Duplex – that’s a crazy word. So just for fun I did a search on Google. The first result was a piano bar in New York City, then a Wikipedia entry for a double or two-fold house, and then a movie directed by Danny DeVito. (I didn’t even realize Danny DeVito directed movies.) Finally, the fourth result described the duplex print function in office printing.
Duplex (in the document world) refers to the ability for a printer, copier or multifunction printer (MFP) to print on both sides of the paper. So why would someone want to use the duplex function on their printer or MFP? There’s the obvious sustainability reason like saving trees, and growing up in Oregon, I know environmental concerns are commonplace in my “neck of the woods”. Two-sided printing also saves time loading and reloading the paper trays, trips to the supplies closet and time-saved ordering or picking up paper at your local office store. There are also many organizations today that require all printing be duplex.
Here’s something you may not have considered. If your small business still requires document hardcopy backup and storage, two-sided print and copy jobs save paper and space when storing them. Since you’re printing less pages, there are fewer pages to manage and store.
Many of today’s office printers and MFPs duplex automatically. However, less expensive printers require an optional accessory to perform the function and others s simply do not offer it. Be sure to review the product’s specification sheet when shopping for a new printer or MFP. What else can duplex do for you? Share your ideas below.
