COMMUNICATOR - Ricoh NZ · 1 COMMUNICATOR ISSUE 31 COMMUNICATOR 1 ... been the single biggest driver in reshaping the workplace in recent ... James Woodward …

COMMUNICATOR 11 COMMUNICATOR ISSUE 31

FUTURE TECH

The world of work in 2036

PRODUCTS

Virtual meetings: Beam me in, Scotty

SPONSORSHIP

Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge 40th anniversary

SUSTAINABILITY

Designing the smartest office

INNOVATION

‘Charging’ for education

COMMUNICATORCOMMUNICATING TO BUSINESS MINDS ISSUE 31 Q4 2016


The robots are comingAccording to a recent report by Deloitte, more than a quarter of jobs in the UK business services sector are at risk of automation in the next twenty years. This means there’s a high chance that 800,000 to one million jobs would no longer be performed by humans over the next two decades. Staggering really, and of course this is a phenomena with implications well beyond the UK economy.

Technology is an enabler and the automation that we’re already seeing in our workplaces will reduce repetitive roles leaving room for new, higher-skilled roles to be created.

Our feature article examines two future trends identified in the Economist Intelligence Unit study, The future of work in the 21st century. The study predicts breakthroughs in artificial intelligence and the increased digitisation of work will be the real game changers.

But this isn’t crystal ball stuff; it’s happening here and now. This is true even among our own business - Ricoh’s Unified Communications System has given video conferencing and the humble whiteboard a 21st century overhaul enabling virtual collaboration on a scale never seen before.

Regardless of your view on the technological changes afoot, it’s difficult to argue that the pace of change will be anything other than exponential. About time to jump on board and enjoy the ride I say.

Mike PollokManaging DirectorRicoh New Zealand

MESSAGE FROM MIKE POLLOK RICOH NEWS

Contents

Ricoh news ..........................................3From New Zealand and around the world

3D printing ........................................16The Mind Lab by Unitec

How to .................................................9Toner recycling

Ricoh in the regions ............................6Double double for Ricoh’s South Island dealer

Innovation .........................................12‘Charging’ for education

Spotlight on our customers ..............18A new tool for efficiency

Sustainability .......................................8 Designing the smartest office in town

Education ...........................................13 Suppliers of technology to the education sector

Cover storyThe future of work 4 Products

Virtual meetings 10 SponsorshipLake Taupo Cycle Challenge 14

ContributorsNick Collings, Justin Foote and Greg Stack

Contact Ricoh Ricoh New Zealand200 Victoria Street WestCBD, Auckland 10100800 80 76 [email protected]

Editorial team Carley YoungTen Four Communications [email protected]

Murray ClarkMarketing Manager, Ricoh New [email protected]

Creative DirectorMinal Fakir

For the second consecutive year, Ricoh has been awarded a Silver Class ranking in RobecoSAM’s Sustainability Yearbook, an annual rating that covers over 3,000 major companies worldwide.

Ricoh received the industry’s highest assessment in the ‘Innovation Management’ and ‘Privacy Protection’ categories of the Economic Dimension and in the ‘Climate Strategy’ and ‘Environmental Policy/Management System’ categories of the Environmental Dimension.

Also for the second year, Ricoh received the highest Gold corporate social responsibility (CSR) rating in a survey by EcoVadis, a platform that enables companies to measure and report supply chain sustainability performance across 150 sectors and 99 countries. Ricoh was ranked within the top five per cent of all companies surveyed.

More sustainability accolades for Ricoh

Ricoh New Zealand partners with 2degreesNew partner to match Ricoh’s two-year rapid growth in IT services

In July, Ricoh New Zealand announced it had partnered with 2degrees for internet, WAN and mobile as part of its managed IT services business.

In just two years, Ricoh New Zealand has rapidly grown its IT offering and needed a partner to provide fixed and mobile services that could be scalable and meet its future growth requirements to clients in the SME space.

On the day of the announcement, Roly Smoldon, General Manager of Ricoh IT Services, said that like 2degrees, Ricoh

is a challenger brand that is breaking new ground for customers.

“Most people don’t think of IT when they think of Ricoh, they think copiers and printers and that’s a perception we’re actively changing.

