Hybrid working with PaperCut software

The way that we work has changed dramatically since the Covid-19 pandemic. The personal office desk and desktop PC are increasingly becoming a thing of the past as businesses adapt to accommodate a new generation of hybrid workers.

The team at Evolve understands that the way businesses need to manage their staff and printing requirements has changed dramatically since the pandemic.

When faced with the pandemic, there was no dress rehearsal for working from home. Innovative businesses saw the opportunity to make advancements in technology to ease the burden for companies whose staff were working in multiple locations. For instance, in April 2020, Zoom saw a surge in users, with 300 million daily meeting participants. By early 2022 the software was registering over 3.3 trillion annual meeting minutes as the way we communicated and worked with our colleagues saw a dramatic shift.

It’s hard now to imagine life before this new remotely-networked world. Offering a flexible and hybrid working environment, at least in some capacity, is now an almost expected work perk so at Evolve we want to offer solutions to our clients who need to do just that.

The benefits of hybrid working:

Evolve Business Solutions love the array of solutions available from the PaperCut software.

Evolve and PaperCut

Here at Evolve, we love the PaperCut print management software. It offers an array of different types of solutions, catered for various business types and industries, meaning we can offer our clients the best fit and most appropriate print management solution for their company. PaperCut is one of the many innovative companies making hybrid working function better with its product PaperCut Hive.

With hybrid working environments becoming more of the norm for businesses, with employees working in different locations you’d be forgiven to think that hybrid working, or working from home, would make managed print an impossible task. However, PaperCut Hive has been developed as a solution that not only makes it possible but makes it easy!

Printing in the hybrid workplace

The engineers at PaperCut developed this software during the pandemic, so were in at the deep end when it came to building an infrastructure that functioned for hybrid working. Finding themselves at the forefront of a hybrid environment themselves they knew first-hand what it needed to do to work – so it really is cutting edge!

How it works

PaperCut Hive uses what the developers call Edge Mesh. This eliminates the local print server that is usually necessary for managed print services to function. Instead, the technology uses each computer in a business as a ‘node’, connecting them all together like a web to interconnect and process print jobs through the local network. It remains super safe because every file is encrypted.

PaperCut Hive uses Edge Mesh technology to link devices in a local network as ‘nodes’ rather than using a single traditional print server to process documents.

For hybrid working, this is a brilliant solution because Edge Mesh offers auto-scaling and self-healing. As devices go offline or come online throughout the day, the Edge Mesh auto adjusts, meaning the network chain never breaks. In comparison to a single server, there is far less room for error – traditionally if the print server goes down all devices are affected, whereas in the case of Edge Mesh this wouldn’t happen.

Once you’re at the printer and ready to collect your document, you simply release it from the printer at the touch of a button and it’s there ready for you to collect.

Once you’re at the printer, simply release your document. All files are encrypted for maximum security. Photo courtesy of PaperCut.

Advantages of Edge Mesh

• Eliminates the single point of failure from relying on a single print server.
• Easy to add new ‘nodes’ as your business grows with auto-scaling.
• If a device, or node, is offline and unreachable, the mesh self-heals rather than breaks. This is a great feature for hybrid working as people and devices within the Edge Mesh will come and go.
• Developed during the pandemic, Edge Mesh comes from the forefront of hybrid working with cutting-edge IoT technology.
• The documents remain encrypted within your local network and never go into the cloud (unless you choose them to) making it incredibly secure.
• Edge Mesh runs autonomously, so is not affected if the internet goes down.

Remote working and cloud connectivity

If you are not connected to your local network, either working remotely or from home, it is still possible to send your documents to the printer. This is done using The Cloud Node which, when enabled on your device, will send your encrypted files directly into your Edge Mesh via the cloud, so they can then be output through the Edge Mesh to the printer. Again, security remains paramount and as soon as the document is printed the files are deleted from the cloud.

PaperCut Hive securely uses the cloud to manage print tracking data.

Tracking print data

PaperCut Hive software makes it simple to track printing and costs for individual users – whether they are using machines located within the office or shared working spaces, company-owned devices that the employees keep at home, or personally-owned devices where expenses are claimed back by employees to employers.

When an item is sent to print, information is simultaneously sent to the cloud. For security this is only the paper size, the number of pages, and whether it is colour or black and white. This keeps the documents secure while getting the most up-to-date information for tracking.

Home printers can also be monitored by registering them as part of the Edge Mesh. This makes it easy to monitor usage either for tracking expenses for employee-owned equipment, or the usage of company-owned equipment.

Our friendly team are on hand to advise on which software solution will work best for your business.

How we can help

Evolve Business Solutions are expert in PaperCut software, using its various print management solutions for our range of clients. Our engineers are fully trained on PaperCut so come armed will all the knowledge they need to support your business’ usage.

We’re pleased that with PaperCut Hive we can offer a solution to hybrid businesses with this cutting-edge technology.

To find out how you could benefit from using PaperCut Hive software for your own hybrid working print management, contact us today on 01473 372666 or enquiries@evolve-businesssolutions.co.uk