Custom print management software
Appfront builds custom print management software to manage your printer fleet: monitor all printers and multifunction devices centrally, record print and copy volumes per user, department and cost centre, control and recharge costs, secure and follow-me printing with badge release, quotas and print policies such as enforcing double-sided or black-and-white printing, and toner and consumables management with automatic reordering. Tailored to your devices, your cost centre structure and your service processes. For organisations with large printer fleets, print and IT resellers, and facilities services that want control over printing costs and print management.
What is print management software?
Print management software, known internationally as managed print services software, manages an organisation's entire printer fleet from a single central environment. The application discovers all printers and multifunction devices on the network, monitors their status, records every print and copy job, and makes costs visible by user, department and cost centre. The aim is control: less waste, lower printing costs, safer printing and a printer fleet that remains manageable as it grows.
Without a central system, a printer fleet is a blind spot. Nobody knows exactly how much is printed per department, colour prints add up unnoticed, and confidential documents are left unattended in the output tray. A standard package solves part of this, but it often forces your cost centre structure, authorisations and service processes into a fixed mould. Custom software adapts to your set-up rather than the other way round, and grows with you as you replace devices, add locations or change how costs are recharged.
This page is about managing printing equipment and printing costs. If you are looking to order online printed materials, see our web-to-print software. For the wider context of our approach, read more about custom software and our custom software service.
The whole fleet on one screen
Every printer and multifunction device visible on a single dashboard: current volumes, toner levels, paper status and faults. You no longer manage device by device; you oversee the entire fleet from one place.
Secure printing with your badge
Documents wait in a secure queue and only print once the user identifies themselves with a badge or PIN code. No more confidential prints left on the tray, and less paper waste from uncollected jobs.
Control over costs
Every sheet is recorded and allocated to the correct department and cost centre. You see where the volume lies, enforce more economical behaviour through policies and quotas, and recharge printing costs accurately.
How we build your print management software
We work in stages and involve your IT management, facilities team and, if you are a reseller, your service organisation early in the process. From a thorough assessment of your printer fleet, cost centre structure and service processes through to go-live and ongoing management, every step is aimed at software your team understands, trusts and can rely on.
We map out your printer fleet: brands and models, locations, user groups and how you charge costs back. Together we determine which integrations, permissions and policies are needed and which functionality matters most.
We design the architecture, the device and user model, and the authorisation model, along with the approach for monitoring via SNMP, cost recording, secure printing and release to the devices.
We build in short iterations with automated testing, structured logging and monitoring. You see working versions along the way and help steer priorities and alignment with the day-to-day practice of your administrators and users.
Controlled go-live with validation of meter readings and a safety net, followed by ongoing management, monitoring and further development as you replace devices or add locations.
What print management software actually does
We tailor each application specifically to your printer fleet, cost centre structure and service processes. Below are the features we most often deliver for organisations that want to manage their printing equipment and printing costs centrally.
Monitoring your printer fleet
Automatic discovery of all printers and multifunction devices on the network, reading their status via SNMP: meter readings, toner and consumable levels, paper status and error messages. A single central overview of the entire fleet, instead of checking device by device.
Volumes per user and department
Every print and copy job is logged with user, device, number of pages, colour or black and white, and single or double-sided. By linking users to departments and cost centres, you can see exactly where the volume sits and make informed decisions.
Costs and recharging
Based on your own per-page rates, the software calculates the cost of each job and assigns it to the right cost centre. Reports by department, location or project, plus export or an integration with your accounting or ERP system for accurate internal recharging.
Secure and follow-me printing
Jobs stay in a secure queue and are only released after identification with a badge, PIN or login at any printer. A card reader links the RFID card to the account in Active Directory. Confidential documents don't sit unattended, and uncollected prints expire.
Quotas and print policies
Set rules that govern the entire fleet: enforce double-sided or black-and-white printing, restrict colour to certain groups, route large jobs to a departmental printer, or apply a monthly quota per user. Waste falls without work suffering.
