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Publisher & Managing Director Tony Lee +86 (0)756 3919260 Directors David Gibbons +86 (0)756 3919261 Sabrina Lo +86 (0)756 3919266 Editorial Consulting Editor Art Diamond Editors Lu Di +86 (0)756 3919268 Ludi@iRecyclingTimes.com Tina Chou +86 (0)756 3959286 Tina.Chou@iRecyclingTimes.com Sophia Jiang Sophia.Jiang@iRecyclingTimes.com Jane Yu Jane.Yu@iRecyclingTimes.com Jeven Zhang Jeven.Zhang@iRecyclingTimes.com Designer Miracle Wei Miracle.Wei@iRecyclingTimes.com Kevin Deng Kevin.Deng@iRecyclingTimes.com Sales Sales Manager Anna Leung +86 (0)756 3919266 Account Manager Kevin Zhu +86 (0)756 3919265 Sales Executives Sally He +86 (0)756 3919263 Tobee Deng +86 (0)756 3919282 Susi Guo +86 (0)756 3959299 Operation and Marketing Operation Manager Charles Lee +86 (0)756 3919267 Frank Yang +86 (0)756 3959280 Operations Assistant Sunny Zhang +86 (0)756 3959282 Accounting Betty Li +86 (0)756 3919269 Joy He +86 (0)756 3919262 Marketing Supervisor Jessica Yin magazine@therecycler.com.cn +86 (0) 756 3919264 Tracy Zhang +86 (0)756 3959283 Published by Recycling Times Media Corporation

ow time flies! The January issue (Issue 60) of the Chinese edition of Recycling Times Magazine marks the fifth anniversary of RTM’s news services. Our magazine has accompanied our dearest readers on a walk through five extraordinary years. I can still remember the day our first issue of Recycling Times was finally published. For the very first time, our efforts turned into hardcopies after days and nights of hard work. Our new magazine felt so heavy in my hands, and the scent of the freshly printed ink has left such a deep impression, I shall never forget this moment for the rest of my life. From the very beginning, I know the long and winding road to establish a quality industry media presence required persistence — commitment to truth and impartiality, devotion to guide our industry on a course of healthy development, and belief in growing together through times of prosperity and adversity. “By the Industry, For the Industry”, we said it, we did it, and we will continue to do it every day. So often, we faced the dilemma between our own short-term interests and the long-term benefits for the industry. We chose the latter without hesitation. And we cannot say it any clearer than this: our achievements would not have been possible without you. So I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincerest gratitude to our dear readers, and to all members of our team, whose continuous support in the last five years has been the key to Recycling Times’ success. It is usual to spend this time of year reviewing the past year and planning for the future. I have received many inquiries from our clients and friends for market predictions for 2012. So here is my opinion: the aftermarket consumables market will see a growth of about 15%, based on two important factors, although there are many others. I believe you will reach the same conclusions. Firstly, the global printer market continues to show a certain degree of growth. According to the third quarter statistics from IDC, there were 31.3 million printer shipments, up 1.6% year-over-year. MFPs continued to dominate the new shipments with 20.8 million units, accounting for 66% of the total. Secondly, OEMs like HP and Lexmark have started to raise their consumables’ prices, which will give our industry a chance to realize better profits. According to various sources, the prices of HP and Lexmark’s printer cartridges will increase between 2% and 17% this month. Expansion of our market will be good news, but that does not mean a bright future without shadows. In my opinion, the top concern, among others, will be price competition. Tough competition could eliminate the very profits that keep our costly R&D going. Without independent R&D capabilities, we will slowly and gradually be strangled to death by the patent frost of the OEMs. There may be a hard road ahead, but I always have faith our industry will not only survive, but thrive. I wish you a happy, safe and prosperous new year!

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Recycling Times Magazine

contents

Changes and opportunities for the laser toner cartridge and desktop inkjet cartridge markets

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The recession took its toll on the laser toner and desktop ink jet cartridge markets, but it is a cyclical factor and its influence will eventually end.

The future of LED printing

Just a Minute

Could LED printers be the next trend in desktop printing? That is the question we address in this article, by reviewing the development history and by forecasting the future prospects for the new, cutting edge LED printers.

Optimistic about 2012?

Money From Home

Forecast, forecast …

Status and forecast: the printer industry in China

Industry Updates

6 7 8

Chairman of Print-Rite awarded FESPA survey finds most print providers want to diversify Sinobase awarded ISO 9001:2008 certification German court lifts injunction against Ninestar IJ cartridges InteliCoat Technologies opens online store Cartridge World to expand

Paper prices rise in Australia Katun partners with Sweden’s Scandi-Toner Most people prefer paper

Walked out of the economic crisis in 2008 and 2009, statistics of 2010 showed that the printer sales, as well as the import and export of China maintained a stable growth.

EU awards patent for SCC’s universal chips

OEM News

18 Lexmark opens first office in Russia

Fuji Xerox launches A3 laser printer in Australia

Minolta intros two A4 multifunction printers 19 Konica Xerox intros eConcierge Cloud-based software Xerox acquires Modern Business Machines

First international printer consumables trade center planned in Zhuhai

Kodak releases free print APP for Android OS devices

EFI acquires Alphagraph

Multi million dollar ink investment Coates Toners acquires toner intellectual property

Product Release Goat Labs releases components for Samsung printers

12 Hi & Bestech unveils chip card

Features and Opportunities for the Laser Toner Cartridge 20 Changes and Desktop Ink Jet Cartridge Markets 24 The future for LED printing 32 Status and forecast: the printer industry in China

Profiles

NeoTech introduces compatible chips Metrofuser unveils compatible fuser for hp color printers

15 Memjet-powered printers launched in Taiwan

The vivid Vivicolor story

ILG launches high-yield cartridges for HP printers

Market Data OEM News OEMs launch first joint printer recycling project

16 HP acquires German software company

Epson opens inkjet plant in the Philippines

Toshiba releases three monochrome printers Kyocera sues Kodak for printer patent infringement

40 Worldwide hardcopy peripherals market grew in 3Q 2011 InfoTrends reports on printer markets 42 Tech Zone Remanufacturing the HP LaserJet CP1025 Series color toner

44 cartridges

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Just a Minute with David Gibbons

Optimistic about 2012? I have always listened to Luke Goldberg when he speaks. I remember meeting him the first time when he visited Australia almost 10 years ago. Sometimes, the now Senior Vice President of MSE Global will use words that will make your hair curl. But he has always had a down-to-earth common sense, worth listening to. I read his article on the Actionable Intelligence website about the opportunity just been handed to us by HP and Lexmark. Yes, they have put up their cartridge prices by between 2 and 17 percent. He reminds us that if remanufacturers grab this opportunity and get just 1% more market share, then we have collectively grown the after market industry by $700 million. And here comes my annual plea: It’s time remanufacturers stopped squabbling between themselves over the 25-30% market share we

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already have, and start focusing on the 70% we don’t have. Despite the tough economical times, HP and Lexmark have chosen to increase their cartridge prices. Consumers will not be impressed. Maybe this is a great time to let them know they have a choice. I was interested to learn next month, one major remanufacturer plans to do just that: take on the market share of the OEMs. Instead of pricing their toner cartridges at 50% or 75% of the OEM, they will go to market with a strategy that promises 75% more pages than an OEM cartridge. I am sure you’ll hear more in coming months about their innovation permitting the same weighted HP cartridge to perform at the same density quality, and yet deliver more for the end user. That should get noticed! Getting back to Goldberg: We shouldn’t continue lowering prices and competing for

David Gibbons is a director of Recycling Times. He has been a school principal, businessman, marketer, communicator, TV presenter/host and a remanufacturer. For many years he was the executive officer of the Australasian Cartridge Remanufacturers' Association (ACRA).

business we already have. Let’s look for a smarter way of doing business. Then “we will do more than survive 2012; we will thrive.”

