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8 the hub 01/2013<br />
T R E N D S<br />
>>><br />
According to Andrew Griffith,<br />
product manager for office products<br />
at <strong>Konica</strong> <strong>Minolta</strong> South Africa<br />
printing and output devices<br />
have long transcended their one<br />
dimensional role as print, copy, fax<br />
and scan machines. The focus is now<br />
on moving document management<br />
out of the back office shadows and<br />
managing other repositories through<br />
enterprise content management<br />
software, like Microsoft SharePoint.<br />
Stepping out of the box<br />
Furthermore, issues that were pertinent over a decade<br />
ago, such as converging printing and IT technology, have<br />
long been conquered, placing document management<br />
suppliers on an amazing technology curve, where printing and<br />
output devices can be used to optimise businesses processes<br />
by driving down business costs and improving productivity.<br />
Our focus is not merely on supplying a commodity, but rather<br />
on delivering the value of enhanced productivity and a<br />
reduction of what is an operational expense to the business,<br />
that is ultimately derived from the device’s customised<br />
optimisation capabilities.<br />
Businesses should thus look past the hardware and focus on<br />
how the device can be integrated into business. In addition,<br />
while document management is still key to cope with today’s<br />
deluge of data, a combination of offline and online document<br />
management can provide companies with a massive boost in<br />
productivity.<br />
Proof of this, is <strong>Konica</strong> <strong>Minolta</strong> South Africa’s latest<br />
achievement in becoming the first South African business<br />
within its sector to enable customers to integrate their digital<br />
multifunctional devices directly into Microsoft SharePoint<br />
collaboration software. The company’s in-house developed<br />
app is currently in the process of being certified by Microsoft,<br />
another industry first.