Case study
Cyril Morris Arkwright Solicitors
Read how we handled a deliberate decentralised print setup for our client CMA Solicitors.
- Decentralised setup
- Mix of hardware
- Secure solution
Who is CMA Solicitors
Cyril Morris Arkwright (CMA) Solicitors is a well-established, full-service firm based on Churchgate in Bolton. The practice is organised into distinct departments – including conveyancing, litigation, and family – each run as its own team, with individual offices spread across two floors.
What they had
A deliberately decentralised print setup
Rather than routing everything through one central machine, CMA chose to keep printing at people’s desks. It suits the way the departments work: staff can access their documents straight out of the printer, rather than walking to and from a shared machine.
In practice that means a mix of hardware: a desktop mono laser printer on many desks across the firm, plus floor-standing multifunction machines for higher-volume and shared jobs.
What we delivered
For the desktop printers, we specified Xerox: single-function, black-and-white laser printers that strike the right balance between hardware cost and running cost.
Cheaper machines are tempting on the retail price but expensive to run day to day; the Xerox range keeps both in check, so the firm isn’t paying over the odds either way.
The machines are leased rather than bought outright, and we handle the maintenance.
challenges
Getting the layout right
There’s no single right answer on centralised versus distributed printing – it comes down to how a customer works and what their floor space looks like.
For an open-plan, single floor office, a larger shared machine could be the better fit, but while centralizing might look cheaper on paper, there’s a hidden cost of wasted time as the staff walk up and down the office to collect print jobs. For CMA – an older building, two floors, departments that run fairly independently of one another – splitting the hardware made more sense.
It’s still working well
CMA are now on their third or fourth hardware refresh with us and we are pleased to still be supporting them for the last 10-15 years.