Recycling Times Magazine

Money From Home

Forecast, forecast … As we enter the New Year, industry observers, consultants and marketing experts are sharpening their pencils, preparing to construct their forecasts for supplies sales and machine placements in 2012. For many years, I have written and spoken about the complexities of forecasting the future in a high technology field. The main problem, it always seemed to me, is that marketing and technical experts are worlds apart, each in their understanding (or lack thereof ) of the other’s craft. Too often, marketing executives will project the future based upon trend lines and data points from the recent past. The process is called “extrapolation.” And, while it works for scientific data and known physical and chemical processes, it often fails when changes in technology appear frequently or unexpectedly. Such paradigm shifts can spell boom for some players and bust for others. Connecting the dots and extending the line 1, 3 or 5 years out, is too often a “head in the sand” approach that yields faulty results. However, in a highly competitive field, such as imaging materials, technological breakthroughs are often kept secret until the product or process is fully developed and announced at the most strategically effective moment. Such an event can force the marketing community to reevaluate the impact and hurriedly reconstruct their extrapolated forecasts.

For more than 25 years it was my good fortune to lead the imaging materials industry in a series of unique seminars that brought marketing and technical executives together under one roof. We carried out these highly interactive (and sometimes quarrelsome) meetings in the most elegant venues to gain a consensus, a collective opinion, from top management and scientific executives on the future for their industry. In the beginning, attendees were reluctant to communicate amongst themselves. Despite clear instructions not to reveal any confidential or sensitive company information, they refused even to be photographed speaking with a competitor’s delegate. In addition, getting marketing and technical representatives to communicate with each other was like trying to put two like poles of a magnet together! Yes, the debates were sometimes heated, although they never gravitated to namecalling or fisticuffs. But, out of the contentious exchange came a better understanding, a clearer picture, of where the industry appeared to be headed. Over time, with programs carefully constructed to balance the number of hot technical and marketing issues, it became clear that this format was essential to a better description of what the technology could deliver versus what the market was seeking. In time, other seminars, conferences and symposia adopted a similar balance between

marketing and technical topics. Each side realized that without the other’s perspective, they had only half the picture. Today, the imaging industry is faced with several alternative processes—liquid ink jet, solid ink jet, laser printing, LED printing, and others— which must be compared, one against another, for cost, reliability, features, and possible future improvements. Such comparisons are essential, not only for the prospective buyer, but for the management team charged with remaining competitive and growing a company organically. Comparisons are straightforward based upon machine models that were introduced this year, but what will they be capable of next year? That is the real challenge in an industry where the lead time to introduce a new printer—to design it, build and test pilot models, tool up and start producing—can be a year or more. How does a Marketing Manager determine what next year’s models will feature, or what the price points will be? Will selling price be of greater or lesser importance as dictated by a changing economic climate? And, perhaps most important, where does a top level manager go to find the answers to these questions? Trade shows, trade publications and seminars will all help. Hiring consultants is another important source of this information, but the bottom line is: Get the BIG Picture! That is, the one drawn from both marketing and technical authorities!

Arthur S. Diamond Art Diamond is a 56-year veteran of the imaging industry. He is President of Diamond Research Corporation, a high technology research and consulting firm he formed in 1968 after research assignments with Eastman Kodak, Times Facsimile, Addressograph-Multigraph and Telautograph Corporation. DRC serves clients through product formulation and development, private studies, strategic market planning, and expert witness testimony. Diamond is known internationally as an expert on dry toners and imaging media with 15 issued U.S. patents.

January 2012 |

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Industry Updates

EU awards patent for SCC’s universal chips

he European Union has granted a patent for Static Control Components’ universal chips. This award means SCC is the only authorized source for universal cartridge chips for most printer types. SCC’s patents for universal chip technology have also been awarded in the United States and by the governments of 9 Eurasian countries, including: China, Egypt, Israel, Mexico and South Korea. Patents are also pending in Brazil, Hong Kong and India. Benefits of a universal chip Static Control’s patented universal chip technology enables a single chip to recognize multiple printers in which it might be installed and provides the programming needed for that

particular printer, just like a dedicated chip, to deliver full functionality. A single, universal chip can replace multiple dedicated chips, which reduces inventory, simplifies production and lowers production costs. Universal chips also enable the creation of universal cartridges. Static Control provides the industry’s most reliable, fully-functional chips that are also the most resistant to OEM firmware changes. For more information regarding this and other Static Control projects, contact a Static Control sales representative: U.S. HQ: +1-800-488-2426 (Toll-Free) & +1919-774-3808; Europe HQ: +44-118-923-8800; Asia HQ: +852.2427.6011 Visit: www.scc-inc.com

Visit: www.scceurope.co.uk About SCC From Sanford, N.C., leading manufacturer Static Control Components, Inc. distributes more than 15,000 products for the printer cartridge remanufacturing industry. With facilities all over the world, Static Control leads by investing in research, development and on-demand, web-based technical training for remanufacturers in languages they can understand.

Chairman of Print-Rite awarded

rint-Rite Holdings Limited (“PrintRite”) announces that Mr. Arnald Ho, chairman and founder of PrintRite, has won the Owner Operator Award by DHL/SCMP Hong Kong Business Award 2011.

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The award ceremony was held in JW Marriott Hotel Hong Kong on December 12, 2011. The award recognizes Mr Arnald Ho’s outstanding managerial contribution to the financial success and harmonious operation of Print-Rite. Print-Rite stated Mr Arnald Ho’s openmindedness, deter mination and strong leadership skills have turned Print-Rite into one of the world’s largest vertically integrated printer supplies manufacturers. Mr. Arnald Ho established Print-Rite Holdings Ltd. in the early 1980s aiming to become the world leader in the printer consumables supply and services industry. With a “Zero Defect, Zero Complaint, Zero Risk” approach, Print-Rite stays ahead of the competition through technological innovation. His company mission, vision, core values, business strategy and corporate strategies maintain a good balance between the interests of society, staff, shareholders and business partners through an operational model emphasizing fine quality and environmental

friendly products. Mr Arnald Ho said: “As for my personal business philosophy, I conduct business in an honest manner so that I can sleep soundly at night”. About Hong Kong Business Award 2011 The Hong Kong Business Awards were established by DHL and the South China Morning Post in 1990 with the following aims and objectives: 1) To create an annual Business Awards to acknowledge publicly the vital contributions made by individuals and by companies in maintaining and expanding the economic viability and international stature in Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta. 2) To create an environment through which the Business Awards will encourage and sustain the region’s entrepreneurial spirit, and highlight and recognize excellent standards of corporate management and governance.

Recycling Times Magazine

Industry Updates

FESPA survey finds most print providers want to diversify

he latest Economy Survey from FESPA (Federation of European Screen Printers Associations) reveals that 70% of print service providers (PSPs) are looking to diversify their business to improve growth. The top sectors PSPs plan to develop into are: First, interiors (17.4%); second, label printing (16.67%); and, third signage (15.53%). About 52.44% of respondents believed the printer market has not fully recovered. However, three quarters of them believe the market will grow in 2012, with an average expected increase of 14.5%. Regarding end-of-year sales for 2011, 20.4% said they were better than expected, 20% said they were better than 2010, and 40% reported they were about as expected. According to the survey, 33.3% said the primary reason for investing in a new wideformat printer would be to accommodate different media and/or a wider range of

applications with output quality. Half of the respondents intend to invest in UV-curable inkjet printers, followed by (31.6%) who will buy into latex or other durable, aqueous inkjet printers. Almost two-thirds (62.7%) of respondents indicated they saw an increase in demand for â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;greenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; printing as a service. More than 20% plan to invest in eco- or light-solvent printing. Over a third (36.9%) also cited seeing a rise in customer demand in applications requiring white ink printing. About 35.6% seek to invest in variable data printing and 23.1% in printing QR codes or other interactive elements. QR codes, which are growing in popularity, are two-dimensional barcodes designed for Quick Response. Among all respondents, 80% think digital displays either have already impacted, or will impact wide-format digital printing applications. Of the 80%, impact on POP (point of purchase) graphics was viewed as the greatest (23.3%),

followed by billboards, backlit, and vehicle graphics, respectively. The Economy Survey was commissioned by FESPA and carried out by its research partner InfoTrends on behalf of its global wide-format community. The main objective of the survey is to collect valuable insight into market trends and forecast business outlook for 2012 and beyond. The information was gathered from 225 respondents who are engaged in wide-format printing around the world.

