HP is attacking the aftermarket with new market research data

HP has announced the results of a report produced by Quality Logic Inc. (ordered again by HP), which revealed that, presumably, the use of remanufactured cartridges incur twice as much troubles for laser printers in total costs than if the printers are on original cartridges.

The independent testing laboratory Quality Logic Inc. lead a study in the Asia Pacific region to compare the total amount of costs necessary to properly use a laser cartridge. The tester presented the data coming from 2500 small businesses in the region, which includes all information about reliability and page quality.

According to the results of the testing company 1 in 4 of all remanufactured cartridges failed to produce good quality prints and only 1 in 3 pages printed on a remanufactured was acceptable for use.

According to an HP representative in Thailand, small and medium businesses can see immediate cut in expense with remanufactured cartridges, but in the long run the difference will be quickly eroded and customers will incur twice as much costs on maintenance and repairs.

Quality Logic Inc. tested the cartridge reliability and page quality distribution of HP LaserJet toner cartridges for the HP LaserJet 2300 and HP LaserJet 4350 printers. The final outcome of this study is:

> 9.7% of remanufactured cartridges failed prematurely.
> 15.3% had 50% or more pages of limited or no use.
> 25.3% of prints on remanufactured cartridges were of limited use : not for external distribution.
> 3.8% of prints on remanufactured cartridges were of limited use: not for use at all.

RechargEast: This first study in the region ordered and sponsored by HP revealed just exactly what the ordering company wanted to hear and deliver to the local markets. Unfortunately, the study does not give concrete details as to the criteria, print-environment conditions and the state of printing devices as well as all other important factors for a test. The study does not give any information about the brands of the used remanufactured cartridges. Neither is there any information whether remanufactured cartridges were just refilled or remanufactured ones. All these gaps can only prompt to the fact, that the study is a tool to be used in the harsh competition war on the market of imaging supplies, which HP is gradually losing in Asia to the aftermarket.

Probably, the economic crisis, falling demand and increased prices for OEm cartridges in the region made the US printer giant look for some other means to sway the local public's attention from cheaper aftermarket products.

Key words: HP, remanufactured, cartridges, aftermarket, Asia

Sensient Technologies reported record earnings

Sensient Technologies Corporation dealing with high-purity dyes for inkjet and industrial applications reported record earnings for 2008. Consolidated 2008 revenue hiked 5.7 percent to $1.3 billion; the figure was $1.2 billion for 2007. For the fourth quarter of 2008, Sensient’s diluted earnings per share climbed 10.3 percent, to 43 cents, compared to 39 cents for the 2007 fourth quarter.

Source: Recharger Magazine

Key words:Sensient, inks, 2008

Russian OEM representatives about the local market of printing devices in 2007

In one of the January’08 issues the PCWeek published in Russian produced an interesting article about the market of printing equipment in the Russian Federation. In this short article PC Week published the opinions of the representatives of Russia-based OEM offices /Konica Minolta, Xerox Russia, HP, Epson/. Here I will give the main points put forth in the article.

…The actual growth of shipment of printing devices into the country grew by 15% as compared with 2006. The MFU segment grew twofold (in volume) and it is even higher than expected. This growth tempo allows to state the Russian printing market is close to saturation, but it still has potential for further growth in 2008-2009.

So what were the main trends in the copying and printing business in 2007? All experts say the MFUs are leaders in sales, color mono functional devices are also on the rise. The segment of A4 all-in-ones experienced the most significant growth rates as A4 is still the leading format in the country, said the representative of Xerox. Laser MFUs costing less 500 USD are in strong demand due to a drop in retail price for this type of products. These products (under USD500 color laser MFUs) have become popular due to the drop of the price under the psychological 500 USD barrier.

Epson’s representative mentioned that inkjet is already considered by businesses as a good alternative to laser printing. However, people from Xerox think inkjet printing shrinks and belongs merely to the realm of home printing.

What do all experts think about 2008 perspectives?

To sum it up, the interviewed experts thinks that:

1) the situation on the local market of printing and copying equipment will not change abruptly;
2) cost-per-copy principle will come upfront as more efficient and beneficial; this will make the market even more competitive;
3) some printing-based spheres will continue going digital (like university, educational establishments, etc.), this will increase demand for low-end color desk and small group devices;
4) MFU segment will continue to grow;
5) Logistics will be improved, which will result in better retailer-supplier processes.

The original article is available here.

Free access to RechargEast's archive

From February 1, 2008, RechargEast Magazine opens its archive for free access. The access to the online version of RechargEast Magazine will be free for you for one year when a reader provides the following information:

full name:
company’s name:
company’s acitivity:
full post address:
website:
valid email:

This information should be sent to nikolai(at)rechargeast.com with the subject "RCE archive access".

The archive can be browsed here: Issues, company profiles, technical how-to instructions in Russian and English.

Keywords: aftermarket, rechargeast, archive, access, remanufacturing, cartridges

Future Graphics about future