Managed Print Services Standard

Policy Number: 1.11.1.1.4
Category: Acceptable Use of Technology
Effective: May 5, 2023
Revision History: None
Review Date: May 4, 2026

1. Purpose, Scope, and Responsibilities

   1. Pursuant to the Acceptable Use of Data and Technology Resources Policy, West Virginia University (“the University”) will provide the use of University Technology Resources to Authorized Individuals as the primary means to create, store, send, or receive University Data.
   2. The purpose of this Standard is to identify the appropriate and acceptable use of the University’s fleet of printers, including funding, deployment, responsible maintenance, and disposal of all printing related devices (“Managed Print Services”). The objective of this Standard is to simplify and standardize MPS to reduce cost, waste, toner, and paper as well as secure and optimize the print environment at the University.
   3. The Chief Information Officer, supported by the Executive Director for Enterprise Support, is responsible for the implementation of this Standard.
   4. The Information Technology Services (“ITS”) Service Centers and Printing Operations unit is responsible for operating and maintaining the University’s Managed Print Services, including the procurement, delivery, and installation of new print systems and for the orderly removal and secure disposal of replaced printers.
   5. Utilization of Managed Print Services for activities supported by external funds (e.g., grants and contracts) will be charged back to those external funds pursuant to the Click Charge for that printer. Utilization of Managed Print Services for activities supported by University funds will be paid by ITS.

2. Managed Print Services

   1. All printing, scanning, and copying needs at the University must be purchased through MPS.
   2. The MPS fleet will be covered under warranty and replaced on a regular cycle coinciding with the warranty period. All MPS devices will be serviced and supported by ITS with support from the University’s MPS partner.
   3. The MPS fleet includes Multi-Function Devices (“MFD”) of various sizes to accommodate a variety of usage and print requirements. Both color and black/white printers are included in the printer fleet and are provisioned based on an analysis of the needs of the work teams.
   4. ITS will work with college/department representatives to assess usage and copying, printing, and scanning requirements to identify an appropriate solution. MPS devices have a minimum print-volume requirement which is a significant factor in device location.
   5. The purchase of printers, scanners, MFDs, ink, toner, or related supplies other than paper outside of the established MPS contract (e.g., use of Pcard) is prohibited.
   6. Purchase of home office printers is prohibited regardless of whether it is made with state, Foundation, or Research Corp funds and regardless of payment method (e.g., PCard, Mountaineer Marketplace, or reimbursement).
   7. All MPS devices must be connected to the Campus Network; therefore, all MPS device locations must have sufficient network capability (wired or Wi-Fi) to support remote configuration, monitoring, and collection of utilization statistics.
   8. ITS will monitor MPS devices for security, compliance, supplies and maintenance, appropriate usage, and benchmarking and analytics to improve printing habits, carbon footprint, and cost/performance.
   9. MPS devices do not store or retain the University Data being printed/scanned/faxed on the device. MPS printers will only retain a log of the print job identifying date, time, and print success or failure.
   10. MPS print jobs will not be held indefinitely and will be automatically purged from the print server within 2 hours, if not released.
   11. See the Sensitive Data Protection Standard for requirements to print, scan, store, or share Sensitive Data.

3. Responsibilities of Authorized Individuals

   1. Authorized Individuals must limit printing to essential academic, instruction, research, or outreach purposes by adhering to the following:
      1. Limit publication, printing, and storage of hardcopy documents and presume that information should be provided and retained in electronic format, when permitted by law and consistent with the WVU Record Retention Policy and Schedule; or,
      2. Provide the document as a PDF via email or sending to a shared location (e.g., network drive, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive).
   2. Authorized Individuals must utilize MPS devices for copying, printing, and scanning needs and must only purchase copiers, printers, scanners, MFDs, ink, toner, or related supplies other than paper outside of MPS after receiving an approved exception.

4. Exceptions

   1. 3D and wide format (greater than 18 inches) printers are exempt from the requirement to use the MPS contract.
   2. Faculty are encouraged to use Managed Print Services for their research needs but may use externally funded research dollars and related cost-share funds to purchase printers, scanners, or MFDs that do not require a network connection. These same funds must be used to purchase ink, toner, and related print supplies for these devices.

5. Definitions

   1. “Authorized Individuals” means faculty, staff, students, and others who have assigned WVU Login credentials which provides them access to University Data and Technology Resources such as retirees, consultants, presenters, camp attendees, or vendors.
   2. “Click Charge” means the cost of printer maintenance and supplies charged by the number of copies produced on a machine.
   3. “Multi-Function Devices (MFD)” means an office machine that incorporates the functionality of multiple devices (e.g., copy, scan, fax, print) in one and generally provides centralized document management, distribution, or production in an office setting.
   4. “Secure Print” means a solution that places print jobs into a holding state until the user authenticates and releases their print job at a designated MFD. Users can release their print jobs by swiping their University ID card at the selected MFD.
   5. “Single-Function Printer (SFP)” means a device that only prints.
   6. “University Campus Network” means both wired and wireless components, devices, or networks that are connected to the campus network.
   7. “University Technology Resources” means the Campus Network, University-owned hardware, software, and communications equipment, technology facilities, and other relevant hardware and software items, as well as personnel tasked with the planning, implementation, and support of technology, such as printers and copiers.

6. Related Documents

   1. Acceptable Use of Data and Technology Resources Policy
   2. Record Retention Policy and Schedule
   3. Compliance Management Standard
   4. Sensitive Data Protection Standard