Sinobase awarded ISO 9001:2008 certification

inobase announced that its production base in the Guanlan District, Shenzhen, China, named Shenzhen Dongyue Digital Technology Ltd., was awarded ISO9001:2008, Quality Management System Certification by Shanghai NQA Certification Co., Ltd. This certification is granted to companies that have successfully implemented the Quality Management System that conforms to ISO 9001:2008. In the past year, Shenzhen Dongyue had been awarded the STMC certification after completing a rigorous STMC training program. From the Incoming Quality Check (IQC department), on line Testing (PQC section), to QC on both semi- and finished products, all the procedures must be undertaken in accordance with the STMC Guide. Through the this certification process Shenzhen Dongyue Technology Ltd. will continue to ensure that it provides the best quality products and professional services to its customers. January 2012 |

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Industry Updates

German court lifts injunction against Ninestar IJ cartridges

inestar ’s patented inkjet cartridges, which were being distributed by Pearl Agency, are now available again in the German market. On December 8, 2011, Pearl Agency was granted a favorable ruling in its lawsuit with Brother in Germany. Dusseldorf District Court cancelled the preliminary injunction on Brother LC980 series ink cartridges from Pearl Agency, who partnered with Ninestar in distributing printer

cartridges. On May 20th, 2011, Brother brought a case against Pearl Agency to the court for a preliminary injunction, involving patent No. DE20 2008 018 039U1 and DE20 2008 018 040U1, both of which were claimed to have connections with the transferring of information related to the ink and ink cartridge to the printer. The preliminary injunction had been issued by the Dusseldorf Court at the end of July.

Pearl Agency acted positively to appeal to the court, by providing technical evidence proving the legality of the products. Six months later, the Dusseldorf District Court declared a final judgment cancelling the preliminary injunction. Commenting on the favorable ruling, Pearl Agency and Ninestar said they will always respect the intellectual property of other companies, and stand against any abuse of IPR (Intellectual Property Rights).

InteliCoat Technologies opens online store

nteliCoat Technologies announced that customers now can buy its products online. The company has set-up a new website www.buyintelicoat.com to sell its Magic, Magiclée and Museo products. Meanwhile, InteliCoat will continue to sell products through its valued network of dealers and distributors. The online option, which previously only extended to Museo Fine Art series of products, aims to give InteliCoat customers greater freedom in choosing how and when to place an

order. “Offering a web-based store presents convenience to customers who wish to immediately purchase a product that they have found online at any time of day or night,” said Joe Lupone, the President of InteliCoat Technologies. “We expect that this will further expand awareness and increase consumer interest in our brands. While the e-commerce website improves end user access to InteliCoat branded products, it does not replace the values offered by our local distributor partners.”

The Dealers of InteliCoat offer products at competitive price points and feature advantages, including extended terms, local support and delivery, discounted freight and special requests like overnight shipping. InteliCoat operates two manufacturing facilities in the United States, with sales and marketing operations in Australia, the Netherlands, North and South America. Worldwide headquarters are in South Hadley, Massachusetts, USA. InteliCoat is a Sun Capital Partners company.

Cartridge World to expand

fter having established its presence in more than 60 countries, franchisor Cartridge World will expand into Africa.

Besides offering savings on high quality inkjet and toner cartridges, Cartridge World claims it manufactures its own brand of inkjet and toner cartridges.

Cartridge World is looking for distributors and developers as targets for expansion throughout Africa. The company will offer distributors both technical and marketing support via a global network.

Cartridge World has unveiled a store in Whitby Road, Ellesmere Port (UK) and will add new staff members to that facility. Claude Esposito, owner of the new store, says with their special inks and toners, all major brands of inkjet and toner cartridges can either be refilled or remanufactured.

The company says a growing number of people are using personal computers. This means an increase in the documents that will be printed, leading to a higher demand for printer cartridges in future.

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Reports show that more than 45

million cartridges are sent to landfills every year in the UK. It takes 1,000 years for these cartridges to decompose. If those cartridges are reused, 15 million liters of oil will be saved in the UK in just 1 year!

Recycling Times Magazine

Industry Updates

Paper prices rise in Australia

ajor paper businesses in Australia have decided to increase the price of paper up to 8%, which will lead to a corresponding increase in the cost of printed media. i-Grafix says the fluctuating dollar, increased freight and input costs and the need to sustain the paper business are the four main factors

supporting the increase. Spicers/Daltons, BJ Ball and KW Doggett, which, taken together, have a 90% share of the domestic paper market, will have a 6%-8% increase on some papers. Paper consuming businesses estimate this increase will add about 2% to 3% to the total cost of producing print. Paper businesses do not confirm whether

print shops will increase the price more next year. Andrew Preece, the new group general manager at Spicers/Daltons says: “Pricing is a very complex and fluid equation and providing an accurate forward prediction is always difficult, though certainly it can be seen that for many of the key influencing factors there does exist an upside in probability.”

Katun partners with Sweden’s Scandi-Toner

atun Corporation announced its partnership with Scandi-Toner, a Swedish office products distributor. Scandi-Toner will supply the full range of Katun products, including new-build color toners for HP printer, remanufactured toners, as well as ink sticks for solid ink jet printers. “ With this new partnership, we will

reinforce our position in Sweden’s alternative colour market, where the demand for high quality color toners is expanding rapidly,” says Christophe Capony, General Manager of strategic development at Katun EMEA. “We are looking forward to this close partnership and many successes in addressing the color market growth together,” adds Christophe Capony.

About Katun For the past three decades, Katun has been one of the world’s leading providers of OEMcompatible imaging supplies, photoreceptors, and parts for copiers, printers, MFPs and other imaging equipment. Katun serves 16,000 customers in 135 countries from its headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota and dozens of worldwide locations.

Most people prefer paper

recent survey reveals that 80% of Europeans polled say reading from paper is nicer than reading from a screen. The survey was conducted by IPSOS Social Research Institute, a global market research company, and two industry organizations: Two Sides (Nottingham, UK) and Print Power (Brussels, Belgium). Researchers who filed the report interviewed 4,500 European customers. According to the survey, 83% of 18-24 year-olds believe reading from paper is much better than from a digital book. About 78% said print and paper is more pleasant to handle and touch. Some 63% prefer keeping important documents on paper. When considering the environment, 57% thought paper records are more sustainable than electronic storage of information. About 80% thought between 20% and 40% of waste paper is collected. In fact, 69% of paper is recycled, according to the European Recovered Paper Council. The report also reveals consumers want to know more about the environmental sustainability of print and paper media. Martyn Eustace, director of Two Sides says they do not want customers feeling guilty about using print on paper. Publishers of books, newspapers and magazines will be happy to know this.

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Industry Updates

First international printer consumables trade center planned in Zhuhai

he first international printer consumable trade center may be launched in Zhuhai, China. A draft document supporting policies for the local printer consumables industry has been drawn up by the Science Industry Trade & Information Bureau of the City of Zhuhai. It has been approved and issued by the municipal government. The document includes a plan to construct an international printer consumables trade center in Zhuhai, which will be the world’s first professional trade center to serve the imaging consumables aftermarket. In addition to the proposed international trade center, the document accelerates the construction of a national printer consumables

quality inspection center, a printing equipment manufacturing operation, and a national remanufacturing pilot program, all of which will contribute to the restructuring and upgrading of the printer consumables industry in Zhuhai. These plans will especially benefit Nanping, the town where the new trade center will be located. Tony Lee, the deputy chairman of Zhuhai’s Printer Consumables Industry Association (ZHPCIA) says the Consumables Industry Forum & Expo (CIFEX), which lasts only three days, cannot meet all the business demand from the industry. He envisions the new trade center as a permanent venue for future consumables expositions. The document encourages third party service providers in the city to establish E-commerce and information platforms (to share reports on products, prices, patents, business credit and other important data) that will serve the local consumables industry. Hoping to accelerate the upgrading of Zhuhai’s local consumables industry, the municipal government will strengthen its financial support starting with the year 2012. Technological innovations, E-service platforms and global marketing promotion projects from

the printing equipment and consumables industries will receive RMB 10 million each year for the next five years. The municipal government will provide special initiatives to attract businesses that can further enhance the local consumables industry. The document also recommends that printer consumables companies form technology alliances to tackle key R&D issues faced by the entire industry worldwide. Such collaborative R&D projects will receive fiscal support from the municipal government while the technology advances of these projects will be shared by the whole industry in Zhuhai. Dr. Zhang Tao, secretary of the ZHPCIA, explained that the aim of the R&D initiative is to motivate independent innovation through the formation of a patent pool and industry alliance. The municipal government encourages a patent alliance that features compensated sharing of patents, in the hope of reducing patent-related conflicts among local players. According to estimates, the total value of the printer consumables industry in Zhuhai may reach RMB 20 billion in 2011. The proposed supporting policies aim to enhance that value to about RMB 40 to 50 billion by the end of China’s 12th five-year-plan.