“Our single supplier offering is a point of difference in the IT space and one of the reasons behind our impressive growth in the sector. We needed a partner that could match our growth through their own innovation and investment in the market and 2degrees fitted the bill.”

Ricoh’s point of difference is its focus on maximum uptime and the fact it provides a single point of contact that its customers can easily access.

With the support of 2degrees, the focus is to capitalise on the opportunities provided by the cloud to give customers a seamless IT experience on all of their devices, be that in or out of the office.

Pitching in to bring the Hundertwasser Art Centre to lifeSome readers may know the colourful history of the Hundertwasser Art Centre (now known as the Hundertwasser Art Centre with Wairau Maori Art Gallery or HAC) in Whangarei.

It began in 1993 when the Austrian artist, Friedensreich Hundertwasser was invited by the Mayor of Whangarei to design an art centre for the city. He chose a building in the Town Basin and made a number of visits to sketch his ideas.

More than 20 years later, the HAC is in the final pre-construction stages. The project is now fully community-led and the completed art centre is cheduled to open by 2019 subject to continued fundraising.

Ricoh Northland has been providing printing and design support to the HAC

since early 2015 and owner Cameron Thomson says he is excited to be working on such an important project.

“As a locally owned and operated dealership, I’m passionate about being involved in community projects, particularly ones as important as this.

“I believe the HAC will bring huge economic benefits to the north and also enhance the region’s cultural fabric.”


FUTURE TECHNOLOGY

Ricoh explores the office in 2036

Technological evolution has, without doubt, been the single biggest driver in reshaping the workplace in recent decades. It’s taken us from the humble pen and paper, to the hardy PC and on to today’s slim-line laptops, tablets and smartphones. And further still from letters and memos to emails, instant messaging and the ability to meet with someone on the other side of the world face-to-face via video conferencing.

Exactly where it will take us in the next two decades is impossible to predict, but a study by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) commissioned by Ricoh Europe and titled The future of work in the 21st century, predicts there are two biggame- changers that will have a significant bearing.

The first is the impending breakthroughs expected in artificial intelligence (AI). That is, the development of computers that are able to perform tasks normally requiring human intelligence, for example speech recognition or language translation. This revolutionary shift will see much of the work we currently do entirely replaced by machines.

The other is the increased digitisation of work. It’s anticipated that by 2036, technological advancements will transform every space – from employees’ homes and cars to public spaces – to a potential workplace, meaning employees will be more mobile and will work much more flexibly.

So how might this increased automation, mobility and flexibility play out for business leaders, the general workforce, and the physical office environment of the future?

More fulfilling jobs due to increased automationWe’re increasingly reading and hearing statistics about jobs that are on the way out, set to be replaced or made obsolete by robots or machines. According to Fast Forward 2030, a 2014 report by consulting firm CBRE and China-based Genesis, experts predict 50 per cent of occupations in corporations today will no longer exist by 2025, with those most prone to replacement being jobs that involve repetitive routine tasks, both physical and mental.

However, the report states that losing occupations will not necessarily mean losing jobs – it will just mean changing what people do.

“A growing proportion of jobs in the future will require creative intelligence, social intelligence and the ability to leverage artificial intelligence. And for most people that will be a route to happiness and fulfilment. For many of us, artificial intelligence will be a tool to undertake tasks of a scale and complexity that were once unimaginable but which are now eminently possible and hugely rewarding.” A rise in the contingent workforceThe EIU study predicts the increased digitisation of work will cause a rise in the contingent workforce as companies turn to flexible, freelance employment contracts in pursuit of agility and innovation. The war for talent will increasingly be for people outside the organisation as employers start recruiting labour from a global pool of freelancers for discreet pieces of work, instead of traditional, full-time employees.

One thing’s for sure, the world of work in 2036 won’t have time for middle managers like TV’s David Brent. The self-promoting boss from the hit series ‘The Office’ will not fit in the shift towards creative and social skills that some see as critical in managing people in the future. So just what will the office look like in 2036? Communicator investigates.

Kiwibank’s future vision Smart business processes and automation are the new battle groundsAcross most industries the rate of change continues to accelerate. Change throws up new opportunities. However, many businesses are grappling with what can feel like a competing set of change drivers.

