The University of North Georgia is seeing the financial benefit from moving to a new, managed copy/print system. In the few short months since launch, the university has reported saving more than $1,200 and the equivalent of 1.6 trees worth of unclaimed print jobs since making the switch in August.

According to an official university release, the new managed print system is saving UNG money by changing the way students call up print jobs. With the managed copy/print system, students now send their print job to the printing queue, and then swipe their Nighthawk ID card or enter their network login and password to select their job from the queue.

"We estimate that we will probably record about $100,000 in savings after a year," says Dr. Steve McLeod, chief information officer at the University of North Georgia. "Previously, we have spent between $190,000 and $200,000 for print jobs for students in a year. So there's potential for a significant amount of savings."

"This has also made a big difference in the amount of printed pages that we have saved," adds McLeod. "Before, students often would print jobs and never pick up the paper."

Between Aug. 23 and Oct. 5 alone, the university's IT Services reported 24,461 pieces of paper were left unprinted.

"From my perspective, this new system is doing what it is designed to do," says Austina M. Jordan, head of access services and library faculty member at UNG. "Students have to go to the machine to make it print, and that is cutting down on paper left on the printer."

The other benefit for the new managed print system is that is conserves energy, as copy/print machines aren't continually printing jobs. UNG IT estimates the electrical equivalent of 10,724 light bulb hours have been saved to date.

The financial savings gained from the new managed copy/print system will be returned to the student technology fund, which is supplied through the technology fee.

Beyond the cost savings, there are new technological benefits including a complimentary scan-to-email feature.

"Students can go to the managed print machines, scan in a document and send it directly to their email," says Mcleod. "They didn't have that option before. Now they do at no charge."

Students can also send their print job from one location or campus and pick it up at another location or campus as long as there is an available print release station.

Future expansions of the managed copy/print system will look to fold in student mobile devices.

"We hope to offer students the function to print from their mobile devices," McLeod said. "We will start with student laptops on UNG's network and go from there."