**Originally published on December 14, 2016**
Depending on the implementation, pull printing goes by many names, including Release Printing, Personal Printing, Secure Pull Printing, Secure Release Printing, and others. This puts the term pull printing up there with other popular terminology debates: soda vs. pop, suckers vs. lollipops, and rotary vs. roundabout to name a few. No matter what term you use, pull printing solutions all operate on the same principle and return the same benefits.
Print security has gotten a ton of hype lately, bringing more attention to pull printing as a legitimate security solution. Yet, companies still haven’t pulled the trigger on implementing it despite its many upsides.
But the true beauty of pull printing lies in its simplicity.
Pull Printing Is as Easy as Regular Printing
Pull printing solutions are comprised of a simple two-step process:
- A user initiates a print job from any workstation just as usual.
- Once physically present at the desired printer, that user can execute the print job using various authentication methods.
With these two steps in mind, it should be quite clear what the many practical pull printing benefits might be.
Take a corporate setting, for instance.
Tina, the company’s HR guru, needs to print a document with a new hire’s personal information on it. Instead of Tina clicking “print” and leaving the print job unprotected in the print tray, she can simply release the print job when she is ready. The job sits in the queue until she releases it via one of various authentication methods from any printer in her organization’s network—regardless of which floor or building it’s located in. Talk about convenience!
Based on this example, you can also see how easily pull printing solutions would be applicable in healthcare or legal environments where confidential documents are handled regularly.
Why You Should Use Pull Printing
We discussed how pull printing provides businesses and employees with an extra layer of security. However, there are extra benefits that are worth mentioning.
Cut Costs By Reducing Waste: Many sources say unclaimed documents account for about 17% of all print jobs! All that excess waste created from printing the wrong documents virtually disappears since print jobs are more intentional. Plus, with most pull printing solutions, users can delete their queued print jobs if they no longer need them.
Flexible Printing for End Users: End users gain immediate benefits from pull printing. They can prepare all of the documents they need to print and pick them up in bulk later and release print jobs at various locations throughout the organization.
Less Stress for IT Team: Pull printing doesn’t restrict employees to just one or two printers. Employees can release jobs from any network printer that allows for pull printing. Fewer interruptions from frustrated employees about printers makes for a happy IT team.
How We Help You
At PrinterLogic, our pull printing solution–referred to as Secure Release Printing–is featured in our cloud-native SaaS solution that eliminates your print servers and gives admins complete insight into print activity across your organization. Secure Release Printing offers four different but equally versatile methods to authenticate and release print jobs:
- Badge or Card Reader: Using either an integrated card reader or an external one plugged into the printer’s USB port, users can swipe their ID card to release the print job. Also compatible with U.S. federal employee CAC and PIV identification.
- Embedded Control Panel: PrinterLogic’s app with universal printer support is installed directly on the printer itself. Users can then log in using the LCD control panel to authenticate.
- Web Browser: Any mobile device (e.g., Chromebook, iPad, Android tablet) can be used to release jobs via its built-in web browser. This can even be a mobile device set up in kiosk mode alongside the printer.
- Mobile App Release: Users of iOS and Android devices can quickly and securely release print jobs via our Print Release App–available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Unlike other pull printing solutions, Secure Release Printing from PrinterLogic is completely printer agnostic, making it incredibly easy to equip your entire print environment with this convenient and secure functionality. You and your end users can now enjoy the security benefits and increased savings without reconstructing your entire printing infrastructure.