Standing at right is Cindy Reichert, finance director for Apache Junction Unified School District, giving a presentation at a recent Governing Board meeting. (Richard H. Dyer, Independent Newsmedia)

A five-year, $193,879 contract for 55 paper copiers is being considered by the Apache Junction Unified School District.

The purchasing department is requesting Governing Board approval for the renewal of a Ricoh agreement using the cooperative US Communities Contract No. 4400003732 for the upgrade of the district’s copiers. The district makes 694,637 copies a month, according to an AJUSD document.

The AJUSD Governing Board at a work session April 23 discussed the agreement, which will be voted on at a future meeting.

The current five-year contract with Ricoh expires June 30, Cindy Reichert, AJUSD’s director of finance, said to the Governing Board.

“With this new agreement, the copiers will be four-generations newer, they’re going to have enhanced features and we’re going to be getting 55 copiers,” a reduction of two copiers, she said.

“Right now (contracted employees) can’t print to a copier, but with this enhanced software they will be able to do that and so I think that would be a definite benefit to those employees,” Ms. Reichert said.

All three of AJUSD’s elementary schools have seven copiers, Cactus Canyon Junior High School has 11, the Early Learning Center has four, Apache Junction High School has 12, the district office has seven, the maintenance office has one and the transportation office has one, according to the AJUSD document.

The current copiers do not have the required software to allow printing from teachers’ and contractors’ laptops, Cheryl Williamson, AJUSD’s buyer, said in a memo to the Governing Board.

“The upgrade will also reduce the risk of confidential materials being left in the printer and will also reduce the use of paper that the district uses by having a print-release function from the user. The documents are stored at the device until a pass code is entered at the copier,” she said.

“The purchasing department would like to move forward with this as soon as possible to get them into the sites before the beginning of the new school year,” Ms. Williamson said in the memo.

Editor Richard Dyer can be reached at rdyer@newszap.com