Saving energy and resources when you print – Konica Minolta’s guide to being more efficient

London, UK | 6 February 2023

January and February are traditionally cold and dark months in the UK which amongst other things means that energy bills increase significantly. When it comes to running a busy workplace (or indeed a home office) all savings are welcome, particularly with the well-publicised high price of energy due in part to the ongoing war in Ukraine and disruptions to gas supplies from Russia. If you haven’t already done so, now is an ideal time to look at how your workplace uses its print facilities and to ensure you are gaining the greatest efficiencies and performance from your printing. To help with this, Konica Minolta has published a new brochure entitled: ‘Switch On Power Save – Rethink the Way You Print’ which gives some handy tips on how to make the most of your Konica Minolta bizhub print devices.



Optimising energy usage

Here is a checklist of steps you can take to ensure your print devices are running at an optimum balance of energy efficiency and usability (bear in mind this will mean longer warm-up times and should be weighed against the time constraints of users):
 

Low power mode

By changing the low power mode setting from 15 to two minutes, your bizhub’s display will turn off sooner and reduce the power consumption when not in use.
 

Sleep mode

Change the time from 20 to two minutes to increase your power-savings potential. This option is particularly useful in situations where the bizhub device is used more rarely or sporadically.
 

Power saving fax/scan mode

The fusing unit is the biggest consumer of power in a bizhub or any similar multifunction print device, but it doesn’t need to be permanently heated up. Set this mode to ‘Enable’ to keep the fusing unit temperature low and to reduce unnecessary power consumption.
 

Timer and calendar function

To avoid the inadvertent shutdown of a bizhub device, Konica Minolta’s low power and sleep modes each have a timer and calendar function that allows the system to be activated on a daily or weekly basis, or according to the calendar date. For example, normal business days can be defined with an automatic start-up and shutdown time. For weekends and holidays, you can select a complete power-off mode to avoid unnecessary power usage.
 

Dynamic Eco Timer

This weekly timer manages the times for the sleep and operating modes for each day of the week. Enhanced by a learning function, it automatically adapts to your actual usage based on a four-week analysis, making it easy for users to take advantage of all available saving modes and to make intelligent energy savings.
 

Eco Print

When the bizhub system is in sleep mode, the control panel isn’t automatically activated when a print job comes in. Power is provided to the required device components only, to minimise unnecessary power consumption.
 

Eco Meter

The Eco Meter visualises the device’s contribution to the environment and helps you to assess how ell your settings are performing. The displayed eco information includes toner and paper savings and summarises the times in the different operating and saving modes. This can be shown from three different perspectives: for the entire device, for an account, and for you as user.
 

Optimising your print resources

Along with saving energy on your bizhub devices, another obvious way to optimise your print costs is to save on the resources you use (i.e. ink/toner and paper etc). Here are further tips to help you reduce unnecessary costs:
 

Print only what’s important

It is perhaps obvious, but every print job consumes energy. Bundling copy and print jobs together (rather than running lots of individual jobs throughout the day) can help to optimise energy consumption. Proofreading documents before you print also helps to avoid wasteful reprints.
 

Duplex / N-up / monochrome printing

You can choose duplex (double-sided) printing, or the N-up function to print multiple pages on a single sheet, both of which can help to save consumables and energy. We also recommend using monochrome printing as the default and only using colour only when truly necessary. The automatic deletion of blank pages during copy and scan processes is another way to avoid waste.
 

Follow-Me Printing

Follow-Me Printing enables you to decide whether a document really needs to be printed or perhaps something needs to be changed again before you do so. This also prevents unnecessary reheating cycles and forgotten prints.
 

Copy programmes

Saving settings as favourites or using existing templates, like ID card copy, helps to always select the correct settings directly, minimising misprints due to mistakes.
 

Choosing the most suitable paper for your needs

Today’s recycled papers rival conventional brands, with the differences hard to spot. What’s more, paper from the sustainable circular economy is often cheaper than that made from fresh fibres. You can use recycled paper that meets EN 12281 (the European standard for copy paper for dry toner imaging processes) in our bizhub devices without any issues.
 

Other ways to save

Use Remote Services

Using Remote Services for print requirements has deservedly become a popular option. Technical problems can be rectified at short notice without an on-site service technician visit. This not only saves on support costs, but also reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
 

Upgrade your printer fleet

It may make sense to upgrade your printer fleet to newer devices that are more energy efficient. This always depends on the individual circumstances, but it is worth investigating the options and potential savings.
 

Digital workplace solutions

Konica Minolta can help you increase efficiency, further reduce costs, and shape a responsible digital workplace with our range of digital solutions. They’ll support your transition from paper-based tasks to automated digital workflows, which allow you to consume even fewer resources and prevent even more waste.

 
For further details on how to use these tips on your specific device, please contact your Customer Success Manager or Account Manager for more information on this service.
Alternatively, you can access the Konica Minolta Online User Guides - https://manuals.konicaminolta.eu/konicaminolta/
Visit our Customer Support page for further help and support:
www.konicaminolta.co.uk/en-gb/support/customer-support
 

London, UK |

Konica Minolta to demonstrate how to reduce print costs and waste at Schools & Academies Show

Konica Minolta Business Solutions (UK) Ltd will demonstrate the efficiency and sustainability benefits of a smart print solution at the Schools & Academies Show, which is taking place on 20th November 2024 at the NEC Birmingham.