British consumer rights programme discusses shrinking cartridges
May 2, 2013
BBC’s Watchdog show interviewed industry representatives about the rising costs of inkjet cartridges.
The programme, regularly shown on the BBC 1 channel, champions consumer rights and helps expose bad business, and in its episode screened on 1 May, the show featured a piece on the rising prices of inkjet cartridges in comparison to their shrinking size.
The issue, which has previously been covered by British newspapers including the Guardian and the Daily Mail, was taken up by Watchdog through guest presenter Rick Wakeman, former keyboardist for progressive rock band Yes.
Wakeman converses with Cartridge World Aylesbury’s Sarah Dyckhoff and UKCRA and Promax’s Chris Brooks in the piece, which highlights HP’s rising inkjet prices and compares the price of ink to other expensive liquids.
The show presented the statement that ink is the “most expensive liquid”, with HP’s inkjet cartridges containing only five millilitres of ink at a cost of £12 ($18.67/€14.17), equating to a litre costing £2,400 ($3,735/€2,835).Another comparison made is that 4,000 litres of crude oil would cost this much, or 68 bottles of premium whisky.
Sarah Dyckhoff
Dyckhoff shows the camera the differing sizes of the sponges within the HP inkjet cartridges and their shrinking over the past few years, with the programme noting that whilst the HP inkjet cartridges are cheaper to buy, they hold “less than a third of the ink” of previous cartridges. Industry website HPinkcartridges.co.uk previously showcased the sponge issue last year.
Wakeman also discusses Canon and Epson’s shrinking cartridge sizes, noting that Canon’s cartridges have shrunk from 26 to 15 millilitres, whilst Epson’s have almost halved from 13 to seven militaries. Despite Epson halving the price of their inkjet cartridges, the ink would still work out at £1,140 ($1,774/€1,346) a litre.
The show moved on to hypothesise how much money it would cost for Wakeman to set up his own cartridge manufacturing business, with the presenter taking a call from Promax’s Brooks on how much each part of the cartridge would cost. The final cost of making a cartridge was worked out to be 29 pence (45 US cents/34 Euro cents).
Chris Brooks
The culmination of the section on cartridges focused on Epson and HP’s responses to the programme’s findings, with Epson stating that technological advances mean higher prices are necessary, and that it can only guarantee original cartridges will work. HP meanwhile stated that the increased prices help progress technology, and recommended consumers buy multipacks for cheaper costs.
The programme can be viewed here (UK users only), with the piece on cartridges beginning at the 43:50 mark.
Categories : Rank 1 UKCRA feed
Tags : OEM Remanufacturing UKCRA
Xerox sells North American paper business
March 25, 2013
The OEM has sold its paper business to paper manufacturer and distributor Domtar.
The deal will see Domtar acquire Xerox’s paper and print media products business in both the USA and Canada, and whilst Xerox “does not manufacture paper” it has previously distributed coated and uncoated papers as well as speciality print media under the Xerox brand.
The acquired business will become part of Domtar’s pulp and paper segment, with the company marketing and distributing the products under Xerox’s brand. The release made a point of noting that Xerox “will continue to manufacture, sell and support its broad range of consumables” for printing, with the transaction expected to be sorted in the second quarter of 2013.
Frank Edmonds, Senior Vice President of Xerox’s Global Paper and Supplies Distribution Group, stated: “As Xerox broadens its business to focus more on services and innovative document technology, we saw an opportunity for our paper business clients to be better served by a leader in the industry.
“It’s an across-the-board win. Xerox benefits through a trademark licensing agreement with Domtar; Domtar adds a well-regarded brand to its portfolio; and our respective clients get a simplified, ‘one-stop’ experience through Domtar’s extensive offerings and distribution network.”
John D. Williams, Domtar’s President and CEO, added: “The Xerox brand is well regarded in the paper markets it serves. This deal brings together Xerox’s branded papers with Domtar’s already comprehensive paper offering and will allow us to better serve our customers.”
