New contract for copiers saves Lackawanna County $83,000

BY CHARLES SCHILLINGER
STAFF WRITER
Published: Thursday, March 12, 2009
Updated: Thursday, March 12, 2009 6:48 AM EDT

Lackawanna County will save $83,000 a year on copier machines, eliminating 15 of 78 copiers in county offices with a new contract approved by commissioners Wednesday.

Among the 64 departments of county government that takes up 27 buildings, there are 438 copiers, printers and fax machines, said county deputy director of purchasing Jim McLaine. But through efficiency checks and competitive bidding, he said the county is finding some savings.

The county asked for bids to replace 78 of the approximately 100 copiers the county owns or leases. Scranton-based Topp Business Solutions won the contract, which will eliminate all county-owned copiers and give county offices new, leased copiers.

Mr. McLaine said when the county bids out the remainder of the copiers, printers and fax machines, he expects there to be even more savings for the county.

“I think we’re on sound track here for the future,” he said.

The county also bid out printing of the 2009 county newsletter — but only two companies bid, and one was disqualified. Printing 70,000 copies for each edition of the quarterly county newsletter will cost the county $37,100 this year. The newsletter is funded by the hotel tax.

The bid was won by Dunmore-based Universal Printing Co.

Contact the writer: cschillinger@timesshamrock.com

Ricoh cuts 2010/11 operating profit target by 32 pct

TOKYO, March 13 (Reuters) - Japan's Ricoh Co Ltd (7752.T), the world's largest copier maker, said on Friday it had cut its operating profit target for the year starting April 2010 by a third due to a firmer yen.

It now expects profit of 170 billion yen ($1.7 billion), compared with its previous goal of 250 billion yen announced a year ago.

Ricoh also said it aims for 2.3 trillion yen in revenues for the 2010/11 business year, compared with its previous target of 2.5 trillion yen.

The new targets are based on foreign exchange assumptions of 90 yen to the dollar and 120 yen per euro. Its earlier assumptions were 105 yen to the dollar and 155 yen per euro.

WA state agency pays 10 times more per photocopy

They're starting to catch on up there in Washington.

One department is paying for 950,000 images per month, "...the Department of Ecology pays four cents per copy and must pay for 950,000 copies a month, whether it prints that many or not.

Last December, this department was billed $15,493 for copies it never made.

In an article here the good people of Washington state have lawmakers who are really looking out for their taxpayers.

Where one department is paying 4 cents, another is paying 0.004/image.

The Department of Printing billed agencies $50,000 for assessments done by OkiData and Lexmark -- but some departments have taken advantage of "free" assessments.

Pam Derkacht, Assistant Director of Customer Services for the Department of Printing says, "It's really easy for any agency or any large organization to want to take the free assessment but it always results in "You need more equipment or you need newer, upgraded equipment."

Text of the TV article is here.