Toner and consumables management
Toner levels are monitored live, and when a threshold is reached an order or alert is triggered automatically, linked to the correct device and cartridge. Faults and service requests come in centrally, so maintenance happens proactively and downtime stays limited.
Who we build print management software for
Print management matters wherever a lot is printed, or where printing is a service that is delivered and recharged. For each of these parties we build software that suits their fleet, their processes and their way of charging.
Organisations with a large printer fleet
Office environments, healthcare providers, education and government with tens to hundreds of devices spread across locations. They want to make volumes and costs visible, enable secure printing and centralise management. Print management often sits within a broader custom software landscape.
Print and IT resellers
Suppliers of printers and multifunction devices who offer managed print services and charge per volume. They need software that reads meter readings at customers' sites, processes contracts with click rates, and arranges service and toner proactively, with separation per customer.
Facilities services
Facilities departments that manage the printer fleet as a facility and want to steer on cost, sustainability and ease of use. They report on consumption, enforce sustainable printing behaviour through policies, and keep relationships with suppliers and contracts tightly managed.
Print and copy shops
Reprographics departments, copy shops and print rooms that sell printing as a paid service. They track jobs and accounts, invoice by page and format, and want devices, stock and customer administration kept in a single system.
Test your idea first: a working prototype in 1 day
With OneDayBuild, we turn your idea into something tangible in one day for €1,150, so you can see whether further development is worth the investment. Decide to go ahead with the full build? Then we credit the full cost.
Explore OneDayBuild →Technology and integrations
We build with a modern, maintainable web stack and integrate with the systems relevant to print management. The software reads devices via SNMP, the protocol supported by virtually every network printer and multifunction device, and print traffic runs over standards such as IPP. We source users and permissions from Active Directory or LDAP, connect card readers for badge release, and link to your accounting or ERP system for recharging. If you want to combine print management with customer and contract administration, it can connect to a custom CRM.
Why choose Appfront for your print management software?
Appfront builds custom software and always starts with a thorough analysis of your printer fleet, your cost centre structure and the processes around service, toner and cost allocation. Print management software must not only be technically correct, but also fit the way your administrators work and how your organisation allocates costs.
We write clear documentation and transparent code, so your own team or a future supplier can understand and manage the software. No black box, but clear agreements on integrations, authorisation, logging, monitoring and maintenance. This keeps you independent and avoids being locked into a single supplier.
You work with a dedicated point of contact who understands both the technology and the practice of print management. This keeps lines of communication short, avoids misunderstandings and speeds up decisions whenever choices need to be made during the build.
Also take a look at our broader services: custom software, our custom software service and, for customer and contract management, custom CRM software. Have questions? Get in touch.
- Custom software, tailored to your printer fleet
- Central fleet-wide monitoring via SNMP
- Volumes and costs per user, department and cost centre
- Secure and follow-me printing with badge release
- Quotas and print policies to reduce waste
- Toner and consumables management with automatic reordering
- Integrations with Active Directory, ERP and card readers
- Clear documentation your team can read and manage
- A fixed point of contact, no account managers passed around
- No vendor lock-in, ongoing support and continuous development
Security and privacy in print management software
Print jobs often contain confidential information: staff records, contracts, medical or financial data. That is why privacy weighs heavily. With secure printing, documents remain in an encrypted queue until the user identifies themselves, so nothing is left unattended in the output tray. We encrypt and store print jobs, and we apply data minimisation: we record only what is needed for costs and administration, and we do not keep document contents any longer than necessary.
We set up access to reports, user data and administration on a role-based basis, so a departmental manager does not automatically see the entire fleet, and every access and change is logged. We work in line with the GDPR and OWASP security standards, with encryption in transit and at rest. We document data flows and authorisations so that you can demonstrably stay in control and your record of processing activities remains complete.
Discuss your situation with no obligation via our contact form, or read more about our approach to custom software.