EFI acquires Alphagraph

of tware giant EFI continues to expand, this time with the acquisition of a German printing software provider. EFI acquired privately-held Alphagraph Team GmbH (Alphagraph) which provides management information systems (MIS) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software products for the printing industry. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Alphagraph will become part of EFI’s

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Software Applications (APPS) portfolio. EFI wants to integrate support and operations of Alphagraph into the existing APPS organization. This means EFI will continue to sell its own products and support the existing Alphagraph client base as well. According to EFI, Alphagraph products are currently used in over 6,000 facilities in 15 countries. EFI claims this acquisition will help make it become the leading print MIS software provider in Europe.

EFI is one of the world leaders in customerfocused digital printing innovation. EFI’s solutions, integrated from creation to print, deliver increased performance, cost savings and productivity. The company’s product portfolio includes Fiery digital color print servers; VUTEk superwide digital inkjet printers, UV and solvent inks; Rastek UV wideformat inkjet printers; Jetrion industrial inkjet printing systems; print production workflow and business process automation software; and corporate printing solutions.

Recycling Times Magazine

Industry Updates

Multi million dollar ink investment

isconsin-based Sensient Technologies Corporation (Sensient) plans to invest US$22 million expanding its digital ink production in Switzerland. Sensient will add to its current facility to meet the growing demand of digital inks. The company says the investment will focus on new technology with applications in textiles and industrial inks, including ElvaJet inks.

Kenneth P. Manning, Chairman, President and CEO of Sensient says: “ With this investment, we are continuing to secure our leadership position not only in digital inks, but also in the global industrial ink market.” Kenneth adds they see a significant opportunity to grow their digital inks business and to meet the long-term needs of customers. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Sensient Technologies Corporation is a leading

global manufacturer and marketer of colors, flavors and fragrances. Sensient employs advanced technologies at facilities around the world to develop specialty food and beverage systems, cosmetic and pharmaceutical systems, inkjet and specialty inks and colors, and other specialty and fine chemicals. The Company’s customers include major international manufacturers representing most of the world’s best-known brands.

Coates Toners acquires toner intellectual property

lobal printer toner manufacturer Coates Toners has bought toner intellectual property from Nukote / ICMI. The transaction was completed November 11, 2011. Larry Berti, Chief Marketing Officer of Coates Toners, says besides the toner formulations

intellectual property, they also acquired other key manufacturing technologies used by ICMI. The acquisition will add to the technical capabilities of Coates Toners. Berti adds: “We will be diligent in defending this IP and will soon be releasing further announcements relative to the Nukote / ICMI

assets, which will add to the overall technical capabilities of Coates, while further positioning us towards our financial and sales objectives in 2012 and beyond.” For more information, contact John Myers at john.myers@coatestoners.com, or visit www. coatestoners.com.

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Product Release

Goat Labs releases components for Samsung printers

oat Labs has released printer component parts, including toner, chips and OPC drums, for Samsung SCX-5635 and SCX-5835 multifunctional printers. After strict quality testing, Goat Labs says the compatible toner can meet the OEM performance standards, with the average Black Image Density of 1.50 and low background density of 0.04. The standard replacement cartridge (MLT-D2082S) yields 4,000 standard pages and the high capacity cartridge (MLT-D2082L) yields 10,000 standard pages. Goat Labs offers the following components for the Samsung printer series: Contact Goat Labs Phone: +31 (0) 24 388 22 33 ; Fax: +31 (0) 24 355 73 73 Email: m.van.hemert@goat-labs.com Website: http://www.goat-labs.com Goat code

Description

Unit/pack

100045

OPC Drum, OptiPrint II, Samsung ML3050/3051/3470/3471/SCX 5635/5835/Dell 1815/2335/Xerox Phaser 3300/3428/3435/3635

200039

Toner, ProBlack, Samsung ML1635/3475/3560/3561/ SCX5635/5835, 310g/bottle

300012

Wiper Blade, Samsung ML1635/3050/3060/34703474/ SCX5635/5835, Dell 1815

310040

Doctor Blade, Samsung ML1635/3050/3470/3471/3475/ SCX5635/5835/Xerox 3428/3635

400350

Chip, Samsung ML1635/3475/ SCX5635/5835, 10K yield

520004

PCR, Samsung ML1610/1635/2010/3050/3475/ SCX5635/5835

Hi & Bestech unveils chip card

aiwan printer aftermarket company Hi & Bestech has released a compatible chip card for the Sagem MF5462 Multi-Function Printer, for which it reports excellent performance.. The Sagem MF5462 is a compact, 5-in-1, multi-function device (fax, printer, copier, color scanner and telephone) that delivers 20 A4 pages per minute (ppm).. The first print out time is 13 seconds. French OEM Sagem says the printer has a zoom capability of 25-400% reduction and enlargement. It can also be pre-set to run c up to 99 multiple copies.

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NeoTech introduces compatible chips

ong Kong-based NeoTech has released alternative chips for the HP all-in-one printers. Details of new chips are shown in the following table. In addition to the above products, NeoTech also manufactures compatible printer supplies for Canon, Epson, Lexmark, Konica Minolta and other printers. Contact NeoTech Tel: (852) 2342 6328; Fax: (852) 2343 8180; Web:www.neotech-hk.com; Email: sales@neotech-hk.com About NeoTech Established in 1996, NeoTech has been offering office printing supplies and services for the printer cartridges remanufacturing industry. NeoTech can remanufacture more than 350 different models of laser toner cartridges, drum cartridges, and inkjet cartridges with a monthly production capacity of more than 260,000 pcs. NeoTech has established a 3-story factory with more than 50,000 square feet of floor space and a labor force of more than 150 workers in the Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Canton Province. Original NeoTech Color Cartridge

OEM

Page yield

CB540A

HT540

Black

HP color LaserJet CM1300, CM1312nfi MFP, CP1210, CP1215, CP1510, CP1515, CP1518 series

2,200

CB541A

HT541

Cyan

1,400

CB542A

HT542

Yellow

1,400

CB543A

HT543

Magenta

1,400

CC530A

HT530

Black

CC531A

HT531

Cyan

2,800

CC532A

HT532

Yellow

2,800

CC533A

HT533

Magenta

2,800

HP color LaserJet CM2320, CP2020, CP2025 series

HP color LaserJet CP1525 series, HP color LaserJet Pro CM1415

3,500

CE320A (#128A)

HT320

Black

CE321A (#128A)

HT321

Cyan

1,300

CE322A (#128A)

HT322

Yellow

1,300

CE323A (#128A)

HT323

Magenta

1,300

2,000

Recycling Times Magazine

Product Release

Metrofuser unveils compatible fuser for hp color printers

aser printer parts manufacturer Metrofuser (Roselle, New Jersey) is offering remanufactured fusers and maintenance kits for HP color printers. Metrofuser claims the fusers can be used for HP color LaserJet CP4025/ CM4525 multifunctional printers. The fusers offer crisp, black-and-white as well as color prints. The company says the new products are also guaranteed against such defects as image ghosting, toner buildup and film tearing. President Will DeMuth, the company’s Chief Operating Officer, claims these fusers work flawlessly with OEM and compatible toners. About Metrofuser Metrofuser remanufactures and distributes laser printer parts, remanufactured printers and offers service training for HP, Lexmark and Canon laser printers. The company offers a broad array of laser printer products from its Eastern and Western distribution hubs including fusers, maintenance kits, boards, and paper handling assemblies. Metrofuser has been named to Inc. magazine’s fastest growing companies for three consecutive years. For more information, visit http://www.metrofuser.com.

ILG launches high-yield cartridges for HP printers

ompatible monochrome cartridges for HP printers are now available in the United States, from the International Laser Group (ILG) of Woodland Hills,

California. ILG claims its extended yield HP Q7553XX Jumbo cartridges can print up to 14,000 pages. The new cartridges can used for the HP Printer series P2010, P2014, P2015, P2015d multi-function printers. ILG is the first-to-market with these new extended yield JUMBO monochrome cartridges as an alternative option to the pricey OEM cartridges. The cartridges are MPS certified and meet OEM quality and performance specifications. According to ILG, each cartridge must pass quality certification processes including 5% print coverage and resolution printing tests. About ILG ILG is headquartered in Woodland Hills, California and has four additional nationwide distribution facilities in CA, TX, IL, and PA, allowing it to provide the best and fastest shipping solutions to its resellers. For more information, please contact: (800)-937-2880, ext.3207 or visit www.ilglaser.com.