Categories : Rank 5
SFIB clones document now available in English
March 15, 2013
The French OEM association’s clones publication is now available to English readers.
SFIB’s clones document
The Syndicat de l’industriedes technologies de l’information (or Industry Union of Information Technology) recently revealed its stance on clones and the threat they pose to both OEMs and remanufacturers, as The Recycler reported.
The association, which contains OEMs including Brother, Lexmark and Xerox, stated that the European market is experiencing an “emerging proliferation of cartridges made from new parts but not carrying the brand of printer manufacturers”, and its publication came after ETIRA’s Guide to Clones was launched last year (you can view an English version of that here).
The document, which it refers to as “the official position of the industrial sector”, gives definitions of clones, the agreement of commitment between association members and the initiatives undertaken by its members to tackle the spread of clones. You can view it here in English.
The document features an executive overview of the market, definitions of the different types of printer cartridge models available in the global industry, and discusses both the emergence of clones, how they are sold and the “apparently attractive offer” that clones manufacturers propose to unknowing consumers.
The SFIB refers to remanufactured products as “used cartridge[s] which undergo all or part of […] procedures for restoring the product to working condition” including “cleaning, replacement of parts, and ink/toner filling tests”. It adds that “these cartridges are marketed under various brand names or labels”, and that the information on “the packaging and on the cartridge itself clearly shows the customer that this product is different from the initial new OEM cartridge”.
It defines clones as cartridges “manufactured with new components and materials by a third-party manufacturer, not the OEM”, and notes that the use of new components “is not in itself a guarantee of quality”. The definition adds that clones are “manufactured from copies of the original components” and that similarly “the chemical formulation of the ink or the toner is different from the OEM’s”.
Noting that worldwide sales of clones have “increased so dramatically […] during the last three or four years” that French manufacturers, distributors and remanufacturers have been affected, the SFIB adds that OEMs “are taking an increasing number of measures” to protect their intellectual property against clones, with another section looking at four risks in purchasing clones that include high risk of intellectual property infringement, fraud, environmental and economic impacts.
The document ends with a “call to action” imploring dealers and customers to do the right thing in not purchasing cloned consumables, noting that the association’s members are “up in arms” about the spread and threat of clones.
Categories : Rank 2
Australian press joins debate over OEM pricing
March 7, 2013
Epson’s Expression Home XP 100
Smarthouse suggests Australian authorities investigate OEMs over inkjet price markups.
Following reports by British newspapers the Guardian and the Daily Mail, Australian technology news site Smarthouse has published a piece decrying the extortionate pricing of inkjet cartridges and the shrinking of such consumables by the OEM.
Noting that in Australia “printer manufacturers are going out of their way to make it difficult to reuse their cartridges”, the site adds that “this has not gone unnoticed” by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which told Smarthouse such behaviour could “constitute restrictive trading”.
The site contends that OEMs are “ripping [consumers] off blind”, using the example of the Epson Expression Home XP-100 printer, which costs AU$59 ($60/€46) despite a complete replacement set of cartridges will cost up to AU$247 ($253/€194). It adds that “a single cartridge […] costs less than a dollar to manufacture”, meaning that for a four millilitre cartridge people would be paying an equivalent of AU$4,000 ($4,108/€3,155) a litre.
Using the analogy that the barriers to third party ink are similar to “Ford or General Motors designing cars to only take their components or tyres”, Smarthouse also adds references to the Daily Mail’s findings that the amount of ink has shrunk in inkjets throughout the past few years, and quotes The Recycler’s David Connett and UKCRA and Promax’s Chris Brooks, who were both interviewed by the British newspapers for their own reports on the situation.
Categories : Rank 2 UKCRA feed
Summit on inkjet planned in USA
March 4, 2013
The Inkjet Summit will discuss trends and the growing interest in inkjet, with Canon among the OEMs looking to discuss its possibilities.
