Croydon College claims it expects to have made ￡500,000 savings by 2015 after it employed Ricoh to re-equip its printroom facilities.

The digital press manufacturer was awarded a five-year contract by the further and higher education establishment in August 2010 to replace its existing machinery with more efficient technology.

Ricoh and the college opted to install a Ricoh Pro C751S colour printer and two of the manufacturer's Pro 1357EX high-volume mono machines, which can print up to 135ppm.

According to Mark Watson, print services manager at Croydon College, investing into a manufacturer that could integrate its print technology into its existing print management software was critical.

He said: "Integrating software from one manufacturer with another manufacturer’s equipment isn’t always that easy.

"Although information is going digital, having a physical handout in a classroom does supplement the learning process.  Pupils have different styles of learning – some visual, some hands on and some need paper-based information."

The college employs a policy that requires staff to direct the printing of collateral in runs of 20-upwards to its printroom and its Ricoh presses.

According to the college, the ￡0.01 click rate on these machines compared to ￡0.04 rate of its other multifunctional print devices, coupled with the ability to print on a broader range of substrates, results in a more cost-effective operation.

The college specified its mono Ricoh machines with integrated finishing modules including dual staple and two-hold punch as well as scanning capabilities for filing and copying.

"The value for money and efficiencies we've achieved with the Ricoh print solution play a key role in education at Croydon College.  In fact, lecturers often make the print room their first port of call in the morning to collect their handouts for the day," he said.

Ricoh UK production print director Stephen Palmer said: "Like all education institutes, Croydon College faces the continuing challenge of making sure it delivers value for money on all its services and print is no exception.

"Ricoh has many decades of experience in engineering flexible solutions for document management in organisations of all sizes and types, and I’m delighted at the positive impact of the solution in place at Croydon College."