MailPrinter was recognised as winner in BED's innovation category and also picked up a runners up award in the Mailing Category.

Creating an impact in this environment is a tough task, and many organisations spend millions trying to do just that. CeBIT is the global shop window for innovation and to stand out takes something quite special. MailPrinter is just that. It is an alternative approach to document production.

PFE's traditional products in the folder inserter market, have been off-line, stand alone machines, dealing with material printed elsewhere. MailPrinter offer a single step solution - allowing documents to be sent straight from your computer into an envelope directly.

The only thing that outnumbered the enquiries we had for the MailPrinter was the number of different uses it could be put to. From letters to Mailshots, from invoices to cheques and from payroll to press releases. Everyone who saw it was impressed - and wanted one for their department!

Companion
The entry level for PFE products has always been highly accessible - but what about the thousands of companies that only produce a small amount of mail? This is where Companion will come into its own. It combines 5 of the most commonly used office products in a single, compact and attractive unit.

It handles stapling, letter folding, hole punching, letter opening and staple extraction with ease - and won't go missing from your desk when you need it most! It is on sale in the UK now.

The Future
As is traditional with many companies exhibiting at CeBIT, PFE offered a glimpse into its future - with the all new Automailer 5.

This high end folder inserter takes PFE's capabilities to new heights, as an entry point into the production mail environment. This is a key machine as the volumes of direct mail sent are ever increasing.

Knowing full well that the individual offices would be looking for mailing and document finishing solutions, he began to canvas the area and literally knocked on doors. Shortly thereafter they received permission to demonstrate the Minimailer 1 and 2 machines on Capitol Hill. Machines were soon being sold and because of the importance of this customer, NMS hired a service technician solely dedicated to servicing the PFE machines. As you can imagine, the grapevine is strong and word of mouth was a major key to subsequent referrals.

A new Sales Representative called Al Noori was hired in the Autumn. With a wealth of experience in the copier business, he was soon selling the new Minimailer Plus machines. Since December, Al has consistently placed three machines each month on Capitol Hill bringing their total placements in congressional offices to 46 machines. This means that more than 10% of the offices of US Representatives now have a PFE machine. He attributes the recent influx of sales directly to the features and benefits of the Minimailer. Previously the congressmen and their staff members liked the machines but were concerned about everyday office personnel being able to effectively adjust and operate manual machines. The new features of the Minimailer Plus Range have proven to them that almost anyone can use them. Added selling benefits have been the ability to programme multiple jobs, QuickStart and a third station.

The Minimailer Plus series allows the customer to keep confidential materials in their office and mail them with ease. It also allows them to have control over the turn around time on their mailing projects - a benefit not available when these administrative services were centralised. National Mailing also has a great reputation for service in the area, which has led to the replacement of some PFE machines on Capitol Hill. When a congressman retires, his furniture and equipment go into surplus for others. Three PFE machines went into surplus and were immediately snapped up by other congressional offices - unlike the equipment of some of our competitors.

The US Senate still maintains a print shop which handles most Senatorial administrative and mailing functions. A Smart Start 3 PLUS was reviewed by their staff to get their official approval for making product recommendations to individual Senators’ offices, and the first machine has already been ordered. It will be placed during May, and three additional orders are pending. Already this brings the total of PFE machine sales to 50 within Capitol Hill, with many more areas yet to be covered.

Narrowly heading off rivals in a hard fought section, the MailPrinter edged out entries from ASI, Pitney Bowes and Bell + Howell. PFE won the judges vote, because they felt it was a product for the future as direct marketing reaches out towards the product’s SME target market. Terry Gilbert joked: “If this sort of product really works then it will take away business from companies like mine.” Shane Redding marked the product highly for filling a market gap. She said, “though not a totally new area, this is a compact solution, perhaps one that will appeal to the SME market... I think it is addressing an important new trend.”