Customer expectations are increasing (think interaction wherever and whenever), as is compliance. Digital continues to disrupt to simply survive, businesses are being forced to cut costs and become more efficient, day in and day out. Most businesses are by now already very lean, so the added challenge is not destroying value and capability.

These four change drivers have forced a shift in competition from products and services to who has the best (and seamless) multichannel customer experiences and smart business processes. They’re different ends of exactly the same thing. The businesses that are winning the battle are those that are delivering seamless customer experiences, via digitised and automated processes, supported by expert people when it gets complex or where customers need extra support.

Kiwibank has engaged Ricoh New Zealand to initiate further process improvement with a focus on the first mile of customer interaction. We are doing this through the use of Ricoh’s world-class process automation solutions. We currently run Kofax Capture to automate the credit decision aspect of customer lending

applications and we use it to capture customer IDs collected across all our sales channels. We speed up the process for our customers and we save time on our side, too.

Innovation is the unifying aspect that will help businesses stay ahead of the curve. The increased automation that most of us acknowledge will be a given in the future, is actually here already. We are harnessing ways to automate and improve our processes for our customers through the innovative architecture of the Kofax Total Agility platform and the knowhow of the Ricoh team.

James WoodwardGeneral Manager Enterprise Operations

Kiwibank

More companies may even dissolve traditional offices and headquarters as, if recruiting candidates from all over the world, they’ll have less requirement for a central company hub.

Workplaces to support wellbeingWhere companies do maintain a physical office, they’re unlikely to look anything like the typical workplace of today. The rows of desks and scattered offices for senior staff like our friend Mr Brent will be a thing of the past.

The CBRE and Genesis report found the concepts for future workplace environments will include a wide variety of quiet retreat and collaborative settings with the flexibility to choose a setting that’s best suited a person’s work at a particular moment. This type

of workplace, known as Activity Based Working is all about ‘places to work’ not ‘work places’.

The report says that: “Even mood-based working has been suggested – where you can pick the place to work that supports how you feel today – happy, excited, creative, or calm.”

And the trend is toward workplaces that support overall wellbeing: “An industry of wellness in buildings is emerging – with a broad and holistic perspective. The seven well pillars are air, water, light, fitness, nourishment, comfort and mind.”

Those intending to still be working in 2036 can look forward to more fulfilling jobs, more flexibility at work, and a work place that suits their personal work

practices and looks after their personal wellbeing – who can’t get excited about that?

Artificial intelligence and increased digitisation are the two key game changers predicted to influence the future of work.

“The war for talent will increasingly be for people outside the organisation as employers start recruiting labour from a global pool of freelancers for discreet pieces of work, instead of traditional, full-time employees.”

The businesses that are winning the battle are those that are delivering seamless customer experiences,via digitised and automated processes, supported by expert people when it gets complex or where customers need extra support.


Double double for Ricoh’s South Island dealerHeartland Technology - Ricoh New Zealand’s largest dealer with offices in Queenstown, Cromwell, Wanaka, Timaru and Ashburton—won the large business category and took home the Supreme Award in the recent South Canterbury Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards 2016.

This win was particularly special as it follows on from the company’s print business, Heartland Design and Print, being crowned the Supreme Winner for the Business Excellence Awards in 2015.

Managing Director Daryl Young says it’s an outstanding achievement to have back-to-back wins and is a direct reflection of everyone’s hard work and dedication to customer service.

“Our Timaru branch has been led by Richard Spackman who, since moving to Timaru with his family to join our business as a director in 2012, has made a significant contribution to the company.

“We would like to thank Richard for his efforts and for embedding our company even further in the South Canterbury business community. We also owe it to our wonderful clients who continue to be so supportive,” he says.

Founding directors, Daryl Young and Laurie Martin launched the company in 2005 with a focus on providing unequalled service coupled with the right technology.

Heartland Technology’s five branches are staffed by a team of 43 local technology experts who share Daryl, Laurie and Richards’s passion for service and get a buzz out of exceeding customer expectations.

“Working with Heartland Technology, means getting help when you need it, from real people in your local area – not an automated voice or far-flung call centre,” adds Young.

If you’re based in Heartland country and would like to experience their award-winning service for yourself, visit www.heartlandricoh.co.nz to get in touch.

RICOH IN THE REGIONS

Acceptance speeches are becoming the norm for the team at Heartland Technology.

