He notes, “Being burdened with heavy, unwieldy equipment made it more difficult for inspectors to convey a professional image and to focus on their primary inspection and advisory tasks. Given these challenges, it was clear that we had to find a field friendly, iOS compatible solution. And that’s what led us to explore the Brother PocketJet direct thermal printers and invest in the initial 350 of these compact mobile printers for our field force.”
The printer model selected by the state of Florida’s H&R Division is the PocketJet 673, which offers full-page, high-speed thermal printing of high-resolution text, graphics, and photos for Apple iPad and iPhone devices. (Brother offers PocketJet models for use with devices running on other major operating systems.) The printers are compact and perform reliably even when operating in extreme heat and cold. They accept a variety of Brother thermal media, including cut-sheet letter or legal-size paper, continuous or perforated roll paper, or fanfold paper. In addition, because the printers employ direct thermal technology, there are no messy inks or toners to deal with.
The Roll-Out
With the software, hardware, and printer defined, the agency deployed the new mobile inspection solution. Shapiro says the effects have been quite remarkable, both on the inspectors and on the Florida DBPR Hotel & Restaurant Division.
“With email available right from the tablet, there is now better and more immediate communication flow from onsite all across the agency,” he explains. “Inspection information is now more complete and accurate in real-time, resulting in faster reaction time in identifying and remediating food handling hygiene and food safety issues. In addition, faster, more reliable printing of reports and advisories has led to higher productivity on the part of the inspectors, as well as higher levels of customer service and satisfaction.”
Today, inspectors can arrive at each venue and make a more professional impression, carrying only a small case containing the tablet and PocketJet printer. They can focus completely on carrying out the inspection quickly without worrying about equipment setup or reliability, and they can print out high-quality, full-page documents right on the spot to leave behind with each food service operator.
Crist is senior vice president sales and marketing at Brother Mobile Solutions. Reach him at david.crist@ brothermobilesolutions.com. Shapiro is district manager for Broward County Florida DBPR Hotel & Restaurant Division.
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