. The cost of Managed Print Services depends on several factors, including the number of printers connected, your print volume and the availability of cloud or mobile printing.
The cost of subscribing to FMAudit and EKM depends upon the number and types of machines, toner, color usage, paper and output volume. Both MPS solutions offer a wide variety of features like cloud printing, mobile printing, rule-based printing and role-based authentication printing with enhanced security.
Both EKM and FMAudit offer a 30-day trial to try the features. After the trial, an EKM subscription starts at $32.49 per month. FMAudit’s subscription cost depends on your needs and you can learn more about final costs by speaking with the FMAudit sales team.
Best: FMAudit
Which Has Better Analytics?
Analytics allows businesses to focus on specific data points, get actionable insights and identify areas that could use improvement. These insights improve profitability, eliminate productivity gaps and drive business growth.
Managed Print Services source a significant amount of data from your print environment regarding your print behaviors, processes, financial expenses and environmental impacts. Both FMAudit and EKM provide excellent analytics by mining data from your print environments. These analytics help manage your brand identify, prioritize inefficiencies, spot wasteful printing processes and reduce costs.
Both Managed Print Services help re-engineer inefficient printing processes and generate actionable plans, providing businesses with a full picture of their printer fleet’s environmental impact. Unlike FMAudit, EKM offers PPC expertise and organizes monthly meetings to discuss strategies as well as suggestions about possible improvements. EKM also supports account management, campaign creations, product optimization and monthly reporting, all of which ensure an impressive return on investment.
Best: EKM
Does the Platform Have Good Support?
Sometimes customers might struggle to keep their MSP solutions running. The provider’s response time to requests and their overall customer service strategy can help ease customer stress levels. As such, it’s important to choose a platform with a reliable support system.
FMAudit and EKM both have best-in-class support teams that can get you and your customers through any and all obstacles. Both platforms have an online customer support center where customers can submit their support requests. They provide troubleshooting tips and guides on how to perform routine preventative maintenance.
Additionally, both MSP options support organizations in choosing the perfect corporate-level printer and provide installation information as well as how-to guides. EKM is smaller in size than FMAudit but it’s still big enough to cope with issues that customers might face. EKM also assigns partners to each client to help them with their problems.
Best: Both
Find the Right MPS Now
All businesses rely on printing as part of their operations, but managing printers, toner refills and security can be burdensome. Managed Print Services fills this gap by handling the print workflow and overall printing management for you.
Both EKM and FMAudit help you eliminate inefficiencies, ease the burden of security, order supplies and reduce unexpected repair costs. However, one might be better for you than the other. Implementing the right Managed Print Service reduces your printing costs by up to 30% so choose wisely!
