When it is time to replace office equipment, the first decision is usually the simplest one to get wrong: one multifunction device that prints, copies, scans and faxes, or separate machines for each job?
For most small and medium Australian offices the multifunction device (MFD) wins, but not always. Here is how to work out which side of the line you are on.
What a multifunction device actually is
An MFD is a single machine that prints, photocopies and scans, usually with a document feeder on top, sorted output trays, and network connection so everyone can send jobs to it. Larger A3 models add finishing options – stapling, hole punch, booklet folding.
Space and power
This is the most obvious difference. One MFD takes up one footprint and one power point. A printer, a scanner and a copier take three of each, plus the desk or bench space around them.
In a converted-house office, a clinic reception or a shopfront back room, that is not a small consideration. It is also quieter – one fan and one warm-up cycle instead of three.
Cost
On paper, three cheap devices can look cheaper than one good MFD. The purchase price is only part of the story.
- Consumables. Small desktop printers use small cartridges, and the cost per page is often three to five times higher than a properly specified office machine. If you print more than a few hundred pages a month, that gap dwarfs the purchase price difference within a year.
- Service. One service agreement covering one machine is simpler and usually cheaper than maintaining three, or replacing cheap units every couple of years.
- Stock. Three devices means three sets of cartridges sitting in the cupboard, and someone remembering to order all of them.
Maintenance and downtime
Here is the honest argument for separate devices: if the MFD goes down, everything goes down. No printing, no scanning, no copying, until a technician arrives.
In practice this is less of a problem than it sounds, for two reasons. Commercial MFDs are far more reliable than consumer printers, and a decent service agreement includes a response time – often next business day, with loan equipment for longer outages. Many offices also keep one small desktop printer as a backup for the day it matters. That is the sensible middle ground: an MFD as the workhorse, plus a cheap backup, rather than three main devices.
Quality and speed
Modern MFDs handle everyday business printing – quotes, invoices, reports, presentations, brochures – at a standard that is well past "good enough". Speeds of 25 to 45 pages per minute are common, with the first page out in under ten seconds.
Scanning is where MFDs quietly shine. A document feeder that scans both sides of 50 pages in one pass, straight to email or a network folder, changes how an office handles paperwork. A flatbed scanner on someone's desk never gets used the same way.
When separate devices genuinely make sense
- Very high volume printing of one type. A print room running tens of thousands of pages a month is better off with a dedicated production printer, and a separate device for everyday copying.
- Specialist output. Wide format plans for building and engineering, photographic printing, or label printing all need purpose-built machines.
- Physically split teams. If two departments are on different floors or in different buildings, two smaller devices beat one big one everybody walks to.
- Security separation. Some medical and legal practices keep a standalone device for sensitive work. Modern MFDs handle this with secure print release and user codes, but a physical split is still sometimes preferred.
Picking the right machine
Once you have settled on an MFD, size it against your actual monthly page count rather than a guess. Under-specifying is the most common mistake – a machine rated for 3,000 pages a month, doing 8,000, will wear out fast and cost you in service calls.
Ask about A3 as well. Plenty of offices assume they only need A4, then find themselves outsourcing menus, plans, posters or booklets. If that is you a few times a year, A3 usually pays for itself.
How we help
Bold Media Group supplies and services A3 and A4 multifunction devices and printers from a wide range of leading brands, with finishing options, consumables and technician support included in the service plans. We can buy outright or lease, whichever suits your cash flow.
The most useful thing we can do first is look at your current page counts and what you are actually paying per page – that usually makes the decision for you. Send us your latest meter reading or bill and we will come back with a straight comparison.