HP IPG Continues to be a Trendsetter

• Email
• Print
• ( 0 )
• 

Intro: In an exclusive interaction with ITVar News Nitin Hiranandani, Director, LaserJet Enterprise Solution,

HP IPG shares recent solution offerings by the Company in print and imaging segment, technological advancements in the recently launched products, managed print service adoption and awareness rate and with other vital details.



ITVar News: What all are the recent solution offerings by the Company in print and Imaging segment?

Nitin Hiranandani: HP has been the trendsetter in the imaging and printing market. We have always been delighting our customers through our innovative solutions. For instance, we have introduced printers and solutions specially targeted for the SMB and SOHOs, which now come with features like HP Auto On/ Auto Off, HP smart web printing and a host of other innovations. Graphic Solutions Business at HP-IPG is one of the most dynamic businesses vertical that has taken digital printing to next level. HP- GSB offers unmatched digital printing portfolio with HP Designjet, HP Indigo, HP Latex, HP Scitex and software solutions and service partnerships that fuels digital printing revenues. Offering advantages of digital over analogue printing, HP printing portfolio offers, lower wastage with faster turnaround time with digital quality and customizable capabilities causing lower environmental impact.


ITVN: What all technological advancements are incorporated in the new range of your print and imaging products to further intensify the users� experience?

NH: There is a lot of innovation in the pipeline for the home and office printing segment. From purely an office printing point of view, we are continuing to develop more web-connected, cloud aware printers, with significant emphasis on developing more applications and new features that will add greater value to the business. For example, there are going to be applications for printing coupons and scheduled delivery of printed content. Recently, we demonstrated an app that allows a user to retrieve the confirmation status of his IRCTC railway ticket by simply placing the IRCTC ticket on the HP All-in-one device and selecting an icon on the printer screen to start the transaction. The all-in-one scans the ticket, does intelligent processing of the document on the Internet Cloud, and extracts the PNR Number from the ticket. Using this information it also automatically retrieves the status of the PNR ticket from the IRCTC website. Another application demo allows all users of cloud-based services, such as Google Docs, to access their content from any mobile device with a web browser and print to any one of HP�s web connected printers. It is also important to note that India is the innovation engine for IPG � some of the most cutting-edge innovation in cloud and software for IPG is happening here.
Key technological innovations in GSB are:

1.    Web Press:
Web Press is a HP Inkjet offering that allows streamlining and scaling digital print quality with reduced costs by printing only what is needed, reducing waste, transportation and storage costs. HP T300and HP T200 Colour Inkjet Web Press are two such presses that offer offset print quality with faster productivity and efficient support system to deliver unmatched benefits like print-on-demand, variable printing, customized printing and holistic publishing workflows.

2.    HP Latex:
Helping to address the demands of environmentally conscious print service providers (PSPs) and their clients, HP Latex Inks produce odorless prints. These water-based inks are nonflammable and noncombustible, and, unlike many eco-solvent inks, they do not require hazard warning labels and contain no hazardous air pollutants. Additionally, no special ventilation equipmentor external dryer is required for safe and productive operation, helping to keep energy costs down.

3.    Eprint & Share:
A new collaborative printing experience for design environments, HP ePrint & Share is a web print solution that lets you print and share your files anywhere business happens. You can manage print-ready content and share it with project teams on the road or in the office, knowing that your entire team is truly on the same page, whether across the city or across the world.
HP ePrint & Share is available at no additional cost as a download for HP Designjet customers. The mobile application is initially available at no additional cost as a launch offer through Apple�s App Store.The HP ePrint & Share mobile application enables remote printing to any web-connected HP Designjet printer, including the HP Designjet T2300 eMFP and the HP Designjet T1300 and T790 ePrinters.




ITVN: Are you planning any Partner Program to further strengthen company�s print and imaging business and broaden delivery systems?


NH: The printing industry has grown leaps and bounds in the past few years and will continue to do so in the coming years. Channel partners are core to our growth. With the help of our channel partners we are focusing on �MPS for SMBs�, which will be partly driven by channel partners. In this respect, the channel partners will have a choice from the range of portfolio service offerings for the SMBs. On the GSB front, to fight the competition and break the clutter, HP-IPG has initiated a network called Digital Print Network, for the homogeneous group of its channel partners which are a medium to deliver exceptional printing jobs to its customers. This network will bring HP�s print service providers under one roof and will encourage positive exchange of information which will help HP too to improve its product portfolio and the services offered and would lead to speedy amendments of any concerns regarding hardware, software, resource availability etc.



ITVN: How is Managed Print Service adoption and awareness among the partners?

NH: As the organizations are getting more and more matured they have long ceased to look at printing as a discretionary expense. They now know that treating printing just like another IT asset pays in the long run. Therefore Managed Print Services is and will continue to gain more visibility among organizations. With various enhancements in our MFDs we help organizations reduce their printer overhead. For instance, according to Gartner, organizations can potentially reduce annual paper costs by at least 30% by selecting duplex printing as the default setting across the output fleet. We have printers specifically designed for SMBs and large organizations which have default duplex printing. Companies in India are yet to completely understand the edge that imaging and printing practices can provide to their business. As the industry leader, HP is well equipped to help companies analyze, implement and maintain a suitable printing environment.We perform a detailed assessment of our customer�s current Imaging and Printing infrastructure and collate all relevant information about usage patterns in the organization and a current estimate of the costs incurred. We have been able to prove anywhere between 15-30 % savings in Printing and Imaging costs with our �Managed print Services� offerings. 67 % of respondents in the HP Eco Solutions Printing Award indicate that they will undertake printer fleet assessment and print infrastructure optimization within the next 12 months, which is a clear indication of better visibility among our potential customers.