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Working in an office is the norm for many Kiwis, in fact for many workers around the world. However, these days sticking a bunch of desks together next to a water cooler and a coffee machine just isn’t going to cut it for most.

Apart from the environment, poor design and processes in the workplace can also lead to a huge waste of energy and resources. But getting this right has too often become complex and expensive, with time-pressured office managers having to make decisions based on short-term cost rather than long-term benefits. It’s challenging to keep up with the latest options out there. This, in turn has created a lot of waste and a mish mash of imperfect solutions. It’s a rut that’s hard to get out of.

Look around you, do you see evidence of that where you work? In response, the Sustainable Business Network is embarking on a new Smart Office project that will make creating the optimum office much easier for its members and for the public.

James Griffin, project lead for mega efficiency, is heading this up.

“The plan is that we will curate the ‘smarts’ from within our network to create a comprehensive guide. This will replace the ‘green office’ guides of the early 2000s, which were limited in scope and are now out of date.”

SBN has already partnered with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority on the project, and is now reaching out to other businesses and organisations that would like to work on it.

James says: “Technology changes rapidly. We have increasingly sophisticated thinking on energy efficiency and workplace strategy. There is a need for a comprehensive resource on how to operate a modern sustainable office in 2016. These are offices where productivity, efficiency and staff welfare are maximised and the environmental footprint is minimised.”

The project builds on the initial work SBN has done on the Circular Economy

Model Office. This focused on building offices. Both will link with the SBN’s Smart Procurement work to take in all phases of the office life cycle – design, building, maintenance, refurbishment and repurposing.

The Guide will incorporate energy efficiency, workplace strategy, ICT, waste management, cleaning and office supplies. It will cover all sizes of operations.

“This project looks set to create a lot of value for our members,” says James. “There’s lots of ways to get involved, so get in touch now to get on board.”

To find out more, contact [email protected]

SUSTAINABILITY

Designing the smartest office in town Are you recycling your used toner cartridges?Offices are more than just a bunch of desks and a coffee machine. To do their best work, people need the best environment, which makes an investment in the work space a very valuable one. Communicator asks James Griffin from the Sustainable Business Network why he’s on a mission to design the smartest office in town.

It’s easy to play your part in reducing waste to landfill by signing up to Ricoh’s free toner cartridge recycling programme.

Ricoh’s 5-star Green Star HQ in central Auckland

HOW TO

The programme is free for all Ricoh customers, no matter how big or small, and is run in partnership with Croxley Recycling. Croxley manages the delivery and collection of recycling boxes and they recycle all plastic, metal and residual toner.

Getting set up is easy To register for the programme fill out the online application form on the Ricoh website www.ricoh.co.nz/about/environment/application.html

You will be emailed a password within two working days that you’ll need to change. Once you’ve changed the

password the system will activate your account overnight and after that, you’re able to make requests online.

Making a request online If you’re already registered for the online service you can make a request for a box to be dropped off or picked up. Once you have selected the ‘Pay Now’ button (note there’s no cost to Ricoh NZ customers), you’ll receive a confirmation email.

Please allow up to three working days from the date of the request for deliveries and collections.

Please note: Box delivery and collection requests are actioned separately. When you request a box, an order is sent directly to the distribution centre. When you request collection of a full box, an order is sent directly to the courier company. This means you won’t get a box collected at the same time as your empty one is delivered.

If you have any queries please email us on [email protected].

All plastic, metals and

residual toner is recovered for

recycling.

Metal components

are sent to scrap metal dealers.

The various plastic types go to a number of different recyclers for reuse

both in NZ and offshore.

The residual toner is cleaned out and

collected into 20-litre paint pails by colour. This toner is sent to

Enviropaints to be used as a pigment in their recycled paint range.

The contents of each collection box are collated and sorted into

plastic types and by toner colour.

The recycling process

SBN’s James Griffin

Number 7 type plastic, from the long bottle-type Ricoh toner cartridges, is processed by Ricoh’s recycler then supplied to a local manufacturer where it’s made into Ricoh Scooter Docks!

Did you know?


