Centralizing Print Management Across a Large School Network: How CEWA Built Scale, Visibility, and Equity

In today’s education environment, IT leaders juggle a complex set of priorities: securing infrastructure, supporting teachers and students, and finding efficiencies in every corner of operations. But one backend system that often flies under the radar — printing — can become surprisingly costly and chaotic when left unmanaged.

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For Catholic Education Western Australia (CEWA), a state-wide network of 156 schools serving more than 83,000 students and 12,000 staff, the challenge was clear: a fragmented print environment with inconsistent tools, limited visibility, and rising administrative overheads.

The Challenge of Scale and Fragmentation

Like many large education systems built over decades, CEWA’s printing infrastructure had grown organically. Individual schools ran a mix of software platforms, and IT staff at the central office found themselves trying to manage this sprawl while still supporting day-to-day IT needs.

In classrooms, print output ranged from simple worksheets and handouts to administrative forms and learning materials. Without a unified system, it was difficult to track usage, enforce security policies, or help smaller, regional schools access the same technology as larger campuses.

A Centralized Approach to Print Management

CEWA began its modernization journey by deploying PaperCut’s centralized print management platform to handle the full scale and diversity of its network. PaperCut was rolled out from the CEWA office and integrated with organizational identity services like Azure, allowing centralized control while also letting local IT staff manage printers and users within their schools.

According to CEWA’s team, this hybrid approach — a blend of cloud flexibility and on-premises resilience — was essential for schools with older infrastructure and varied connectivity. IT administrators now manage printer deployment and user policies from a single Paperut platform, and schools could benefit from delegated administration without increasing central helpdesk burden.

Outcomes That Go Beyond Printing

The results have been significant. Today, CEWA manages 831 printers across 91 locations from Broome to Albany and has processed more than 23 million print jobs through its centralized system.

Beyond sheer numbers, CEWA’s IT team highlights three strategic wins:

• Increased Visibility and Reporting: With consolidated reporting tools, the central office can track usage patterns, monitor costs, and audit printing activity. This data isn’t just “nice to have” — it informs budgeting and operational decisions that directly affect schools’ bottom lines.

• Operational Efficiency: Schools that were previously running standalone servers or legacy print systems now operate under a unified architecture, reducing the technical support overhead on both central and local IT teams.

• Equity of Access: Smaller primary schools, once constrained by outdated print systems, now have access to the same technology and management tools available in larger campuses — an important factor in a geographically dispersed education network.

Ben Beaton, Team Leader of Digital Services and Partner Engagement at CEWA, underscores the value of this equity. It’s not just about technology; it’s about ensuring that all schools — regardless of size or location — can access the tools they need to support students and staff effectively.

Print Management as an IT Strategy

CEWA’s journey speaks to a broader truth in education IT: even “mundane” systems like printing can become strategic assets when they are standardized, visible, and centrally managed. For districts and networks contemplating similar moves, the CEWA experience offers a roadmap for balancing centralized governance with local autonomy.

As education systems look to stretch tight budgets, mitigate technical debt, and support equitable learning environments, print management may prove to be one of the under-recognized levers of operational efficiency.