The growth in inkjet use and the possibilities in business inkjet are among the areas of discussion planned for the summit event, taking place in April in Florida according to What They Think. The invitation-only event is “designed for senior managers and business executives” that “want to understand how inkjet technology, trends, software, consumables and finishing solutions are and will impact their businesses”.
The event’s organiser, nGage Events, noted that it intends for inkjet solution suppliers to meet “qualified attendees”, with experts and others discussing “how to approach inkjet”, with Canon’s American arm sponsoring the event, which also looks to focus on inkjet in terms of production printing. Ricoh is also looking to participate in the event, with topics including the opportunities in inkjet, understanding the technology, visions of its future growth and preparing a business to use inkjet.
NGage Event’s Senior Vice President David Pesko noted that the event intends to be a “win-win for both sponsors and attendees”, whilst Canon Solutions America’s Francis McMahon, Vice President of Marketing for Production Printing Solutions, added that the OEM is looking to the event to meet “qualified decision makers who are serious about inkjet”.
Ricoh’s Vice President of Continuous Forms Production Solutions, George Promis, added in turn that the OEM saw the summit as a “unique opportunity [to] share our view on what the future holds for inkjet and its ecosystem”.
Categories : Rank 5
InkCycle releases remanufactured Xerox and Dell toners
January 23, 2013
Remanufactured alternatives now available for three laser printers.
The company’s first remanufactured release is for Xerox’s Phaser 3600N laser printer, with the cartridge featuring a page yield of 14,000 pages. The other releases are for use in Dell’s 3110CN and 3115CN printers, with replacements available for all four cartridges used in the machines.
The Dell cartridges include replacements for the black (PF030 and PF028), cyan (PF029 and PF012), magenta (RF013 and MF790) and yellow (NF556 and NF555) cartridges from the OEM, and each feature yields of 8,000 pages.
Part numbers for the new releases can be found below:
| Cartridge part number | Colour | OEM device | Replaces |
| 101034518/101034517 | Black | Xerox Phaser 3600N | 3600VN |
| 101034472/101034471 | Black | Dell 3110CN/3115CN | PF030/PF028 |
| 101034478/101034477 | Cyan | Dell 3110CN/3115CN | PF029/PF012 |
| 101034490/101034489 | Magenta | Dell 3110CN/3115CN | RF013/MF790 |
| 101034484/101034483 | Yellow | Dell 3110CN/3115CN | NF556/NF555 |
All four of the cartridges are available in the company’s GRENK programme, which is InkCycle’s line of remanufactured inkjet and toner cartridges designed and made to leave “the smallest environmental footprint possible”.
For more information, visit www.inkcycle.com.
Categories : Uncategorized
Tags : InkCycle OEM Remanufacturing
New toners available from Faroudja
December 13, 2012
The toner manufacturer and components supplier has released toners for Xerox, Canon and HP machines.
The company has released colour toner in bags for Xerox’s WorkCentre 7425 in 10 kilogram (22 pound) bags for black, cyan, yellow and magenta. The bags can be purchased individually or in multiple quantities, and the company also supplies smartchips for all colours.
Company President Phil Faroudja noted of the toner: “We’ve seen a lot of worldwide demand for the Xerox 7425, so we believe this will be popular. These toners have been thoroughly tested, and we think our customers will love the quality.”
Colour toner was also launched for Canon’s ImageRunner 3220 printer, and is available in both bottles and the 10 kilogram bags in all four colours. As well as smartchips, drums are available for this toner as well.
Faroudja added of the Canon product: “We have been in business for seven years and are still going strong. A big part of the reason is our toners always work. We feel our customers will love the quality of the Canon IR 3220 toner.”
Finally, the company also made a toner available for HP’s P 1005 machine, in both bottles and bulk bags as before. As well as a smartchip and drum, wiper and doctor blades are also available for purchase from Faroudja.