Virtual meetings – the closest thing to beaming inRicoh has given video conferencing and the humble whiteboard a serious makeover. It’s part of the new Ricoh Unified Communication System (UCS) technology suite that allows users to scan from a multifunctional device to an interconnected and interactive whiteboard, access documents in virtual meetings via a network or the cloud, and host secure video conferences linking up to 20 sites. Communicator investigates the technology that’s reducing business travel costs and improving time utilisation and office collaboration.

Adding value and saving money, that’s the objective of Ricoh’s new Unified Communication System or UCS, which includes the next-generation in video communication. The UCS is an innovative video conferencing solution that integrates video, audio, text and interactive media. And, it doesn’t require a dedicated video conference room because the system is portable and uses a WiFi network to connect.

The device itself (P3500) is lightweight and has an A4 footprint making it extremely portable. Staff can carry the P3500 unit for collaborative meetings and link it up to 20 sites. The unit has all the bells and whistles you’d expect – HD picture quality, 125-degree wide-angle camera with a zoom function, exceptional sound quality – and it’s scalable, meaning you can add on external microphones, speakers and a sophisticated camera for larger groups. It also integrates PC data so that participants can share spreadsheets, text documents and other data for interactive conference sessions with the security of data encryption. Participants can also join video conferences through their laptops or tablets from anywhere.

Sitting alongside the UCS is Ricoh’s new interactive whiteboard (with sizes varying from 22” to a staggering 84”). It makes collaboration easy and takes brainstorming to another level.

The Ricoh controller allows remote information sharing and collaboration between up to 20 devices and 20 PC or tablet users. It allows for graphics, images, diagrams and videos to be displayed and annotated – you can even share your work and save it into PDF format.

With the whiteboard it’s as simple as switching on and interacting – write, draw, edit, erase, move, flip through pages, print, share and save. Train your teams in different branches, review plans and analyse data, all without leaving the office.

Michael Ishak is overseeing Ricoh’s Live Office Programme, which is tasked with setting up a working example of all of the solutions Ricoh provides. He, like his colleagues at Ricoh NZ, is a huge fan of the technology.

“We’re rolling out the video conferencing and interactive whiteboards to our branch network so that we can hold meetings any day of the week with everyone. While it’s important to have face-to-face time, our Managing Director can now get the nationwide management team together at the push of a button and save significantly on travel costs,” says Michael.

“We estimate businesses will save around 30 per cent of their internal travel costs by utilising our UCS,” he adds.

But it’s not only business that’s reaping the benefits of this technology. Ishak says the technology is widely used in the education sector as a teaching tool and a number of sports teams use it to review game performance.

“Within the Ricoh network we know of rugby teams that are using the technology to review training and review their games. Coaches can eplay the game via the whiteboard and annotate different plays to illustrate where and how palyers can improve technique.”

PRODUCTS

• Ultra portable, easy operation

• HD quality with wide viewing angle

• Versatile, scalable video conferencing

• Outstanding audio quality

• Secure data sharing

Ricoh P3500Introducing the new UCS video conferencing technology that’s flexible, secure and in HD

• Exceptional visual clarity

thanks to 65” full DH 1080p

• LCD display

• Network access secured by

an authorised PIN code

• Portable: Switch on and go

• Touch screen – write, draw, edit, erase, move, resize and save work

• Integrate into your existing IT infrastructure

• Highlight areas, flip through pages, zoom in and out

• Simple user interface makes it easy to share, edit and save work with colleagues

• Link up to 20 whiteboards and allow up to 20 more remote users to view presentations

• WiFi

Introducing the new UCS interactive whiteboard The presentation solution for business and education

For more information on this brand new technology contact

your nearest Ricoh office, go online at ricoh.co.nz

or call 0800 80 76 76.

TECHNOLOG

Y

FOC U S


INNOVATION EDUCATION

It’s common for most students, even those in primary school, to use a device in the classroom. And while access to the web is considered a key part of today’s education, keeping these devices organised, charged and secure has been a headache for teachers.

Enter the Ricoh Charging Trolley, a lockable recharging solution on wheels that can securely store a suite of 30 Chromebooks, laptops or tablets. The beauty of the trolley is that it can be wheeled from class to class, the wires are kept out of the way and your IT investment is protected.

‘Charging’ for education Ricoh: supplying technology to the education sectorPortable devices have become industry standard in New Zealand schools. Students now have iPads, tablets, laptops and Chromebooks at their fingertips, but keeping them organised, charged and secure has been difficult, until now.

