How HarperCollins UK Streamlined Printing Across Three Sites with Toshiba e-STUDIO MFPs

HarperCollins UK is one of the world’s foremost book publishers, producing around 1,000 titles every year. With a workforce of 900 people spread across a London headquarters near The Shard, a distribution centre in Glasgow, and an educational sales office in Honley, Yorkshire, the company depends on fast, reliable printing and scanning to keep operations running smoothly.

The Challenge

Each of the three HarperCollins UK sites presents very different printing demands. The Glasgow distribution centre operates around the clock, seven days a week, in conditions that are far from gentle on equipment. Dust levels are high, and devices regularly endure physical knocks — on one occasion, warehouse racking was even dropped onto a machine. Downtime in this environment is simply not an option.

At the London headquarters, a major office relocation prompted a wholesale review of how the business used print. Legacy processes meant that a significant amount of paper was being wasted — staff would send documents to print and then forget to collect them, or never bother picking them up at all.

Meanwhile, the Honley office needed high-quality colour output for educational materials, and all three sites required a consistent, easy-to-manage approach to document handling.

The Solution

Toshiba implemented a rationalised fleet of e-STUDIO multifunction printers across all three sites, supported by a dedicated print room in London and PaperCut print management software.

With the PaperCut integration, staff now use their building entrance passes to authenticate at any networked MFP and release their print jobs on demand. This follow-me printing approach means documents sit securely in a queue until the user is physically at the device, eliminating uncollected output and strengthening document security.

Administrators gained access to detailed reporting on usage patterns and costs, with the ability to set print quotas and restrict certain types of output to specific devices. In the Glasgow warehouse, Toshiba provided hands-on training for key shift workers, ensuring they could handle routine maintenance tasks such as changing drums and toners without needing to wait for an engineer.

The Results

The partnership between HarperCollins UK and Toshiba has lasted for over a decade.

Across the estate, print waste has fallen dramatically. The combination of follow-me printing and usage quotas changed staff behaviour, encouraging people to think twice before hitting print. Administrators now have granular visibility of who is printing what, where, and in what volume — intelligence that feeds directly into ongoing cost management.

In Glasgow, the e-STUDIO devices have proved tough enough to handle the demanding warehouse environment without compromising on uptime. In London, the colour MFPs deliver the sharp, professional output that HarperCollins requires for author statements and marketing materials.

Natalie-Jane East, Technology Operations Director at HarperCollins UK, described Toshiba as a genuine solutions provider that addresses specific requirements rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach. She noted that the devices simply work, and on the rare occasion a problem arises, it is resolved immediately — making the entire print operation feel seamless.