Memjet-powered printers launched in Taiwan

aiwan-based company Baiguo Technology CO., Ltd introduced two high-speed printers with Memjet technology. The SH-660C and SH-260C are both supported by most computer operating systems. The SH-660C prints up to 60 ppm with a maximum resolution of 1600 × 800 dpi (dots per inch). It has more than 70,000 jets. Baiguo claims the machine’s five toner cartridges will last a long time and thereby save money for the end-user. The SH-660C is about 57 cm long, 20.5 cm wide and about 14.5 cm high. The second new printer, the SH-260C, prints up to 4.5 inches per minute with a maximum resolution of 4800 × 1200 dpi. Supplied with a half-permanent printhead, the machine enables customers to avoid spending money on anything but printer supplies, Baiguo claims. The SH-260C is about 43.8 cm wide, 43.8 cm long and about 23.1 cm

high. It has four independent, water-proof ink cartridges. With its special environmentally-friendly design, it consumes less electricity and makes less noise, when printing, than competitive label printers. About Baiguo Established in 2003, Baiguo is committed to provide customer per fect infor mation system conformity service. The company supplies different kinds of products include toner cartridge, ink chest, hard disk and so on.

January 2012 |

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OEM News

OEMs launch first joint printer recycling project

ive major printer OEMs have jointly launched an ink and toner cartridge recycling program in Singapore. Brother, Canon, Dell, Epson and Lexmark have joined hands to start this recycling program. Called Project Homecoming, it has the support of the National Environment Agency (NEA) and the National Library Board (NLB). The program is designed to raise public environmental awareness and environmental responsibility. This program is the first international expansion of a successful joint printer brand recycling project called “Ink Cartridge Satogaeri” ( Japanese for homecoming) started in Japan by Canon in 2008. The public can put used cartridges of any brand into cartridge recycling bins at 13 NLB

libraries. The used cartridges are then periodically collected for complete recycling. Epson says the recycling vendors will collect the cartridges from the boxes and break down recyclable parts including plastics and metal. These processes will help reduce waste, landfill and pollution while maximizing the recovery of valuable resources. Cartridge remanufacturers are reportedly upset with this project. They say cartridges should be re-used first, and only worn parts

should be recycled. They are concerned that this new initiative is simply a plan by the five major printing vendors to take empty cartridges out of circulation. Spent cartridges are the vital raw material for remanufacturers worldwide.

HP acquires German software company

P has acquired German web-toprint software company, Hiflex Software GmbH, a privatelyheld, global software solutions provider offering cloud printing solutions. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Founded in 1991, Hiflex is headquartered in Aachen, Germany. The company specializes in web-to-print and management information

systems solutions for printing services. After the acquisition, Hiflex will continue to evolve develop its offerings while servicing its current customers. “HP wants to break the traditional barriers of how and where business customers print, making it easy for them to produce custom or personalized materials anywhere, anytime,” said Vyomesh Joshi, executive vice president,

Imaging and Printing Group, HP. “Hiflex’s technology provides a powerful platform to deliver on this goal as part of our overall cloud printing strategy.” HP says technologies from Hiflex will extend cloud-based technologies and solutions. HP claims it also remains committed to supporting a broad range of partner solutions, giving customers maximum choice and flexibility.

Epson opens inkjet plant in the Philippines

pson Precision (Philippines) opened a new inkjet printer manufacturing factor y in the

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Philippines to enlarge its inkjet printer manufacturing capacity Epson will invest about $110 million USD on the new printer factory. Construction began in October 2010 and was completed this September, on schedule. The new plant is expected to increase the inkjet printer production to 6 million

units per year, or double the current capacity. Epson says the total workforce will grow from 6,000 to 8,000 employees. Tadaaki Hagata, the chief operating officer (COO) of Epson's Imaging Products Operations Segment, said, "As a key site for manufacturing Epson's bread-and-butter inkjet and projector products, Epson Precision (Philippines) will play a vital role in the growth of our company. Epson will also strive to contribute more to the friendship between the Philippines and Japan, and to the economic development of our nations.”

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OEM News

Toshiba releases three monochrome printers

oshiba has released three monochrome printers which use 100% waste-free toners. These three multifunctional printers are: e-STUDIO 195, 223 and 225. Toshiba says the new printers can deliver cost efficiency and productivity for small- to medium-size businesses (SMBs). This series offers an array of advanced standard and optional features that deliver cost efficiency and productivity to the SMBsthat,

until now, found this level of technology out of reach. All the three printers are easily operated with low noise and multifunction networking capabilities. In addition, they are Energy Star certified. Toshiba says the new printers feature standard A3 (11 x 17-inch) tabloid printing, local copying and scanning. The new models also are user-friendly,

offering easy setup and easy operation. Simplicity of the design provides enhanced internal data transmission, unit accessibility, and superb handling. With an extended 81,000/90,000 preventative maintenance cycle, customers’ ease of use will remain continuous.

Kyocera sues Kodak for printer patent infringement

yocera has sued Eastman Kodak for infringing its patent for inkjet recording head structure. Kyocera filed a complaint against Kodak in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California for infringement of one of its inkjet recording head structure patents. The complaint alleges that the head

component of Kodak inkjet printers infringes U.S. Patent No. 7,097,286, which is Kyocera’s intellectual property. This patent resulted from the Kyocera Group’s research and development efforts and more than 50 years of innovation in the field of advanced ceramics. The suit seeks as-yet undeter mined monetary damages, as well as an injunction

against Kodak to cease manufacturing and sales of products that infringe said patent. Kodak rejects this claim. Wall Street Journal reports Kodak say the suit is “a legal tactic being employed by a technology competitor to change the dynamics of a long-running breachof-contract dispute in which we have alleged failure to pay royalties.”

Lexmark opens first office in Russia

fter entering Russia 7 years ago, Lexmark decided to open a new regional office in Moscow. The growing interest of customers, partners and suppliers led to the company’s decision to establish its own presence in this key market. The new office is scheduled to open in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Print Less, Save More is Lexmark’s vision. The company tries to maintain a balance between business growth and environmental protection. Lexmark says they focus on developing solutions which can reduce printing cost and improve productivity. Emmanuel Jan, general director, Lexmark Russia and CIS (Commonwealth of

Independence States) says: “As an emerging market, Russia is clearly undergoing significant economic development, leading to increased demand and making it a prime target for us. Our intent is to further invest in Russia to become one of the key players in this region. The opening of our subsidiary in Moscow is a first but important step toward this goal”.

Fuji Xerox launches A3 laser printer in Australia

uji Xerox has released an A3 monochrome laser printer in Australia targeted at small to medium businesses (SMBs). The new DocuPrint 3105 printer can help SMBs save time and money, in addition to providing A4 print capabilities, according to Fuji Xerox. The DocuPrint 3105 prints at speeds up to 32 pages per minute on A4

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sheets and up to 17 ppm on A3 sheets. It also offers 1200 x 1200 dpi image resolution and is Energy Star certified. A unique ‘Toner Save’ feature has also been incorporated into the DocuPrint 3105 to help businesses minimize unnecessary waste. Consumers can choose from four toner levels, picking lighter options to print drafts or internal documents. This will maximize the

life of cartridges, saving money and reducing resources consumed.

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OEM News

Konica Minolta intros two A4 multifunction printers

onica Minolta has introduced two new A4 multifunction printers (MFP), suitable for

small groups. The new Bizhub 36 and Bizhub 42 feature print, copy and color scanning as well as optional fax functionality. They are also Konica Minolta’s first monochrome A4 MFPs with A3 capability via a bypass tray, thus enhancing

the flexibility for offices that rarely need A3 printing. Flexibility is also enhanced by the integrated finisher for corner and 2-point stapling. The additional convenience stapler enables quick and easy stapling of already printed documents. Konica says the printers meet eco standards and are certified with Blue Angel and Energy

Star eco labels.