• Slots for 30 devices

• Takes any size Chromebook, Netbook, Laptop, iPad or Tablet PC

• Tough lockable door for added security

• Easy-glide wheels with brakes for safety

• Powers safely from one standard wall outlet

• Flow-through ventilation to prevent overheating

• Cable management system for easy concealment and protection of chargers and cords

• Fitted with a timer for efficient power cost savings

• Delivered fully assembled ready for immediate use

• Fuse trip switch to eliminate power overloading

• Dimensions: 640 x 550 x 1200

• Colour: Charcoal

• 12 month warranty

RICOH CHARGING TROLLEY

RICOH CHARGING TOWER

If you like the concept but don’t need space for 30 devices, check out the Charging Tower. Complete with 10 universal plug power inputs and four USB slots, the Charging Tower is the easy way to keep devices ready-to-go. This compact model features a retractable cord and fuse override for added surge protection and each layer is individually controlled for added safety. With its distinctive lime green colour, the Ricoh Charging Tower will add some colour to your space while keeping your devices at the ready!

At Ricoh, we understand schools and education.

We realise there are a range of requirements and challenges across the education sector, which is why we’ve built a business around supporting this unique market.

Across the globe, Ricoh thrives on the opportunity to continually innovate and here in New Zealand we’ve made it our mission when it comes to providing the education sector with the latest technology.

We refer to the services and solutions that we provide as being ‘elastic’, which means they provide the latest technology with the flexibility to meet the ever-changing school environment. What’s more, our solutions meet and exceed the expectations of both the teaching staff and the students.

Our involvement stretches beyond just the provision of technology to meet the business needs of our schools. We proactively seek out opportunities to make a real difference by offering

additional assistance by way of sport and cultural sponsorships, technology initiatives, scholarships and community-driven activities.

Through our network of sports ambassadors and business partners, we offer professional guidance and coaching with speakers to entertain and motivate students and teachers alike. Our close ties and corporate sponsorship with some of New Zealand’s elite sports teams gains us access to seats at venues that we distribute among our partner schools – the perfect item to auction for the school fundraiser.

Ricoh is an accredited supplier on the All of Government supply panel, which means we can offer a range of payment options including purchasing, leasing or renting equipment over a short or long-term. We also offer the option of paying for all products and services on a per-impression basis. This option suits the education sector as it’s a ‘pay as you use’ model that caters for the extended holiday periods when use is much reduced.

• Printers and multifunctional devices, print room equipment and accessories.

• A full range of print and scanning-related software e.g. Follow-You printing, cost recovery, card systems, mobile printing software and electronic forms software.

• Consulting and professional services including IT, solutions architects,project managers and business analysts.

• Provider-enabled solutions including: business process automation, cloud hosting, digital print outsourcing and back-capture scanning.

• 3D printers and scanners, wide format printers, production printing products and print-finishing equipment for print rooms.

The Ricoh offering


Fanatic or first-timer? This cycling celebration’s got it all

From its humble beginnings in 1977 with just 26 participants, the event has grown into New Zealand’s largest cycling event with around 7,500 riders from across New Zealand and more than 20 countries around the globe taking part each year.

Newly appointed Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge event director, Aaron Carter believes this is an outstanding event that gets people hooked.

“Cycling is a fantastic sport, it provides great physical activity, it’s easy on the body and offers both the camaraderie of group cycling and the option for individual challenge.”

“The Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge motivates people of all abilities to give cycling a go. With the event being in its fortieth year, some participants are now bringing their children and even grandchildren along,” he said.Carter’s mission is to provide something for everyone regardless of age and whether they are into endurance or sprint, on-road or off-road, or they like to ride individually or in a group.”

The iconic 160km 'Round the Lake' ride – a one lap circumnavigation of Lake Taupo – is just one of 14 event categories on offer. There are road and mountain bike options for both individuals and teams, catering to all levels of cycling and fitness abilities.

“Having these options provides stepping stones to getting involved and allows riders to grow with the event as their fitness and confidence levels increase. “We’re making some exciting changes

this year, most notably the introduction of a new 40km Quarter Lake on-road event option, which complements the 160km Round the Lake and the 80km Half the Lake categories. “We’ve also introduced some incentives for groups and families. We want everyone to join the ride and celebrate our 40th anniversary with us,” he added.

