Mar 2, 2023
Print Tracker is committed to providing comprehensive supply insights and management tools, a priority identified through invaluable customer feedback. After several months of diligent work, we are excited to unveil a new set of tools and algorithms designed to offer first-rate support for supplies in the Print Tracker user interface. This post delves into two significant sections of these tools – supply insights and predictive analytics.
Supply manufacturers typically assign a yield rating to their products, indicating the expected number of pages that a given supply can print. However, if a supply is replaced prematurely, the potential pages that could have been printed become ‘lost pages’.
Tracking ‘lost pages’ helps you identify scenarios where supplies are being replaced too early, thus, enabling better supply management. Print Tracker can calculate ‘lost pages’ based on the supply’s rated yield provided by the device. In cases where the device doesn’t supply this information, you can manually enter the expected yield for each supply.
If the ‘Lost pages’ column isn’t appearing in the supplies table, it can be easily added by customizing the columns.
The fill rate or coverage rate represents the average percentage of a page covered by a supply. Generally, supply manufacturers establish a supply’s rated yield based on a predicted fill rate, often around 5%. Consequently, if a customer’s fill rate exceeds this, the supply may not reach the rated yield.
Understanding fill rate is crucial to comprehend how efficiently a supply is utilized and to ascertain the overall cost per page. Comparing fill rates of different supplies can pinpoint the most cost-effective printing solution. Monitoring the fill rate can optimize the printing process, reduce waste, extend the life of supplies, and contribute to cost reduction and sustainability. Moreover, fill rates serve as a performance benchmark, assisting businesses in making informed decisions when choosing their printing supplies.
Print Tracker now includes a beta feature - the estimated depletion date. This predicts when a supply will reach 0% based on historical printing patterns. Although some devices calculate and report this metric to Print Tracker, in the absence of this data, Print Tracker uses the device’s historical printing trends to estimate it.
The estimated depletion date can prove to be an invaluable tool in supply management. By predicting when supplies will need replacement, businesses can plan and schedule supply procurement, preventing delays, or last-minute rushes that can interrupt regular business operations.
In conclusion, the new features in Print Tracker offer enhanced insights into supply management, paving the way for better planning, reduced operational costs, and more sustainable practices. Embrace these advanced tools and make your printing processes more efficient and cost-effective.