Xerox intros eConcierge Cloud-based software

ustomers now can use Xerox’s cloud-based software to monitor and feed networked printers more easily. Xerox has made a free, cloud-based monitoring solution, called eConcierge, which is easy to use and install. Xerox eConcierge is downloaded as a desktop application onto one or more PCs or Macs. The program automatically discovers compatible

devices, checking the toner, ink, waste cartridges and fusers. By monitoring networked printers and multifunction printers from Xerox and other vendors, eConcierge can inform users when supplies are needed. It produces the online orders automatically, with correct part numbers, for the component manufacturer to ship. This saves time and money for small and medium

businesses, according to Xerox. Xerox also offers an exclusive for qualifying customers—a free extended warranty on all Xerox products covered under the program; averaging about $320 per printer, per year. Phil Collett, IT director at Citrus Motors says: “The program allows us to shift our focus away from maintaining our printers to spending time with our customers.”

Xerox acquires Modern Business Machines

lobal Imaging Systems, A Xerox Company has acquired Modern Business Machines (MBM) to improve document workflow and office efficiency. Located in Wisconsin, MBM is an independent distributor of Canon, Samsung, and Kyocera Mita printers and copiers. After acquisition, MBM will offer all Xerox office

printing products, including technology and managed print services. Tom Salierno, Jr., executive vice president of Global Imaging Systems says: “With MBM, we are growing our distribution, bringing our combined strengths in document technology and services to help workplaces of any size simplify the way they get work done.” According to Fritz Merizon, president of

MBM, MBM has been one of the leading document technology and imaging products company since 1956. He adds: “This move is all about helping our customers in a way that will benefit them through enhanced access to industry leading technology backed by a national support network”. Merizon will remain as company president.

Kodak releases free print APP for Android OS devices

onsumers can now send documents from their Android OS phones directly to a Kodak printer for printing. To implement this capability, Kodak launched a free Document Print App for Android OS smartphones. The App supports different files including web

pages, PDF, PowerPoint and Excel. Kodak says files can be accessed on Google Docs, Dropbox and Evernote Sites. Web pages can be accessed using the Kodak Document Print App’s built-in browser. Susan Tousi, General Manager, Inkjet Systems, and Vice President, Eastman Kodak

Company, says: “The launch of the Kodak Document Print App is one more way we are making mobile printing simple and accessible, while also offering high quality output at an affordable price.” The Kodak Document Print App is available now in the Android Market.

January 2012 |

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Features

Changes and opportunities for the laser toner cartridge and desktop inkjet cartridge markets By Larry Jamieson, Senior Analyst, Lyra Research Steady growth expected for the laser toner cartridge market The laser printer installed base bottomed out in 2010. However, hardware growth is expected to resume in 2011 as a result of strong sales in emerging markets, and this in turn will create steady growth in the laser toner cartridge market through 2015. Modest growth for laser printer installed base The worldwide laser printer installed base is expected to improve slightly in 2011, rising to just over 137 million. Modest growth is expected to continue through 2015, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 0.5 percent. This sluggish performance is a result of the continuing effects of the recession and businessesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; adoption of managed print services (MPS). Growth will occur primarily in the MFP and color device segments. However, monochrome printers will still account for more than half of the units in the field in 2015.

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Laser toner cartridge shipment growth aided by market changes According to the data included in a recent Lyra report, Worldwide Laser Toner Cartridge Forecast, 2008â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2015, laser cartridge shipments will grow from 379 million units in 2010 to about 445 million units in 2015. Cartridge shipment growth will be aided by a number of market changes, including the shift to color output devices, the shift to midrange MFPs for monochrome printing, and businessesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; use of short-run inhouse printing for high-volume print jobs that previously were handled by commercial printers. As shown in Figure 1, cartridge shipments for singlefunction monochrome laser printers are shrinking. From 2010 to 2015, the number of cartridges shipped in this segment will decline from 143 million to 126 million units. Shipments in all of the other segments are forecast to grow between 2010 and 2015. Cartridge shipments for monochrome laser MFPs are forecast to grow from 69 million units in 2010 to 82 million units in 2015. Color laser MFP cartridge shipments exhibit the largest increase, growing from 88 million units in 2010 to 152 million units by 2015. Color laser MFP cartridges will become the largest toner cartridge market segment by 2015. Color laser printer cartridge shipments also will grow, but at a lower rate, from 79 million units in 2010 to 85 million units in 2015. The highest toner cartridge shipment growth rates will be found in Latin America and Asia Pacific, which is unusual because print users in emerging markets generally are more frugal about printing compared to users in industrial countries. Aftermarket cartridge penetration will remain low because newer color devices use

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Features revenue leader, and, as its OEM partner, HP, will remain the strongest player in the laser printer market. Xerox/Fuji Xerox is expected to have strong laser toner revenue growth, partly as a result of its OEM business, but also from its MPS programs.

chemical toner instead of mechanical (crushed) toner. Average sales prices for laser toner cartridges to stay stable Worldwide average sales prices for laser toner cartridges are expected to stay relatively stable, with a decline of only about 0.7 percent through 2015 (see Figure 2). Overall, few technological innovations are being made to cartridges that would greatly affect their price. Color laser printer cartridge prices are expected to decline as a result of increased emphasis on low-end color printers. Conversely, average sales prices for monochrome laser MFP cartridges are expected to increase as more midrange units are placed in businesses that use higher-capacity and higher-priced cartridges. Generally, Latin American markets have higher prices now that vendors have realigned their pricing strategies. Aftermarket vendorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; aggressive participation in the Asia-Pacific toner cartridge market has kept prices low in this region. Revenue rise fueled by color laser device sales Toner cartridge revenue from retail sales is expected to rise to $53 billion in 2015. Growth will be fueled by a surge in sales of color devices, especially color MFPs. Color devices will account for 58 percent of toner revenue by 2015. Color devices increasingly are being used to print monochrome pages, and this has driven some of the growth for toner use in color MFPs. EMEA had the largest share of laser toner cartridge revenue in 2010, at $17 billion; however, this region is a mature market, and revenue share will grow by a CAGR of only 1.8 percent in 2015. In terms of total by vendor, Canon will remain the laser toner cartridge

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Desktop inkjet cartridge market to achieve renewed growth The global recession caused a decline in shipments and revenue for the desktop inkjet cartridge market between 2008 and 2010. Changes in usersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; printing habits, adoption of WiFi networks, and screen-based devices all have created barriers to market growth. According to the data included in a recent Lyra report, Worldwide Desktop Inkjet Cartridge Forecast, 2008â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2015, several factors will contribute to renewed growth in this market as the recession recedes, including the move away from low-end devices that often use tricolor cartridges toward higher-end printers that use singlecolor cartridges. Inkjet cartridge revenue begins to rise in 2011 Beginning in 2011, total worldwide revenue for desktop inkjet cartridges is projected to grow slowly as cartridge prices fall. Total worldwide desktop inkjet cartridge revenue is projected to grow from under $29 billion in 2010 to $33 billion in 2015 (see Figure 3). Regionally, growth will be strongest in the Asia-Pacific region, followed by Latin America. North America and Europe will both exhibit less robust growth. HP will remain the leader in total desktop inkjet cartridge revenue and aftermarket cartridge revenue will be highest for Epson and Canon.

Recycling Times Magazine

Features 2015, with Latin America achieving the highest growth, followed by EMEA. Average sales prices for inkjet cartridges to decline Worldwide average sales prices for inkjet cartridges have been decreasing slightly over the past few years. The trend toward nonintegrated cartridges, which are often called ink tanks, has gradually changed the overall vendor cartridge product mix, and this in turn has contributed to the decline in average sales prices for desktop inkjet cartridges. Vendors also are introducing lower-cost cartridges with much lower ink yields, Installed base of desktop inkjet printers increases in 2013 The worldwide installed base of desktop inkjet printers will continue to decline through 2012 as a result of the recession (see Figure 4), use of shared printers in WiFi-enabled homes, and MPS engagements in businesses. Modest growth will begin in 2013 as the economy begins to recover. Growth will be highest in Latin America. There are a number of factors behind the growth in Latin America, including the recession having less of an impact on the Latin American economies, businesses and home users being more accepting of inkjet as a printing technology, and new IT growth. Markets in China and India also will be high-growth markets for desktop inkjet printers. Inkjet cartridge shipments grow in all regions As inkjet vendors place more emphasis on higher-end printers with single-color cartridges and move away from the low-end devices that often use tricolor cartridges, the inkjet cartridge market will grow to about 2 billion units in 2015. All regions will experience cartridge shipment growth through

especially in price-sensitive emerging markets. Average desktop inkjet cartridge prices are forecast to decline the most in EMEA. Average sales prices for desktop inkjet cartridges, both OEM and non-OEM, will decrease most for Lexmark and HP. This is a result of the companies driving the shift from integrated cartridges to nonintegrated cartridges and from tricolor cartridges toward single-color cartridges. Conclusion The recession took its toll on the laser toner and desktop inkjet cartridge markets, but it is a cyclical factor and its influence will eventually end. It is important to recognize that changes in printer-user habits, resulting from forces such as MPS engagements, WiFi networks, and greater use of mobile devices and screen-based applications, are cutting down on user page volumes and establishing market barriers. Nonetheless, the imaging supplies market will experience modest, steady growth over the next few years that will be aided by the shift to color output devices, the increase in short-run in-house printing for high-volume jobs, and strong sales in emerging markets.