Ricoh has proudly sponsored the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge since 2012 and encourages Communicator readers to give it a go this year and be part of the event’s 40th anniversary celebrations. Pick the ride that suits you at www.cyclechallenge.com.

SPONSORSHIP

Fanatic or first-timer? This cycling celebration’s got it allThe thousands of cycling enthusiasts who don their lycra for New Zealand’s premier cycling event are in for an extra special ride this year; the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge is celebrating its 40th anniversary on 26 November and the event promises to be bigger and better than ever.

SPONSORSHIP

Riders get to take in spectacular views of Lake Taupo

One of the large Ricoh contingent that takes part every year

There's something for everyone - including the 5km Heart Kids ride


MakerBot makes itself at home at The Mind Lab by Unitec

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to use, free 3D design programmes or use a MakerBot Digitizer to scan an object before printing.

3D printing in your own home, school or office has never been easier!

For more information call 0800 80 76 76 or visit www.ricoh.co.nz

As the authorised reseller of MakerBot 3D printers in New Zealand, Ricoh’s 3D printing customer base touches a number of industry sectors, including education. Last year Ricoh loaned The Mind Lab by Unitec a MakerBot desktop 3D printer to trial and the team was so impressed it ordered four and has committed to replacing its existing 3D printers with MakerBot models over the coming year. We talk with the folks at The Mind Lab to find out what they do and why they chose MakerBot.

The Mind Lab is a specialist education lab operating in partnership with tertiary education institute, Unitec. Its aim is to enhance digital literacy across the board, offering practical, hot-in-demand postgraduate courses, school holiday programmes and school group facilities.

Established in Newmarket, Auckland in 2013, it has grown exponentially, and calls Gisborne, Wellington, Christchurch and numerous other locations home.

Richard Rowley, Education Director, says the partnership with Unitec is the first of its kind in New Zealand and has helped to maximise the effect the lab has had, in such a short period, on today’s learners: “What we offer is truly unique. We are focused on offering learning experiences that support the development of the next generation of makers, doers, inventors and creators who will shape the future with new ways of working, thinking and living.

“From electronics, robotics, 3D printing and animation to programming, film technology and science, we recognise that the world we live in is increasingly

influenced by new knowledge and technical advances. The careers our children will enter into in the future will be very different from the careers we know today,” adds Rowley.

Equipped with the latest high-tech tools and a team of talented science and technology specialists, The Mind Lab offers a creative environment where discovery, experimentation and learning by doing is actively encouraged.

Ricoh’s Maxwell McCarthy spotted an opportunity for the MakerBot range of 3D printers and offered The Mind Lab a free trial.

“I heard about The Mind Lab and the work they were doing introducing students to 3D printing, and I knew they’d be the perfect candidates for a MakerBot 3D printer. MakerBot 3D printers consistently outperform their competitors and I was confident that if The Mind Lab trialled one, they wouldn’t look back,” he says.And he was right. After putting the MakerBot Replicator through its paces in November last year, The Mind Lab

team was convinced. So much so that it ordered four and committed to replacing its existing 3D printers with MakerBot’s over the coming year.

“We had several requirements which our 3D printers had to meet,” explains Rowley.

“Obviously the standard things such as speed and resolution, but in this space competitors also do these well. Our main consideration was being confident in recommending the device to a school.

“Not only were we looking for something that would deliver high, quality results, but we were also looking for an established company with a good track record in the industry, together with a well-established reseller with a great support network throughout New Zealand. Ricoh and MakerBot were therefore the perfect match for us. We are aware of schools that have spent considerable money on this type of equipment only to have it fail and be unable to get support to fix it, leaving them with an expensive desktop ornament. So we had to get it right—and we did.

“We’ve used our MakerBot for many different projects, including developing a homemade robot. We are also currently prototyping propellers for an underwater robot. Our students have used the MakerBot to print gears, name tags and drone parts, to name a few.

“MakerBot and Ricoh are a combination we are more than happy to recommend to schools wishing to invest in 3D printing technology.”

A Mind Lab student using the MakerBot Replicator 3D printer

3D PRINTING

Getting started with 3D printing is easy!

