Sienna Jackson / Roundup
Students at Pierce College won’t have to worry about whether or not their term papers will come out cleanly printed, not with Copy Tech’s two new Cannon 7105s.
But the 7105s will only be here by the end of the month, on “special lease” by Pierce College until the school’s administration can decide whether or not to replace all the aging gadgetry of Copy Tech sometime this year.
“It’s like a Band-Aid, to get us through the start of classes,” said Larry Kraus, Associated Vice President of Academic Services.
Kraus has been pushing for a technological upgrade to the facility for the past year.
“Reliability in the machine, lower cost per click…” he listed as some of the benefits of re-outfitting the Copy Tech with new tech. ‘Click’ means the individual photos taken by the scanner.
Kraus estimates it will take about $450,000 to replace the copiers, computers, printers, and copy machines of Copy Tech.
For now, the shiny new machines whir and print, scan and copy for students and workers at Copy Tech.
“We’re very happy, it makes our work easy,” said Marina Ibarra, the supervisor of Copy Tech.
“They used to break a lot,” she said.
The two rentals were installed on the first day of Fall classes, August 30.
The machines cost roughly $1200, according to Ibarra.
“I love those machines,” she said, her hand on her chest.
Joshua Romo, 19-year-old criminal justice major, also approves of the new machines.
“Well, it’s actually been a plus, they’ve been working great,” he said.
Romo has worked at Copy Tech for roughly one year. “It’s made things more efficient now.”
Shane Smith, a professor of mathematics at Pierce who has worked here since the 90s, has never had much trouble with the copy machines.
“It works fine, I’ve never had a problem,” he said as he stood at the last remaining older model, flanked on either side by its gleaming, less noisy counterparts.
“They aren’t necessary, they [Copy Tech] were better off without them,” he said.
Kraus wants to begin installation of new upgrades “As soon as we can.”
“A copier has a life span of about 5-6 years,” he said, pointing out that the oldest copiers at Copy Tech are a decade old. Kraus believes that the upgrade would improve efficiency and would make Copy Tech a better service to students.
Money for the proposed upgrade would come from the College’s funds, an expenditure that would be submitted to the scrutiny of the entire school before going up for a vote.
An expenditure of this size will have to be approved by every level of school administration, from the Pierce College Council to the Budget Committee to any other body that wants a say, Kraus said.
“It’s a major purchase. There’re a lot of people needed to make the decision.”