Commissioners examine tech solutions

The subject of centralized supplies and ordering has been a hot one for Putnam County government offices in 2011, as officials have examined ways to cut cost and minimize waste.

One major area of potential savings is in technology. In May, the Putnam County Commissioners approved a request by Tom Jones of Indiana Business Equipment to look into how the county is spending money on its printers, copiers, fax machines and multi-purpose devices.

Jones was back at Tuesday's meeting reporting to the commissioners there are a number of steps the county could take to see savings.

His first recommendation was for the county to look into multi-functional devices that can handle copying, printing, scanning and faxing. He also recommended eliminating all ink jet printers, as the cost of operation is much higher than other devices.

Any plans for equipment replacement would not have to take place immediately, but be phased in as old equipment becomes obsolete.

Jones also recommended the county establish an IT committee to stay abreast of technology issues.

He finally recommended the county go with a managed print service to handle its needs across all departments. This would eliminate the number of different devices and contracts in place in all the different offices of the county.

The commissioners will arrange a meeting with Jones to discuss his company's services further.

A pair of competing telecommunications companies also spoke with the commissioners regarding their services. As discussed at the July 5 meeting, 12Point Telecom and 12Point Technology presented service agreements for the county. The companies were started by Jared Hutcheson and Brent Cash, after their departure from HOP Technologies, which recently sold its telecom and data divisions.

The commissioners tabled the agreement for a chance to review it.

Scott Egan of Gibson Teldata, the company that bought the HOP divisions, was also in attendance. He asked that the county also consider his company's services.

"We're not looking for any kind of contract," Egan said. "We're asking the commissioners to do business with what was HOP."

The commissioners will also review the information from Gibson before making a decision.