New MakerBot

models now available


After a recent merger, Auckland-based Bodley Construction turned to technology to help centralise information from disparate systems and streamline collaboration between job sites and offices. Now, among the hammers and nails, one of the most important tools at the company’s construction sites is a piece of software.

That software is Laserfiche, an enterprise content management system that Bodley originally implemented to store electronic documents. After working with Ricoh, Bodley found it could use Laserfiche for much more. The company created electronic forms to collect information and automated many of its core business processes—including cost estimates, accounts payable, payroll, and health and safety audits—streamlining collaboration across job sites and departments and saving the company significant time and money.

“Bodley saved almost $20,000 in the first year they used Laserfiche,” explains Paul Dobson, practice leader at Ricoh New Zealand. “The company retired a number of legacy software systems as part of the adoption, so that’s reflected in the savings, as well as reclaimed employee time.”

Data related to any one of Bodley’s projects can now be accessed and processed with Laserfiche from CAD drawings and the original quote to correspondence with client and contractors’ timesheets. All information is filed in a standardised system and easily searchable.

“We see Laserfiche as our one-stop shop,” says company director Doug Bodley. “Because we have all the information in one place and we can easily retrieve it, we know exactly how many jobs we have, where we are financially with each job, what the job tasks are and all of the health and safety risks and mitigations. The upshot is we’re more efficient and we can keep

our clients informed.” The software is also critical on-site. Contractors and employees use iPads to access critical data and submit forms in Laserfiche 24/7.

“We can give our team live data on site,” Doug adds. “It’s so much easier than giving them pieces of paper, which can be lost in their trucks or forgotten at the office.

“Another bonus is that the software is easy to use. We’ve made it easy for people filling out forms. For example, the health and safety form prompts users so they know what to fill out when they are looking at hazards and control measures. They don’t have to reinvent the wheel when they write down a hazard or hazard control every time.”

Both Doug and Paul agree that Laserfiche is a powerful tool for New Zealand’s construction industry, particularly with the growing number of building projects and the new Health and Safety at Work Act that took effect in April.

“Workers’ time on construction sites is not compromised by having to go back to a separate office to find, reclaim or scan information,” Paul says. “With the Laserfiche mobile app, they can pull up what they need when they need it, and they’re getting the job done a lot quicker.

“We probably get 1,500 to 2,500 invoices in a month,” Doug adds. “We don’t print any of those out now. Similarly, all of our invoicing and statement processing is all paperless. Something that used to take me a week or two now takes me about two days, because I don’t need to sift through data. It’s all standardised and automated.”

Paul lauds Bodley as an innovator in an industry that’s traditionally viewed as lagging in adopting new technology. “We’ve engaged with many construction companies solely

SPOTLIGHT ON OUR CUSTOMERS

These days there’s more to a builder’s tool belt than just a hammer. With forecasts predicting New Zealand’s building and construction sector will reach record levels by 2017, many building companies are adopting technology to optimise the way they work and remain competitive. Communicator talks to Bodley Construction about its technology journey.

A new tool for efficiency to scan and digitise documents,” Paul says. “Bodley, however, took a look at the entire enterprise and addressed a number of business areas. This enabled the company to optimise its processes, increase efficiency and accuracy, streamline daily operations for employees and ultimately provide better service to clients.”

Doug Bodley says he’s working on processes every week, continually looking at how the business can improve. “There’s a lot on the boil, but I think we are going to continue to get more and more efficient.”

Spotlight on LaserficheSince 1987, Laserfiche’s enterprise content management software has been trusted by more than 35,000 organisations worldwide to manage, secure and share information.

Laserfiche develops solutions for capture, workflow, forms, e-signatures and case management that help organisations drive business value and make timely, informed decisions.

• 35,000 + worldwide installations and five million + users

• 1000+ resellers worldwide – Ricoh is the exclusive reseller in New Zealand

• 94 per cent client satisfaction rate

• Microsoft Gold Certified Partner

• Department of Defense (DoD) and Victorian Electronic Records Standard (VERS) certified


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COMMUNICATOR - Ricoh NZ · 1 COMMUNICATOR ISSUE 31 COMMUNICATOR 1 ... been the single biggest driver in reshaping the workplace in recent ... James Woodward …