Manage Your Printing and Scanning with a Single Platform with uniFLOW
Incorporating uniFLOW into your document processes helps improve the control and efficiency of multifunctional print devices (MFDs). uniFLOW is open, modular, and configurable, and is designed to be adapted to meet specific needs of different businesses, such as large corporations, small offices, educational establishments, local government, and on-site print rooms. uniFLOW can help your organization reduce costs, implement document security features, increase employee productivity and assist in meeting your environmental performance goals.
Learn more about uniFLOW Online in this brief overview video:
One ...
- System for the business to learn
- System to back up
- Set of users, rules, and security permissions can be set up
- Reporting for office and print room printing costs
- Client application for managing office and print room jobs
...Platform
- One integrated platform for all your printing, scanning, and device management
- Scalable to virtually any size to provide flexibility, regardless of your business type
- Modular architecture to allow the benefits of uniFLOW to be extended into other parts of your business
- Device-independent platform that allows you to easily integrate a selection of mixed fleet of devices
Security Features
Print Confidential Documents with Security Features
uniFLOW’s Secure Print functionality allows users to send sensitive documents to network printers from desktop and compatible mobile devices. Documents will only be printed when the user is physically standing at the device and authenticates. This makes uniFLOW a powerful software application with access controls that can help increase business productivity.
Print From Anywhere
uniFLOW allows users to print with authentication from wherever they’re working, they can print from their desktop PC, a host-based system such as SAP®, or their compatible mobile phone. Regardless of how a print job is submitted, all users’ jobs will be held in their personal print queue until released with authentication.
The uniFLOW Universal Driver
The uniFLOW Universal Driver is designed to provide output based on your specifications; users can choose any network device from which to print their documents, regardless of model or manufacturer. This helps reduce user dissatisfaction when printing and saves costs by cutting waste. Should the designated uniFLOW server be offline, the uniFLOW Universal Driver can reroute print jobs to any available server, providing continuity. Users can also submit their print jobs from OS X®—without installing a separate driver—using Apple AirPrint® technology.
Flexible Authentication at the Device
Access to devices is easily controlled with uniFLOW. Users can choose from multiple authentication options, such as card log-in, user name/password, PIN code, job code, and anonymous log-in. These allow them to release print jobs from their personal Secure Print queues. Users can also be granted different access rights to various functions, depending on their job role.
Release to Your uniFLOW Enabled Devices
All print jobs are stored in a user’s personal queue until they’re released at the printer of their choice, which can be on your uniFLOW enabled devices in your organization’s printer network. Embedded applets are available for various Canon devices, Océ Large Format Printers, and selected devices from Konica Minolta, Xerox, Samsung, and OKI, among others. Users can select which of their print jobs to release from a list displayed directly on the device screen. On Canon imageRUNNER ADVANCE devices, users can change finishing options directly at the device. In the absence of an embedded platform, users can use devices connected via microMIND* or the uniFLOW Release Station,* which is a device-independent touch-screen terminal. Users can also use their compatible smartphones and tablets to release print jobs securely.
Cost and Savings
Integrated Cost Tracking and Accounting
To help control costs and reduce waste, your organization needs to understand how its printing budget is being spent. uniFLOW allows you to track, assess, and charge back all printing, copying, scanning, and faxing costs on any uniFLOW enabled device, so that costs can be allocated to departments or specific projects.
Multi-Level Cost Centers
uniFLOW lets you assign costs to multi-level cost centers. When sending a job to print, a pop-up screen can appear on the user’s PC, allowing him or her to select which cost center to charge back. Cost Centers can also be displayed on the screen of the MFD.
Track Cost Savings and Environmental Impact
Your organization can easily monitor savings made through improved printing practices, such as deleting Secure Print jobs that have not been printed. With this information, you can establish better printing rules and realize a return on the original investment, based on using a managed printing system. By accurately monitoring usage and savings, uniFLOW can illustrate how many trees or how many grams of CO2 have been saved by not having printed some jobs. These reports can show how your organization has help reduce its environmental impact.
Route Jobs to Another Device
uniFLOW can facilitate improvement in printing practices by redirecting jobs appropriately, so only small print jobs are routed to laser printers while larger jobs can be rerouted to faster MFDs. Very large print tasks can even be rerouted to the central print room. uniFLOW can be configured to allow users to print small jobs on laser printers, but have uniFLOW automatically route large jobs to the cheaper and faster MFP. For really large jobs, the job can even be automatically sent to the print room. In addition, users can be forced to print emails in black and white.
