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Distributor Westcoast has launched a new pre-delivery inspection service for printers to help eliminate DOA (dead on arrival) headaches for resellers.
The service – the first of its kind offered by a UK distributor – follows the opening of a brand new dedicated facility at Westcoast’s headquarters in Theale.
The new service is available for reseller partners on most major brands including HP, Lexmark and other brands not distributed by Westcoast.
Most large printers are unpacked, inspected, configured, tested and software-imaged by managed print partners at their own premises or onsite at the end user location.
This requires the partners to take full responsibility for the technology. They also have to pay increased shipping costs, train and manage engineering resource, and be able to cope with periods of peak demand.
The work can be extremely time consuming, says the distie, and some of it is highly skilled, requiring complex software-loads that are equivalent to carrying out server configurations.
The service also includes sited deliveries so that a new printer can be delivered on behalf of a partner to an end user premises, sited and connected – hassle-free. It can also include demonstration and removal of the redundant devices if required.
“I could not be more excited about offering this service. It eliminates DOA headaches for resellers at a stroke,” said Westcoast’s managing director, Alex Tatham.
“We have already delivered more than a hundred large format printers to retailer’s shops across the UK, configured a bulk order on behalf of one Britain’s largest managed print providers and are working on a large order for a brand not even distributed by Westcoast for a chain of betting stores.”
He added: “Every print provider we have engaged with has welcomed this move as they frequently hit periods of high demand or skill shortages. We have invested in dedicated resources, project management and skilled engineers. I can only see this new service growing as Westcoast become the UK’s managed print fulfilment partner of choice.”