- Secure printing with an encrypted queue and badge release
- GDPR-compliant processing and data minimisation
- Document content not kept longer than necessary
- Encryption in transit (TLS 1.2+) and at rest
- Role-based access and least-privilege principles
- Separation of data by department, location or client
- Complete audit logging of access and changes
- Built to OWASP standards and documentation for your record of processing activities
Frequently asked questions about print management software
Answers to the questions we are asked most often about custom software for printer fleet management and print costs.
Print management software, also known as managed print services software, manages an organisation's entire printer fleet from a single central environment. The software discovers all printers and multifunction devices on the network, monitors their status via SNMP, records every print and copy job per user, department and cost centre, and makes costs and charge-backs transparent. On top of that come features such as secure printing with badge release, quotas and print policies that enforce double-sided or black-and-white printing, and toner and consumables management with automatic reordering. Custom software lets you configure this to match your own cost centre structure, access rights and service processes, rather than forcing your way of working into a standard package.
With follow-me printing, also known as pull printing or secure printing, a print job is not executed immediately but held in a secure queue. The user walks to any printer in the building, identifies themselves with a badge, PIN or login, and only then is the document released. Badge release works through a card reader on the printer that links the RFID badge, for example Mifare, to the user account in Active Directory. This prevents confidential documents from being left unattended in the output tray, reduces waste from uncollected prints and gives users the freedom to release their work at any device.
We build custom solutions. Every printer fleet differs in terms of device brands and models, the cost centre structure used for charge-backs, access rights per department, and the service and ordering processes around toner and maintenance. Custom print management software fits your actual setup and can grow with you as you replace devices, add locations or change your charge-back model. After an intake meeting, we agree together which functionality matters most and in what order we develop it, without promising a fixed timeline or price that we cannot yet substantiate.
The software discovers devices on the network and retrieves their status via SNMP, the protocol supported by virtually every network printer and multifunction device. The application reads meter readings, toner and consumables levels, paper status and error messages. From a central view you see each device's current page volume, remaining toner and any faults, so fleet management no longer has to be done device by device. Meter readings also form the basis for cost recording and for service and lease contracts that bill on volume.
Every print and copy job is logged with details such as user, device, number of pages, colour or black and white, single or double-sided, and the time. By linking users to a department and cost centre, the software calculates costs based on your own per-page rates and allocates them to the right account. You can run reports by department, location or project, set quotas, and export the figures or pass them through an integration to your accounting or ERP system for internal recharging.
Print management software is about managing your printer fleet and your printing costs: monitoring, volumes, cost allocation, secure printing and consumables management for the printers and multifunction devices within your organisation. Web-to-print software is something different: customers use it to order printed matter online, such as business cards, flyers or brochures, which are then produced by a print shop. Label printing software focuses on designing and controlling labels, for example for logistics or production. If you are looking to order printed matter online, take a look at our web-to-print software. This page is solely about printer fleet management and printing costs.
Printed documents can contain confidential information, so privacy is a major concern. With secure printing, documents remain in a protected queue until the user identifies themselves, so nothing is left unattended on the printer. Print jobs are transmitted and stored in encrypted form, and we apply data minimisation: we only record the data needed for costs and management, and we do not keep the contents of documents for longer than necessary. Access to reports and user data is set up on a role-based basis, with logging of who has viewed what, so you can demonstrably comply with the GDPR.
Yes. We regularly take over existing applications, including those built by another party. We review the architecture, printer integrations, authorisation model, cost tracking and security, document the current setup and draw up recommendations for improvement. From that point on, we can handle changes, new integrations and monitoring, or modernise step by step towards a maintainable setup, for example when you want to add new devices, locations or recharging rules.
Ready to build your print management software?
Tell us how your printer fleet is set up and where you run into difficulties, from monitoring and volumes to recharging, secure printing and toner management. We are happy to think along with you on integrations, policies, privacy and administration. In a no-obligation first conversation, you will get a clear picture of what is possible with custom software that suits your organisation.