Contractual business is a huge opportunity. We are partnering with channel partners to address the SMB & mid market space. Infact, we are targeting about 350 listed mid-market accounts for MPS in metros including Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru, and plan to extend the services in a phased manner to other tier-1 and tier-2 cities also. Channel partners with their service skill-sets and large access to SMBs are positioned to cater to the growing needs of SMBs. Hence, HP is focusing on MPS for SMBs through partners. HP will be focusing on SMBs in various verticals including manufacturing, BFSI, retail, and IT/ITES. SMB MPS offering will have an option to outsource specific portions of the workflow. HP will support partners with fleet design for balanced deployment of hardware, provide software and solutions to offer as well as with a service agreement. The company will also provide pre-sales support including proof of concept and pricing tools. For its SMB MPS, the company is under evaluation phase and currently identifying partners from the existing HP partners as well as new ones with service network and capital capabilities


ITVN: How are you looking at SME segment? What are your SME strategies towards printers and imaging?

NH: In today�s challenging and competitive environment, SMBs have realized that right kind of technology investments can help them secure a more level playing field.  We at HP have a deep rooted understanding of the needs of the SMB segment and have developed a 3-part strategic approach to enable their business goals: 

    Starting Simple � Help SMBs start with just the printing basics of keeping their business running with easy-to-use, quality and affordable imaging and printing products.
    Working Smarter � SMBs save money and improve productivity with imaging and printing products and solutions.
    Growing Faster � Help SMBs prepare for future growth and enable greater differentiation where HP can help simplify their business processes and improve their marketing communication.

We understand the growth needs of our customers and are committed to enhance their investments through various schemes and programs.  For example, we recently announced an exciting �Buy Back Offer� for our LaserJet customers, the program is specially designed for growing businesses that demand more and want to add on to their productivity, efficiency and cost-savings.  The program allows customers to avail a cash rebate of up to INR 20,000 on return of their old printer after buying a new LaserJet printer or scanner.
Apart from this, we have increased our focus on emerging markets, we believe that cities like Chandigarh, Lucknow, Coimbatore and Bhopal will drive India�s growth story in the future.  As a part of our �go-to-market� strategy, we are targeting small businesses in key verticals like logistics, design agencies, architects, travel houses, photographers, exporters and self employed professionals through focused market development programs.  We are also strengthening our channel engagement efforts through channel road shows and training across the country to educate channel partners on the new product portfolio and technologies. 

ITVN: What are the unique characteristics of your product range that should attract SME attention?

NH: Adoption of technology in SMBs is directly dependent on bringing down the total cost of ownership, safeguarding investments and increasing ease of use.  HP�s printers are designed to address these issues and are ideally suited for our SMB customers.   HP offers a huge portfolio of products that can enable SMBs to maintain their competitive edge by using their resources wisely.  We recently unveiled a new energy efficient printer � HP LaserJet pro P 1108 specially targeted for SMBs and SOHO�s. The printer boats of 3 TIMES LESS Energy usage, with  HP Auto on/ auto off technology, hassle free installation through HP Smart Install and HP Smart Web printing which helps you print only the desired area from the web page, hence saving on the paper and ink. To attract the SME and SOHO customers we have introduced the market in two variants: one with fill toner and another with half toner, at very affordable price.
Under the LaserJet category, we have introduced printers that help cut costs and streamline efficiency through productivity features, such as HP Smart Install and HP Auto-On/Auto-Off technology.  HP has been the leader in LaserJet technology and we offer SMBs an unrivalled opportunity to accelerate growth through industry-first printing technologies and products that pay you back.  For instance, HP Web Jetadmin software is a powerful web-based print management that�s fast, easy, and reliable. The configuration and maintenance capabilities in the software help the SMBs increase productivity, reduce costs, and protect their investments. In addition to this, features like Color Access Control help SMBs in monitoring how colour is used and tracking its usage.  However at the same time, adoption of colour is increasing and HP Chemical toners are precisely designed to meet the growing color print demands of the SMBs. HP printers come with Instant on feature, which helps SMBs save on the time and energy, similarly the HP auto on/off feature saves on energy by automatically going to the sleep mode when the printer is not used for the given duration. 

ITVN: What is your opinion on cutting edge technology like printing on the cloud?

NH: Are you traveling all the time? Does your business rely on a mobile workforce? If so, HP�s ePrint can make printing easier and mobile workers more productive. And getting started is easier than you think.  According to a recent report from IDC, the mobile worker population will pass one billion this year and reach 1.2 billion by 2013.  A wide range of technologies has evolved to help these mobile workers stay productive on the road�such as ultra-light notebooks and smartphones. Printing on-the-go, however, hasn�t kept pace�until now. HP�s ePrint technology lets consumers and employees� access printing services from their mobile devices, without installing any drivers or special software. Instead, the print job is processed through the cloud, which may consist of Internet or intranet resources and then printed on an ePrint enabled printer. With HP e-Print technology, consumers can print from almost anywhere.  With HP ePrint, we now offer an intuitive mobile printing solution that allows mobile users to print documents, presentations, reports, and photos on the go. Cloud printing is bound to grow manifold in the days to come.