It’s that time of year again; you've avoided it as long as you possibly could. You've delayed any & all appointments and demos. Or perhaps, it’s quite the opposite, you've done all the research you could possibly do and now you are confused. What am I talking about you ask? I’m talking about having to finally pick a copier for your organization! Whether you’re the person who puts off the decision making or you’re the individual who is completely overwhelmed by your amount of research, there’s a common factor that has stumped you….a machine’s duty cycle.
Let’s start with the basics, what is Duty Cycle? The common definition for a print device’s, duty cycle is, it’s rated capacity to continuously perform under “normal work” conditions. You, as the customer determines what are the "normal conditions" you're copier will be working under. For instance, the type of "applications being run to the physical environment in which the customer is printing" .
Another term, you should keep in mind is the Average Monthly Print Volume, or the AMPV. It is defined as the “range of pages that helps customers evaluate Xerox’s product offerings based on the average number of pages customers’ plant to print on the device each month. Xerox recommends that the number of pages per month be within the stated range for optimum device performance…etc.”
Let me explain…
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Take cars for instance, every car aficionado knows they need to do their research on which car suits them and their traveling needs, same goes for a customer like yourself. A great analogy I like to use to describe Duty Cycle and AMPV, is that of a car’s speedometer. Think of the Duty Cycle as a car’s maximum speed, which for example could be 200 mph, but more than likely you’ll rarely need to reach those speeds, if ever. However, as a customer, if you every really needed to, you know that you can. The AMPV can be thought as the normal, average of speed you’ll be driving on a daily basis.
Duty Cycle is the maximum number of pages a device can produce in a month. AMPV, is the range of what a copier produces in a month. Understanding that the AMPV is a vital component in picking the right machine that fits you and your business is absolutely vital. Sure, it’s great to know that you’re machine has an awesome Xerox engine under the hood, but what’s more important is to take into account the average number of pages you plant to print. Knowing the average number of pages you plan to print, will help you pick the right machine.
Just like there are all types of businesses, all types of people, and all types of business needs, there are all types of copiers and printers. We understand that customers can feel overwhelmed at the start of the process, but just knowing the difference between Duty Cycle and AMPV can save you a ton of money and stress in the future.
If you have any more questions or comments, please feel free to comment below or contact us. Just remember that you're trusted Xerox Agency is only a phone call away.
Until next time!