5 Common Mistakes When Implementing Cloud Printing in Your Coworking Space (and How to Avoid Them)

Cloud printing is supposed to simplify things. There are no wires, no special setups—just the ability to print from anywhere. It’s important to carefully plan the implementation of these services to avoid frustration among your members, wasting resources, or spending too much on maintenance.

Over the years, we’ve identified some challenges that can come up in coworking spaces when implementing cloud printing. Although each case differs, we want to share some tips to help you navigate those challenges.

1. Failing to Correctly Assess Your Coworking Space's Needs

First, you should ask yourself why you are considering implementing cloud printing. Not all coworking spaces are the same. Some need high-volume printing for professional users, while others have members who print occasionally. Understanding your coworking space's needs will help you allocate the necessary resources to manage printing.

Jumping into a solution without thinking about how often people print, what kinds of documents they produce, and how many devices they use can lead to a system that either over-serves or underperforms.

To get it right, start by assessing your members' actual needs. Cloud printing solutions like PaperCut and Ezeep, integrated with Nexudus, allow you to customise printing settings based on member types and usage patterns.

2. Overlooking Device Compatibility

Nowadays, members use all sorts of different devices in coworking spaces. Ensuring compatibility of your cloud printing with different types of devices will help avoid frustration among your members.

The solution? Ensure your cloud printing system supports all major operating systems from the get-go. Ezeep provides driverless printing for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android devices, meaning users can print from any device without needing to install anything. PaperCut’s cross-platform support also makes printing seamless. With the new PaperCut Extender, it’s now even easier to ensure that users’ devices are automatically compatible, no matter what they’re working with.

3. Not Setting Up Printing Policies

Letting members print without restrictions is a quick way to burn through paper, ink, and money. If you don’t set up printing policies, some users will inevitably overuse the service, while others may not have fair access. This can lead to chaos, higher costs, and general inefficiency in the workspace.

From day one, implement printing policies that make sense for your space. For instance, you can set a printing credit amount that members can use to print for free as part of their membership. PaperCut and Ezeep, integrated with Nexudus, allow you to automate these policies easily.

4. Failing to Control Access

Without proper access control, anyone can send documents to your printer—members, visitors, or even non-members if your network isn’t secure. This could lead to wasted time and resources and potentially expose sensitive information.

Integrating with a cloud printing system can help you set up access rules based on different user cases, which can mitigate the potential issues mentioned above.

5. Not Keeping Track of Charges

Printing costs can spiral out of control if you don’t monitor them. Without tracking who prints what and how often, you can drive up operating expenses. If you’re not billing for print usage, you’re essentially offering a 'free' service that can quickly become expensive. Some spaces offer free printing credits as part of different memberships, but it’s important to monitor usage and adjust those offerings if needed.

Both PaperCut and Ezeep offer easy ways to track and allocate printing costs. You can link usage to each member’s profile through Nexudus, so every print job is charged directly to their account. Whether you charge per page or provide a certain number of free prints per month, these integrations give you complete control.

This not only keeps costs under control but also ensures that members who use the most resources pay their fair share.

Conclusion: Implement Cloud Printing the Right Way

Cloud printing doesn’t have to be complicated, but it does need to be done thoughtfully. By avoiding these common mistakes—correctly assessing your space’s needs, ensuring device compatibility, setting up proper policies, controlling access, and keeping track of charges—you can create a seamless, efficient, and cost-effective printing experience for your members.

Get the setup right from the start, and you’ll save yourself from future headaches while providing your members with a reliable, hassle-free service.

NEW! PaperCut / Nexudus Integration update

We’ve introduced a significant update to the Nexudus x PaperCut integration, simplifying both management and troubleshooting.

This update focuses on two key aspects of the Nexudus x PaperCut integration:

● The Nexudus PaperCut Extender is now a task-based application.

● Extender settings have been moved to the admin panel UI.

What does this mean?

The main benefit for our customers is improved efficiency. By separating tasks, the syncing process is now faster. There are distinct tasks for syncing users and their charges, as well as for creating new users.