Robust yet compact thermal printers deliver reliable printing in challenging conditions
Axtell distributes concrete, sand and other building materials across the south of England via a fleet of more than 80 vehicles.
Four years ago, the company decided to invest in a mobile print solution to replace the pen-and-paper point-of-sale documents that had previously been produced by its drivers, an approach which was prone to errors and less professional in appearance.
In-vehicle printers deliver consistent, on-brand results
Now, each of Axtell’s concrete lorries and sand and gravel trucks features a mounted and wired-in thermal printer that works with drivers’ PDAs or mobile phones via Bluetooth to print documents straight from the company’s order-management system – the printers are compatible with Apple iOS, Android and Windows mobile.
The printers are compact – about the size of a packet of biscuits – and use rolls of thermal media which are printed without an ink toner by selectively heating pre-coated paper. This simplifies the supply requirements and further increases reliability. The result is consistently branded, error-free printing, enhancing customer perception of the business and ensuring reliable records of sale.
Built-to-last units offer polished performance
Four years on and the printers are going strong, despite daily use and exposure to frequently dusty environments.
As well as delivering more professional results, cutting down on lost paperwork and reducing the need to consolidate data at the end of the day, the printers have also reduced consumables costs. The need for four copies of each document for record-keeping purposes meant the company previously had a high turnover of carbon-copy receipt books, and the thermal paper roll is a significantly lower-cost solution.
David Trickey, Operations Director at Axtell Group said: "No piece of electronic equipment
likes working in a dusty environment,
and a concrete delivery truck is one of
the dustiest you can get."
“We need our mobile point-of-sale
printers to be extremely robust and
reliable, and the Brother PJ-762 units
we sourced via the Barcode Warehouse
haven’t put a foot wrong, even after years
of non-stop heavy use.”
Find out more about mobile print solutions from Brother.