Integrate Remote Locations
To help successfully manage print processes in remote locations, it’s often the case that only by removing or restricting features can outlying offices be integrated with one another. The purchase of the uniFLOW Remote Print Server (RPS) becomes a large part of the functionality of a licensed server within your organization. Another option is to purchase the uniFLOW SmartClient. This client application allows organizations with a multisite infrastructure to print, track costs, and provide print submission failover in case of a server failure, without the need for local print servers in different locations.
Document Process
Create Intelligent Document Processes
With uniFLOW, users can scan documents directly from both Canon imageRUNNER ADVANCE devices and Canon imageFORMULA ScanFront Network/ Document Scanners into appropriate business processes defined according to needs. The lean, intuitive user interface and personalized “follow-me” scan workflows can help facilitate gains in productivity.
Unified Printing and Scanning
Users will have the same user interface on Canon devices for both printing and scanning. Once logged on, users can select their personalized Secure Print queue or scan workflows, so they have a unified user experience.
Personalized "Follow-Me" Scan Workflows
Users can have different scanning requirements, depending on their job role. With the purchase of uniFLOW Scan or uniFLOW Capture, administrators can use the integrated Advanced Workflow Editor to decide exactly what should happen when users scan a document. The administrator can also grant different access rights to workflows for single users and groups. These workflows follow users around the organization.
Process All Captured Information
uniFLOW’s powerful scan engine can process documents using a highly accurate OCR to extract information from the document. Users can automatically pre-fill index information or convert documents to different formats such as Microsoft® Word. In addition, features such as high compression of scanned files and blank page recognition can enable new and efficient workflows to be integrated into daily document processes.
Distribute to Where It's Needed
Once captured and processed, users can easily distribute documents to a variety of destinations, including Microsoft SharePoint®/SharePoint® Online, RightFax, iManage Work, or Hyland OnBase® as well as to popular, cloud-based destinations such as Microsoft® OneDrive®/OneDrive® for Business, Box, Google Drive™, or Dropbox.
Cloud Destinations
Biscom Box
Dropbox
Evernote®
Google Drive™
LEAP Cloud
Microsoft OneDrive®
Microsoft OneDrive® for Business
Microsoft SharePoint® Online
Therefore™ Online
On-Premise Systems
Microsoft SharePoint®
Hyland OnBase®
Global Search
Biscom
ProLaw
Right Fax
LaserFiche
iManage Work
Alfresco
DMSforLegal
EMC Documentum FileNet®
HP Records Manager
Lexis Affinity™
OpenText Context Server
Send Print Jobs From Any Location
Printing requirements extend far beyond the simple “file, print” via desktop PCs. Today’s business processes change rapidly, making flexibility essential for document handling. Converging consumer and business technology has driven a “bring-your-own-device” revolution, allowing employees to work virtually anywhere, at any time, and on any device.
Easy Submission from Smartphone or Tablet
Independent of their location, users can use their compatible smartphones or tablets to submit and release their print jobs in a managed way. Regardless of which method a user chooses to submit a job, it will appear in their personal Secure Print queue and be accounted for, charged, and managed correctly. Users are even able to register multiple email addresses, allowing them to submit jobs from personal and work email accounts.
uniFLOW Mobile Apps
The uniFLOW app is available for iOS, Android™, and Windows Phone®. Users are able to print from any location, both within or outside your company network. The uniFLOW mobile print application brings enterprise-level print management functionality to users’ smartphones.
Apple AirPrint® Support
The standard uniFLOW Service for AirPrint feature provides authentication printing from iPad®/iPhone® and Mac® devices. Your business can benefit from app-free printing and accounting for Apple® devices integrated within your company’s network. Users can easily submit their print jobs to uniFLOW using Apple AirPrint and, if required, even change the finishing options directly on their device before submitting the job.
Email and Guest Printing
Your business likely hosts visitors and/or has temporary staff working on the premises. Temporary users and guests can also submit print jobs from their compatible smartphones or tablets by simply sending the documents they want to print to a specific email address. The guest/temporary user will then receive an email containing a temporary job code for authentication at the device, offering an easy way to print presentations or other documents needed for meetings.
