European Market for Managed Print Services to Reach $4.0 Billion by 2014 as Businesses Turn Focus to Productivity and Efficiency

London, November 9 (ots/PRNewswire) - Successful businesses need
to be relentless in their quest for increased efficiency and
productivity to keep their competitive edge. While cost cutting
measures have been commonplace in recent years due to challenging
economic times, an ageing workforce will continue to drive the need
for increased productivity for businesses across Europe[1]. Ricoh
Europe (http://www.ricoh-europe.com/?campaignid=BGO), a specialist in
office solutions, managed document services and production printing,
today released a survey, conducted by IDC that explores Managed Print
Services (MPS) (http://mdsresearch.ricoh-europe.com/eu/), an area
projected to grow by $1.6 billion over the next six years, as a
strategy for reducing cost while at the same time increasing
productivity.[2]

The MPS penetration rate among European enterprises of 500
employees or more is currently 20 percent[3], with a healthy growth
rate projected over upcoming years. The increasing level of adoption
aligns with survey respondents identifying organisational efficiency
and employee productivity as top concerns for their businesses in
2011, two areas addressed by MPS.

However, many organisations aren't gaining the full benefits of
their MPS investment. The study reveals that behind successful
implementation is a combination of process, people and technology;
essential elements to ensure enhanced productivity is realised and
that employees are getting the right information at the right time.
With this in mind, Ricoh has developed a Managed Document Services
offering (MDS), which goes beyond the traditional MPS elements. It
starts by evaluating business and employee work processes and leads
into a full support programme where Ricoh implements the technology
and continues to govern the resulting tailored solution.

"Document workflow initiatives are increasingly being identified
as one of the last untapped areas of the IT infrastructure to deliver
significant productivity enhancements," said, Leigh Worthing, IDC's
lead analyst for European Managed Print Services. "As such it is
important for both customers and service providers to understand the
pitfalls and opportunities involved. The research we have conducted
sheds light on the factors to consider when implementing and managing
MPS in order to realise its full benefit."

"There is no denying that the workforce is constantly changing
and that regular review of work processes plays a crucial part in
maximising business efficiency," said Jim Potter, Executive Vice
President, Operations Ricoh Europe PLC. "To ensure that businesses
are ready for the future workforce we are providing a solution that
goes beyond technology, taking both people and process into
consideration. This will drive productivity increase as well as real
business value."

For more information on MDS, please visit
http://www.ricoh-europe.com

To download the full whitepaper visit
http://www.ricoh-europe.com/mdsresearch

About Ricoh Europe

Ricoh Company, Ltd ("Ricoh Company") is a global technology
leader, specialising in the office and production printing markets.
Ricoh works with organisations around the world to modernise work
environments and optimise document efficiency.

With over 108,500 employees worldwide, it operates in Europe, the
Americas, Asia Pacific, China and Japan. Ricoh Europe Holdings Plc is
a public limited company and the EMEA headquarters of Ricoh Company
with operations located in London, United Kingdom and Amstelveen, the
Netherlands. In the fiscal year ended 31 March 2010, revenues from
Ricoh's EMEA operations totalled over YEN 458.5 billion ($4.5 bn)
Ricoh Company's worldwide sales totalled over YEN 2,016 billion
($21bn) during the year ended 31 March 2010.

[1] U.S. Census Bureau, "Depopulation and Ageing in Europe and
Japan: The Hazardous Transition to a Labor Shortage Economy",
http://www.globalaging.org/health/world/depopulationeuropejapan.html
(accessed September 14, 2010).

[2] IDC Worldwide Print and Document Outsourcing Services,
2009-2014 Forecast and Analysis.

[3] IDC's 2009 Global Managed Print Services survey (European
extract)

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Contact:
CONTACT: For further information, please contact: Ricoh Europe PLC,
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press@ricoh-europe.com