Top 10 Tips To Save on Paper and Printing

Paper has become so consumable that we rarely stop to think about where the paper comes from and the impact of paper waste. Not the mention the tremendous waste of ink and the hazards it creates. The move to digital communications is a great thing for the planet. We’re saving trees, saving money and saving our sanity from cluttered inboxes and messy desks. But we can’t recycle our way out of the paper problem

Remember the 36-exposure film used in analog cameras? Not only were the rolls of film expensive, but developing them was also expensive. I remember how much time I spent on the perfect shot, ensuring that I optimized each frame. With digital photography – imagine how many photos we take and how much time we spend on curating the best picture rather than taking the time to take the best shot.

The same can be said of paper and printing – the problem and solution does not lie with alternative forms of communication and recycling towards the reduction of paper – its lies with changing bad behaviors in how and paper is consumed (wasted).

When you print, you waste more than just paper. You are also wasting your time, ink, and money.

Here below are my Top 10 Tips to Save Paper and Printing Costs

1. Define an organizational level policy and procedures on appropriate and inappropriate use of paper and printing.
2. Configure printers with Active Directory to log all printing by user and rank employees with the lowest print / photocopy usage.
3. Print on both sides of the paper when possible
4. Try using the same printer settings as much as possible to avoid constant changes in quality that affect how much ink you use.
5. If you have the option, try not to print anything that’s not absolutely necessary (we all know about those last minute print outs!).
6. Make sure that your printer is compatible with your printer paper.
7. Be mindful of the print order – Color printing is more expensive than black and white.
8. Use a less expensive photocopy paper to save on costs.
9. Printing in draft mode can help you reduce the number of pages being printed.
10. Change the scale of your image before you print it, so you can fit more on one page.