Studies suggest tha print associated costs can account for 10% of company costs!

Aspen in partnership with Xerox software are offering a FREE No Hassel Print Audit for a limited time only… Offering the following:

* Remote Audit – no sales person will attend – all you need to do is download the link that we email you.
* This will generate a FREE fully comprehensive report, with NO obligation.
* The report holds thousands of pounds worth of business SAVINGS!

Benefits to you!

* No visits from a sales person
* FREE Audit of your usage
* FREE report
* Significant SAVING of money

If you feel like your business costs are spiraling out of control and would like to save money – Email offers@aspensolutions.co.uk or call us on 08450 780 790.

For example we have the Dell U2211H 22inch Ultra Sharp TFT Monitor for only £155+VAT

For more information call us on 08450 780 790 or visit our shop!

Other services that Aspen provide are, IT Support, Environmental Disposal Services, Managed Print Services and Document Management Services.

Aspen staff has a collective new year’s resolution to bring you the best deals at the best prices possible!

At Aspen we would like to wish all of our customer’s best wishes for 2011!

Around the same time Mrs Thatcher was coming to the end of her reign and Baywatch was the X-Factor of Saturday evening TV, a company called Tektronix launched a new range of solid ink colour office printers .Back then office colour was a high-priced luxury (along with brick sized mobile phones and garishly coloured braces) .A mainstream office printer offering high speed and low running cost was destined to be a winner.

How does Solid ink work?

Solid ink technology utilizes solid ink sticks in lieu of the toner powder usually used in printers. After the ink stick is loaded into the printing device, it is melted and used to produce images on paper in a process similar to offset printing. Solid ink printing produces more vibrant colors than other methods, is easier to use, can print on a wide range of media, and is more environmentally friendly ,reducing waste by as much as 90% when compared with toner cartridges. The sticks are non-toxic and safe and clean to handle.

Solid ink’s place in todays market!

It didn’t take long for the document industry behemoth, Xerox, to sit up and pay attention to this revolutionary new technique. They were impressed, very impressed, and in true Vicotor Kiam style , so much so, they bought the company!

With the massive resources of Xerox R&D, over the past decade, the technology has been refined .Solid ink has now made its way to mainstream applications. With the 2009 launch of the Xerox ColorQube range, multifunction tabloid color printers that use solid ink technology, Xerox have now positioned solid ink to contend directly with laser/toner technology in the multifunction office printing space.

Advantages of Solid ink technology!

As mentioned, the advantages of solid ink are many, not least of which is the ongoing running costs. The machine measures actual colour coverage and uniquely, bill accordingly on one of the three-tiers of billing. This means that when printing a small percentage of Colour (286,000 colour pixels and under if you really want to know) ,such as a company logo, the job is charged at the same cost as mono print. From Xerox’s analysis of millions of documents, this may account for up to 40% of a traditional office’s total colour output. When you consider the traditional toner machine clicks as a full colour reproduction irrespective of coverage, the savings on running costs when using solid ink can be dramatic.

So from the decade that gave us Yugo cars, legwarmers and the Rubik cube, we now have a refined technology that may just go on to revolutionise office colour printing.

The solid ink era has arrived.

It’s currently well below freezing outside and we are thigh deep in snow… yet most staff have made it to work this week!  

Just a quick up date on what our International Sale Department have been working hard on (despite the weather) to expand and grow our business!

We curently are building an International Portal for our Sales Team to take full advantage of any international sales opportunities. We have been fortunate in the past that we have shipped products to some far off places like Sierre Leone, Afghanistan etc but the market for international sales is still growing despite the recession, especially in the Aid-Funded Business sector.  Aspen are focused on placing themselves at the forefront to be able to bid for some of the international tenders available.

We have an excellent team at Aspen to process orders from tender through to shipment ensuring that orders are processed efficiently and although it can be a mine-field, we have joined forces with some experts from Scottish Enterprise for advice and are currently bidding for many opportunities both at home and abroad.  It’s a fairly new venture for Aspen to broaden out to the wider international community and we hope to post some of our experiences on the blog soon.  So watch this space!

If you would like to take part in our special event, please CLICK HERE and sign up!

Or call one of our advisors on 08450 780 790!

Red Cross First Aid

So if anyone at Aspen needs CPR, put in to the recovery position, bandaged up I’m the girl to see!

