MFPs FOR EDUCATION
scan workflows enforce retention and access controls,” he says. Digitisation and workflow should also be prominent in the conversation. “Pitch the MFP as a ‘smart hub’ that is the bridge from paper to cloud, show prebuilt connectors for cloud repositories, OCR/ IDP options, and how pastoral/SEND/HR files flow into records with metadata and access control,” he says. “Also highlight eco-features of the MFPs, i.e. energy ratings, sleep mode, power consumption, circular economy, longevity, PCR plastics, toner reclaim.” Exam readiness and reprographics reliability should also be mentioned. “Explain throughput for mock/exam seasons, finishing, label/seating plan runs, and contingency measures that reflect Joint Council for Qualifications and Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation practice,” Deyon says. Cost, procurement and simplicity of management should also be highlighted. “Show TCO with fleet rationalisation (reduce desktop or underutilised printers), print policies, secure release, waste reduction; map your offer to CCS (RM6361),” says Deyon. “Talk about control and reduction of burden, fewer on-premise print servers, policy from the cloud, automated driverless print, analytics dashboards.” Resellers should also be looking to understand the goals of the education facility, related to their improvement plans and what impact technology could have on those plans, says Gary. “Understanding the make-up of the education facility, its processes, periods and trends that influence busy print times, and how the end users (students and staff) consume print is critical,” he adds. “From there, the conversation should move to the things education teams are increasingly prioritising, like secure use and management of the device as part of the IT estate, sustainable operation to reduce waste and cost, smart workflow
capabilities that simplify scanning and document handling, and an adaptive approach that fits different sites, user groups and term-time patterns. “From Fujifilm’s perspective, we support our partners to take that more consultative approach that aligns the MFP conversation to real operational pressures rather than treating it as a standalone hardware discussion.” Bright prospects There is an expectation that demand for print solutions will continue to evolve and grow in the short- to medium-term. “There is a requirement for all education establishments to do more with less, but not at the expense of service provision, quality or security,” says Gary. “Looking through the remainder of 2026 and into 2027, we expect budgets to stay under pressure, which will keep the focus on solutions that are secure, sustainable, smart and adaptive that will help with reducing waste and admin time, protecting data, and flexing around term- time peaks without adding complexity for IT or staff.” Deyon adds that, while it is expected that page volumes will continue to decline due to digitisation momentum, device refresh and MPS spend will remain steady as schools modernise fleets, migrate to cloud print, and expand capture/records workflows. “Security and compliance will drive upgrades,” he adds. “With DfE security guidance and cyber standards gaining traction, more schools will require secure release, identity, firmware lifecycle support and logging, favouring newer cloud manageable MFP platforms and managed services. “Sustainability will influence awards. Expect tighter scoring on energy, circularity and device longevity (remanufacture/refurb), which benefits vendors and resellers that can quantify environmental impact.” n
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Security and compliance will drive upgrades... ...With DfE security guidance and cyber standards gaining traction, more schools will require secure release, identity, firmware lifecycle support and logging...
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