Lyra Research Lyra Research collaborates with imaging industry decision makers worldwide, enabling clients to strengthen their market position and achieve profitable growth. Lyra's expert analysts and editors help clients devise and implement creative solutions to business challenges, arming them with competitive intelligence, strategic and tactical advice, news and analysis, and market forecasts. Lyraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s latest reports, Worldwide Laser Toner Cartridge Forecast, 2008â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2015, and Worldwide Desktop Ink Jet Cartridge Forecast, 2008â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2015, are available now. Visit http://store.lyra.com or call Sandy Tobin at 617-454-2612 to purchase your copy today.

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Features

The future for LED printing By Art Diamond and Jane Yu Introduction Bill Gates once said that Microsoft is always only 18 months away from bankruptcy. The message is clear–no one wins forever in the business world. Years ago, the inkjet printer dominated the desktop printer market, and now, gone is its sovereignty, displaced by a laser counterpart that rose and took over the throne. In recent years, however, we watched a newcomer enter this hardware domain and gain increasing traction with its green features and environmental friendliness. After the debut of an LED printer from OKI Data, numerous OEMs have come forth with their innovative new models. Statistics reveal that in European countries, known for their high environmental consciousness, color LED printers have taken over 30% of the color market. In countries such as Canada that highly value green and smart technological applications, sales of color LED printers have even exceeded those of their laser counterparts. Could LED printers be the next trend in desktop printing? That is the question we address in this article, by reviewing the development history and by forecasting the future prospects for the new, cutting edge LED printers. Definition The LED (light-emitting diode), according to Wikipedia, is a semiconductor source that utilizes the electroluminescence effect to emit light. Its key features are: low energy consumption; long lifetime; improved robustness; smaller size; lighter weight; and, faster switching compared to incandescent sources. LEDs and LED arrays are ideal for such daily uses as indication, signaling, display and illumination. The application of LED arrays, in a fixed bar as a light source, is the image generating element in what we call the “LED printer.” Generally speaking, the LED printer compares closely to the well-known laser printer. As a matter of fact, the imaging and transferring mechanisms of LED and laser printers are the same. Both use modulated light beams to generate an electrostatic image on an OPC

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drum. The difference is in the light source of the process– the laser printer uses a single laser light beam and a complex system of lenses and rotating mirrors to deflect, or sweep, it across the axial length of a rotating drum. By comparison, the LED printer uses an array consisting of thousands of individual diodes spanning the width of the OPC drum to shine light through focusing lenses onto the drum surface. According to Dr. Brian E. Springett of Fingerpost Advisers (Boulder, CO), "A 600 dpi LED printer will have 600 LEDs per inch, over the required page width, with the light from each LED being precisely focused onto the photoreceptor coating of the rotating drum by a longitudinal lens. The entire row of LEDs is activated at once and repetitive activations allow the pixels to be overlapped in the direction of paper transport.” In the 1980s, there were three innovative applications in printer technology, the laser, the liquid crystal and the LED printer. Because the development of liquid crystal printer technology, in the ensuing years, was too slow, the technology lost its appeal and was abandoned for this use. That left the laser and LED printers still in play. As a matter of fact, LED printing was invented by Casio and the first LED printer was launched by the Japanese company OKI Data in the 1960s. In the years that followed OKI was dedicated to the development of an LED printer that would be commercially viable. By now, we have seen many OEMs entering the market segment with more advanced and mature LED imaging technologies. Advantages In commenting on the LED printer’s advantages over the

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February 19 -22, 2012 D•PES Digital Printers & Engravers Expo 2012 Dongguan, China www.chinasignexpo.com

March 6 -8, 2012 Paperworld Middle East Dubai, UAE www.paperworldME.com

March 22 – 24, 2012

April 18 – 19, 2012

May 23 – 25, 2012

ReIndia Expo

ITEX

RechargRussia Expo

Bombay, India www.rechargermag.com

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Moscow, Russia www.rechargrussiaexpo.com

October 15 - 17, 2012 CIFEX Zhuhai, China www.iRecyclingTimes.com

Organized by

May 30 – Jun 1, 2012 ReciclaMais Expo Sao Paulo, Brazil www.reciclamais.com

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Features laser printer, Dr. Springett noted, “A row of LEDs is less expensive to build than a laser beam directed upon the lightsensitive drum through a series of optical components precisely aligned. A laser system requires that the focused laser beam be swept across the drum and switched on and off according to where the pixels need to be written. Both systems require additional electronics in order to keep the timing of these operations phased to the required image requirements and drum rotation. Additional timing electronics are required for in-line, four color printing systems in order to keep each color plane correctly aligned when transferred to paper. The simplicity of the LED system affords a cheaper alternative to conventional laser printers. The LED system also has the benefit of being more compact and lighter in weight than conventional lasers. Further, because it comprises a bar, fixed in place, unexpected changes in alignment are not an issue. Among the general advantages of LED-based printers are: 1. Longer lifetime. LED as a solid-state light source enjoys a much longer operational lifetime than traditional light sources, and when applied to printing technology, the theoretical service life of the LED printhead is essentially equal to the life of the machine (excluding failure due to physical damage generated by external forces). 2. Less optical system failure. The optical assembly of a laser printer consists of lenses and rotating parts that can be compromised by dust or dirt which affects print quality, while the latter are subjected to aging and wear of their mechanical movement. By comparison, the optical system of a LED printer is simpler, with no rotating parts, thereby substantially reducing the chance of mechanical failure. 3. Energy efficiency. Because the emission spectrum of the LED has neither infrared nor ultraviolet light, it can convert almost all the electrical power to illumination; this means it generates much less heat and radiation than traditional light sources. 4. Compact design. With complicated optical and mechanical construction, a laser printer needs much more space between parts (e.g., between the laser source and the OPC drum) to function. LED printer technology permits a more compact design for office applications as it requires very little space between the LED bar and the drum. 5. Better for high-speed printing. In the exposing process, a laser printer employs a laser beam to scan and expose the

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image, dot-by-dot, on the drum surface. This process can be categorized as serial scanning. To ensure the accuracy of the imaging process, the laser printer relies upon precise beam alignment. The dot-by-dot mechanism and the alignment process are major constraints in attempting to increase printing speed. However, the exposing process of the LED printer has no such constraints since it utilizes an array consisting of thousands of LEDs arranged side-by-side. Such a parallel scanning system enables a single LED to correspond to a single dot, eliminating the alignment issue, which in turns lays a solid foundation for enabling increased printing speed. 6. Better edge sharpness and uniformity. The LED printer enjoys an innate advantage over laser printers, especially when it comes to printing Chinese (pictographs and logograms), and Japanese (Kanji) characters. The laser printer uses a single light source and a rotating optical deflection system to sweep the beam across the drum surface. This generates a changing reception angle which becomes more severe as the beam approaches each end of the OPC drum. The problem is called “parallax.” The different reception angle can result in image deformation and blurring at each extreme end of the laser beam travel. Unlike laser systems, each diode of the LED printer is situated vertically above the corresponding imaging dot, which ensures no parallax problem, good uniformity, edge sharpness and faithful reproduction of characters and graphics that contain very fine lines. Current market status The overall market for LED printers today was shaped by the earliest developer. OKI Data, and other OEMs that followed, including: Brother, Dell, Epson, Fuji-Xerox, Kyocera, Lexmark, Océ, Siemens and Xeikon, etc. Fujitsu and NEC once entered the LED printer market as well, but failed and later exited due to the relatively high thresholds of LED related technologies. What follows is a brief review of some of the

