SAVE Award 2011 Ideas

I am new to the government and was shocked to find out that I will have my own printer on my desk. This is a totally unnecessary cost to the taxpayers. Not only does it encourage excess printing using paper and ink since it is so "convenient", but it discourages healthy movement by employees by asking them to get up out of their chairs to retrieve something they printed. Providing a printer to every employee is not a... more »

I suggest that printers ordered in the future be models that include duplex capability. Printing on both sides of the paper will save trees and money.

The removal of printers from offices would force employees to find new more efficient ways to communicate. The savings from paper and toners could be used to provide ways for those without internet access to get information.

All documentation within our systems should be electronic, as it allows us to better manage, organize, store, transport and replicate information. We will save a lot, by implementing this initiative completely. With the production of large amounts of documentation there is a lot of overhead.

Agencies must supply not only the printers but all the parts to maintain them – along with service contracts and of course, paper.... more »

You can reduce the amount of printers that are used throughout the Federal Government. I see people complain because they have to walk 10ft to get a printed document. Some will use the excuse that nobody can see what I am printing. To resolve that would be to purchase larger copiers that require codes to be used for each employee to print. This will reduce the TCO and should see an immediate ROI. It will reduce paper... more »

Share printers to save money on the printers and the cartridges, and use less energy.

Another way of saving CBP and the Dept. of Homeland Security more money with purchasing new Samsung Laser Printers for $45.00 and laser ink cartridges for $36.87 each. They are highly rated by users and reviews from CNET.com. We currently spend approx anywhere from $300-500 per printer and approx $100.00 per ink cartridges. This would add up to larger savings across the board for new equipment purchases and replacement... more »

Not all fonts use the same amount of ink. Using certain fonts can result in up to 31% savings when printing many routine memos, outlines, and other "non-presentation quality" correspondence, compared to other, "standard" fonts.
Having IT personnel switch to ink-sparing fonts on a default basis could save hundreds of thousands of dollars in notoriously expensive printer ink and toner cartridges. [At inflated retail GSA... more »

Personal Printers are, quite possibly, the single biggest waste of government resources.

It costs $9.44 annually to power one small desktop printer used at a minimal rates. *

In my office alone I count over 100 personal printers, and this is in addition to the two dozen or so massive laser printers (which, themselves cost around $100 apiece annually)

By eliminating all of the personal printers in just this office... more »

Most desktops here at my office and six other office I provide I.T. services to have personal printers assigned to them when there is a network printer two cubes down. When adding up costs for toner and color cartridges across all agencies this amounts to an incredible amount of money. Costs associated:

1. Lump sum of printer cost ranging $50 to $500

2. Toner or printer cartridge cost ranging $45 to $150

3. Depreciation... more »

Contracted Balck and White printers cost about 1.5 cents per page where laser costs 7 center per page. Inkjet costs about 20 cents per page. Contracting Xerox or like machines could save millions in operating overhead

All contract maintenace agreements for not only repair of equipment but includes toner as well. The new machines are extremly sophisticated and can do myriad functions saving end users time and effort as... more »

JPL has a contract for renting large copy machines. Our 4 story building alone has approximately 8 large copy machines, plus numerous network printers, faxes, and pdf scanners. The large machine hardly gets used anymore. You can now email presentations and people bring their laptop or ipad and have the presentations electronically, and you can present via projectors or TV's plugged in. Now we no longer copy large... more »

I’ve noticed a trend in my office that we’re lacking when it comes to network based printing, scanning and copying capabilities. Simple our office is way behind. We have no network based copiers, scanners or Fax machines and many of our network printers are past their prime. There also seems to be a trend for employees to get Multi-Function Ink jet printers at their desks rather than invest in shared resources. Now... more »

Many offices have multifunctional photocopier devices (or reprographic equipment). These machines are able to copy, fax, print, and scan. Instead of buying different pieces of equipment (i.e., a multifunctional copier machine, a printer, a fax machine, and a scanner all for an office), just buy the one multifunctional copier machine.

As a result, you are no longer buying and maintaining a minimum of 4 different pieces... more »

Colleagues continue to bring multiple copies of color printed material to some meetings. This is totally unnecessary unless the meeting is of a "very" formal nature. Black and white copies are just as good as long as charts and graphs are done in a manner to be readable in gray scale.