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If you're considering buying a new printer, the Mac/PC Support Group (MPSG)
in the Computing Infrastructure Support (CIS) Department recommends that
in addition to the quality and reliability of the printer, you consider
the overall cost, including the purchase pice and the cost of maintenance
and support. This issue has been brought to a head recently by the rising
cost of support for Tektronix printers, which some groups have purchased
based primarily on the initial price. The current cost for time and material
support from Xerox (which bought Tektronix) is $290 for the first 30 minutes
and $55 for each 15-minute increment after that. By comparison, the cost
for Hewlett-Packard printer support is $90 the first hour and $60 for each
hour thereafter.
According to CIS, the high cost of support seems to indicate that Xerox
would rather sell maintenance contracts for their Tektronix printers.
The MPSG staff has been unable to find a local vendor able to support
Tektronix printers -- at any cost.
The MPSG has had a blanket purchase order under which repair requests
are submitted to Xerox. The group then pays the bill and recharges the
customer.
"This process is not saving anyone any time or money," said
Desktop Support Manager Charlie Verboom. "Keeping MPSG in the middle
of this process is not proving to be workable and will be eliminated at
the end of this fiscal year.
"We recommend HP printers whenever they can meet the customer's
requirements because the machines are very reliable, the maintenance cost
is cheaper and because we have a wider range of potential vendors for
support," Verboom said. "If you find that a Tektronix is your
best option based on features, you should also purchase a maintenance
contract to ensure adequate technical support."
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