Google Cloud Print™ Support
uniFLOW allows users to submit jobs directly via Google Cloud Print. The standard uniFLOW Print Service feature for Google Cloud Print has been developed for users of Google Chromebooks™ so, like Windows® or Mac users, they can print in a managed way. Users can easily submit print jobs to Google Cloud Print via the Google Chrome™ browser, allowing submission from desktop PCs, Android devices, Windows Phones, iPads, and iPhones.
Gain System Control
uniFLOW can monitor an entire enabled print fleet, so your organization can have an overview of every device. Any changes in a device’s status, such as errors, will be highlighted automatically, thereby triggering notifications in workflows. uniFLOW can provide control of the printing fleet by helping prevent unauthorized use of devices. Where access is granted, all usage can be recorded for later reporting and auditing.
Function Control
uniFLOW can help prevent unauthorized use of the devices, as users can be granted different access rights to use various functions depending on their job role. Where access is granted, all usage of the device is recorded for later reporting.
Device Status Monitoring and Notifications
uniFLOW allows your organization to monitor the status of the entire uniFLOW enabled print fleet, enabling control to be maintained of all devices. The solution allows the administrator to have an instant overview of every enabled device in your location, including media and toner levels. The system can be configured to send out change-of-device status notifications. Customized workflows can be created for a range of status changes, e.g., device error, out of paper, or out of toner.
Device Failover
When operating in a CRQM (Collective Release Queue Management) environment, Canon MEAP devices automatically reconnect to any available server in the CRQM collective in case of a server failure, helping provide continuity of the printing process. The connection to another server occurs automatically as soon as the devices’ “main” server is offline. Once the main server becomes available again, the devices will fall back into the initial connection.
Device Auditing Using Canon's imageWARE SAM Express
With the purchase of Canon’s imageWARE SAM Express and its tight integration with uniFLOW, your organization can easily record and archive all device activities, such as print, scan, fax, copy, and email. Each time an activity is carried out on a MFD, the text and image data plus login information can be documented to facilitate a thorough auditing process.
Fleet Management (MPS)
The complete device fleet in an organization, including Océ Large Format Printer, can be monitored by uniFLOW allowing greater reporting possibilities.
Benefits
Watch how uniFLOW helped Slumberland Furniture increase document security, improve productivity and control and reduce print costs at their corporate and store locations.
Help Maximize the Benefits of an In-House Print Room
uniFLOW is capable of managing your office printing requirements across the entire organization and the print room with just a single application. With the purchase of uniFLOW’s CRD module users can manage all print room tasks, from submission to job intake, from document make-ready to production.
Various Ways of Submission
The print room can receive jobs in various ways. Job Ticketing enables users to send print jobs directly from their PC to the central print room in an efficient and standardized manner. Using the Web-based shop front, users can submit their jobs from anywhere around the globe. Using the Océ PRISMAdirect Solution, users can also submit their jobs directly to the print room.
Central Management of Print Room Job
When print orders are received, operators can check, schedule, and prepare them, assigning their own print queues and printers. Operators can easily drag and drop jobs into print queues or send each one to a device. Settings specified in job tickets are automatically matched with the printer settings, meaning no manual intervention is required to complete orders. All print jobs can be archived in a central library for later retrieval and reprinting.
Web-Based Document Make-Ready
The integrated Web-based, make-ready function (PrePrint) provides a full document preview with easy-to-use page layout and editing tools. This tool helps reduce time spent on job preparation and can help improve accuracy to provide a good quality end-product.
Immediate Benefits
Controlled & Reduced Costs
Using the built-in reporting system, your organization can track and analyze printing, copying, faxing, and scanning usage, allowing internal costs to be charged back correctly and current usage audited. Routing of jobs can result in cost reduction and help increase efficiency.
Improved Employee Productivity
Employee productivity can be enhanced by providing mobile printing facilities and allowing users to print where they need it.
Document Security Features
To help prevent unauthorized use of devices and keep valuable and confidential information safe, uniFLOW requires users to identify themselves at a device.
Increased Environmental Awareness
uniFLOW can provide the analysis to help implement an environmental printing strategy, which can help save valuable resources.
Case Study
See how uniFLOW helped Slumberland Furniture increase document security, improve productivity and control and reduce print costs at their corporate and store locations.
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