Although just to make it clear to the men in the office, mouth to mouth resuscitation will only be given to men without a pulse and a mouth shield will be used – so faking it doesn’t count

Thanks
Kelly

Many companies are unaware that electrical goods must be disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner through companies who are certified to do so… Businesses who ignore this legal and moral duty to protect our environment face fines and business penalties.

For example

Just last month we saw the first prosecution in the UK under the WEEE Directive,

“Aston and Fincher Ltd, a hairdressing supplies company based in Birmingham, pleaded guilty to charges dating from 2001-2007 relating to their failure to register as a producer of electrical/electronic waste.  As a part of their business, the company imported electrical items into the United Kingdom, but failed to meet their obligation of registering with an appropriate Producer Compliance Scheme (as is required by the WEEE Directive).

The company also pleaded guilty to charges of failure to comply with waste packaging regulations.  All of the offences were uncovered by the Environment Agency through routine investigation.

Aston and Fincher were fined £650 for each separate offence, which, with a total of 31 charges against the company, amounted to £20,150.  However, along with £7,135 the company was ordered to pay in compensation to the Environment Agency, and £3,605 in costs, the total came to the sizeable figure of £30,890.” (http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=110984)

The outcome also highlighted that Aston and Fincher did not deliberatley ignore the regulations, but they were infact unaware of the regulation! 

Therefore the lesson that businesses must take from this is, in fact the basic rule of the law “ignorance of the law is no excuse”.  Therefore it is imperative that businesses are aware of a legal obligations.

If you are in business and have any questions about your obligation under the WEEE Directive for the safe disposal of electronic goods please call Aspen on 08450 780 790 for more information.

Aspen are an accredited Environmental Disposal Services company.  Click here for more information on our Environmental Services.

Vincent and Paul Started their journey at the London Borough of Bexley through the streets of North Kent, travelling to the city of Rochester admiring the sites including the 1000 year old Norman Castle. Much of the route thereafter was through small towns along the edge of the North Downs and over the pilgrims, a route used by the pilgrims on their way from Winchester to Canterbury.  Vincent then followed the pilgrim’s way to Burham and on to Lydden, then as Kent coast line comes into view they were nearing the port of Dover!

Vincent and Paul completed 73Miles to Dover!

Day 2 -

After an overnight stay Vincent and Paul set off through the old fashioned port town of Dieppe and into the Normandy countryside. They then travel to Saint Saens passing through the village of Torcy le Grand, Bossque eveline, Saint-en-Bray, Onse-en-Bray and finally on to Gournay-en-Bray.

Looking tired! Lets stop for a coffee! Hard 50miles done today.

Day 3 -

Still in Normandy they travelled south easterly towards Paris.  A bit of history – Normandy is known for its farmland crisis- crossed with hedges and trees which they cycled amongst for 15 miles then entered the suburbs of Paris and a forest area known as Le parc aux etoiles. From there Vincent and Paul tackled a steep decline to the River Seine and crossed the river close to Poissy.  Approaching St Germain-en-Laye and again cross the Seine – Vincent then crossed a bridge into the Bois de Boulogne, then left at the Place de la Porte de Boulevards towards the final destination!

Paul has resorted to driving the rest of the way!

The last few miles took them cross the Pont d’Lena and straight ahead to the Eiffel Tower!

Final destination!!

Paul and Vincent at the Eiffel Tower!

London to Paris conquered!  Well done Vincent & Paul!

Vincent in his tight lycra shorts! Click on the image to donate!

As a keen cyclist Aspen’s Managing Director Vincent Harkins is embarking on an ambitious bike ride from London to Paris today, raising money for the great Computer Aid cause!

Vincent has raised £1,440.00 so far,  which will go directly towards funding an  innovative project in the community of Macha in rural Zambia.   This project has the scope to be repeated in other rural communities across Zambia as well as the wider sub-saharan Africa region, providing sustainable development through practical IT solutions to some of the most disadvantaged communities in Africa.

Therefore the more money raised from this London to Paris ride, the more assistance Computer Aid International can provide to the community of Macha!  So you can still donate now!

We will be following Vincents travels on facebook and Twitter over the next few days – keeping everyone posted.

Good Luck Vincent!