Phil Faroudja concluded of this toner: “With these HP ‘P’ engines, the toners are very different from earlier generation of printers, such as the HP 4200, and need to be properly formulated. In the case of the HP P 1005, Faroudja’s toner also works for the HP P 1006. Customers will love the quality.”
For more information, contact Faroudja Toner on +1-650-593-3862 or visit www.faroudjatoner.com.
Categories : Uncategorized
Canon Solutions America formed from Océ integration
December 5, 2012
New subsidiary will launch effective 1 January 2013.
Canan USA has announced 
the launch of a new subsidiary Canon Solutions America, Inc. integrating the operations of Canon Business Solutions, Océ North America and Océ Imagistics, reports Industry Analysts.
The wholly owned division, effective as of 1 January 2012, will “provide sales and support for Canon and Océ hardware, software and services targeting general office, production print and large format markets in the United States”. Canon Solutions America will be headquartered in Long Island, New York.
Canon USA CEO Joe Adachi, who will serve as President and CEO of Canon Solutions America, commented: “I’m very pleased that the integration of the Canon and Océ businesses is nearly complete. We have worked very hard these past three years to make sure our goal of creating the overall leading presence in the imaging industry will be realised.
“Canon Solutions America and the other companies formed by the integration will be better positioned to meet the growing demands of customers locally, regionally and nationally by capitalising on the strengths of each company and maintaining the superior service levels that customers require.”
Categories : Rank 5
Samsung suppliers guilty of “inadequate practises”
November 26, 2012
Internal audit reveals excessive overtime hours, workers fined for late arrival and held copies of labour contracts.
Bloomberg has reported 
on the findings of a Samsung internal audit investigating a number of Chinese supplies, discovering a number of “inadequate practises” including illegal overtime, workers fined for late arrival or absences and holding copies of labour contracts.
105 suppliers were checked in the audit, conducted throughout September 2012, although Samsung has stated that it found no instances of child labour despite the findings of a New York-based labour group stating in August that an assembler contracted by the OEM hired children.
A statement issued by the OEM noted: “Samsung takes concerns about working conditions in China seriously. Whenever an issue is identified, we take immediate and appropriate steps to correct it,” adding that Samsung is developing actions to address each violation including new hiring policies, work hours and overtime practices.
Regarding the recent charge of child labour as discovered by China Labor Watch in August 2012, Samsung has dismissed such findings, commenting: “Although we did not identify any child labour during our audits in September, we have demanded all suppliers to adopt a new hiring process immediately, and contracts with suppliers who use child labour will be terminated.”
China Labor Watch also noted overtime violations including forced overtime work amounting to more than 100 hours a month, unpaid work and 11 to 12 hours of standing.
The report from China Labor Watch stated: “The treatment of Samsung’s Chinese factory workers is far from model […] the list of illegal and inhumane violations is long.”
Categories : Rank 2
Kyocera appoints channel documents specialist
November 14, 2012
Michael Curtis will join the OEM in its new field-based role.
Kyocera Document Solutions 
has announced the appointment of Michael Curtis as its new IT Channel Document Solutions Specialist, described as a field-based role aiding the OEM’s IT Channel Team.
Curtis will aid the seven-strong team in providing Kyocera resellers with additional support. A print technology specialist, Curtis’ background spans across the document production and management market and has previously held positions with Samsung and Sharp.
Curtis commented on his appointment: “I’m delighted to join Kyocera Document Solutions. The company’s focus on its channel partners, the dedicated support structure it already has in place and its growing list of industry alliances mean that Kyocera is well placed to ensure its dealers always deliver the best possible document and print solutions to their customers.”
IT Channel Sales Manager Charlotte Elmer added: “Michael has joined Kyocera Document Solutions at an exciting time. His knowledge of document solutions and our extensive portfolio will enable our resellers to compete more effectively in a solution-centric style of business.
“We support our customers 100 percent and build long-term relationships – we have the printers, the solutions and the service our partners need.”
Categories : Rank 5