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Features major LED printer OEMs. OKI Data As early as 1966, OKI Data launched its first LED printer. Later, in hopes of facilitating the technological development of LED imaging, OKI established the first LED printing lab (now known as the Image and Media Research Department at OKI Printing Solutions) to further develop LED imaging and supporting technologies. OKI Data also invested in the development of eco-friendly materials and biodegradable toners to match the energy efficient LED printer, to create a comprehensive eco-solution for office applications. Supported by numerous LED printer-related patents, OKI now has a complete LED printer line for the office market, especially printers that utilize a “Multi-Level LED printhead” and “Single Pass Color” technologies. These include OKI’s C610dn, C711dn, C810dn, C830dn, C910dn, B820dn, B840dn, C3530MFP, and MC860. This product line has received warm welcome in the Chinese market. In the last two years, OKI Data’s LED printer line has been constantly expanding from A4 to A3 printers, from monochrome to color, from single function to MFP, all of which have achieved prices competitive with their laser counterparts. Fuji-Xerox Fuji-Xerox entered the LED printer arena later than OKI Data, but with its rich experience in the office equipment business, it displayed no inferiority to other competitors. On Oct 22, 2008, Fuji-Xerox launched the first MFP that utilized its SLED technology (Self-scanning Light Emitting Device) the ApeosPort-III and the DocuCentre-III series. Its proprietary SLED can deliver a resolution of 1200x2400dpi, which was much higher than conventional LED printers. On Dec 1, 2009, Fuji-Xerox further enriched its product line with a new generation of digital color MFPs, featuring print speed from 25 to 55ppm in order to meet different application requirements, as well as a SLED printing engine

and LED scanning unit, which enable the LED printers to reach excellent TEC (Total Energy Consumption) values in the International Energy Star program. At the beginning, the award-winning SLED technology was only utilized in the Fuji-Xerox high-end printer line, but later, on Nov 29, 2010, the SLED was applied to entry-level devices as well, following Xerox’s launch of DocuPrint CP105b, CP205, CM205b (color), DocuPrint P105b and M105b (mono). The move symbolized the entering of Fuji-Xerox’s SLED printers into the low-end market. These entry-level LED printers carried a high expectation, as James Henderson, Fuji-Xerox’s regional general manager of Asia Pacific and China, forecast the LED printer will be the next mainstream product in the printer market, and the SLED printer can capture up to 25% market share for Fuji-Xerox. Brother As LED printers began to show more traction in the market place, more OEMs have sensed the opportunity and taken action. Brother is one of them, and in March of 2010, it released five eco-friendly digital color printers and AIOs, featuring single pass imaging technology. These printers delivered 16ppm printing speed for mono or color tasks. Targeting the SMB (Small & Medium-size Businesses) market, Brother hopes its LED printer, still in the primary stage of technological development, can achieve an annual sales growth rate from 5% to 10%. Epson Being one of the youngest contestants, Epson entered the LED market in September 2011 by launching 7 LED printers, from entry-level monochromes to color MFPs. Targeting SMB and SOHO (Small Office Home Office) users, who generally produce less than20,000 pages monthly, these devices have a print speed of 15 ppm for monochrome tasks and 12 ppm for color, both with 1200dpi resolution. Chinese players In 2004, Jolimark, a Chinese dot-matrix printer manufacturer claimed it will launch the first LED printer in China, however, there has been no news from Jolimark ever since. Just when it seems all Chinese printer players will remain silent, Aetas Technology (Zhenjiang) Co., Ltd., whose parent company is Aetas Technology Inc. (Irvine, California) in the US, announced that it will launch its own mono, double-color, full color LED printer and MFP, after obtaining the right to adapt its core electrophotographic (EPG) theory in LED printing. Aetas Technology January 2012 |

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(Zhenjiang) has become the only non-American, non-Japanese and non-Korean company to enjoy full intellectual property ownership, and the ability to independently conduct R&D and manufacturing of an LED color printer. Disadvantages Until recently, laser image writing was the clear leader in resolution and also in clever ways to alter the way pixels are written. This capability produced improvements in the more subtle aspects of print quality, such as, reproducing fine lines and low density solids uniformly, as are required for skin tones and highlight areas on shiny objects. The disadvantages of the conventional LED printer mainly resided in its resolution and color performance: 1. Early model LED printers were weak in the reproduction of high quality images due to their limited image resolution. There was no mechanism for modulating the light beam emitted from each diode. It is quite common, on the other hand, for laser printers to incorporate impulse modulation to adjust the wave length and the oscillating amplitude of the laser beam, in order to create pixels varied in size, shape, location, and exposition levels, which eventually enrich the middle tone and overall details of the prints. 2. Due to the working mechanism mentioned, the major technical difficulty to improve the resolution of early LED printers was the intensive integration of more LEDs in a light bar array, which requires better production techniques of smaller diameter LEDs and innovative LED assembling methods. A 600dpi A4 format LED printer will require the LED array to integrate about 5000 diodes, and an integration of more than 10,000 diodes is needed in an array to enhance the resolution to 1200dpi. This will no doubt increase production costs. 3. The entire LED bar shuts down if only one diode fails.

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With thousands of diodes comprising the LED bar, there exists the likelihood of one or more diodes failing. Such an event would render the entire bar unserviceable, although LED printer OEMs, for instance Xerox, claims its HiQ LEDs (SLED) “are engineered to never need replacement and the printhead is designed to last the life of the device.” 4. For the majority of consumers, initial cost still plays an important role in a purchasing decision, but so does brand name and product recognition. From this perspective, laser printers have the advantage of an earlier maturity than LED printers, which brings a better availability of laser printer manufacturing facilities and a lower overall operation cost. As a matter of fact, almost all major printer OEMs have mature production lines for laser printers, while LED printer products are currently behind their laser competition in reducing the market price of the machine. New generation LED printers “Initially,” Dr. Springett explains, when commenting on the development of the LED printer, “achieving uniform light intensity across more than 5,000 diodes in a typical array was a major challenge. This is no longer the case as today’s LED assemblies can be manufactured to deliver light output within 1.0% to 2.0% of specification across the entire array of more than 10,000 diodes. Additionally, in operation they are driven by ASIC (application specific integrated circuit) chips which allow for digital correction of any remaining misalignments.” In more recent years both OKI Data and Fuji-Xerox have achieved higher efficiency LED arrays (i.e., more light output for less power input, which is a requisite for higher printing speed operation), as well as multi-level light intensity per LED, which enables the enhanced print quality necessary to meet customer acceptability requirements for color printing. EFB: a major advance in image resolution Japanese companies have been making steady progress in the research and development of LED technology. Over the past 30 years, there have been several major advances in LED array science that improved the resolution of the LED printer while reducing its overall size. When the first generation LED print bar was released, its physical volume was 205 cubic centimeters, with a weight of 170 grams. By 2006, in the fourth generation LED array, the physical volume was reduced to 33 cubic centimeters, with a weight of 50 grams. These advances are attributed to EFB (Epitaxial Film Bonding) technology. Before EFB, the resolution of OKI Data’s LED printer was enhanced gradually from 300dpi, to 600dpi, to 1200 dpi. These advances, coupled with an

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Features ever-improving print speed from 8 to 30 ppm, brought LED printers closer to the performance of laser devices. When the EFB generation arrived, OKI’s LED printer achieved image resolution above 1200dpi and a speed of 60 ppm. These capabilities outperformed some conventional desktop laser printers. OKI was the first company to achieve high-volume production of LED printheads based on this new EFB semiconductor technology. OKI described the breakthrough as “epitaxial film LED array chips bonded to a silicon-based IC (integrated circuit) wafer by utilizing intermolecular bonding force.” With the help of EFB, the new LED array now has a three-terminal structure, different from the conventional twoterminal design. It is comprised of an anode, a cathode, and a gate which adds switching capabilities to the light emitting function. The new LEDs reduce the number of wires required in the chip thereby reducing chip width by 22%. Also the new LEDs require just one power line to the substrate on which LEDs are mounted, thereby halving the number of substrates used. The thin LED film is bonded to the substrate upon which LEDs of extremely small diameter are etched. Diodes of 25 micrometers (microns) diameter, for example, enable a 1200dpi resolution LED printer. However, while a 1200dpi LED printer can produce a 25 micron dot/spot with ease, a 1200 dpi laser printer generally can only produce a 65 to 55 micron dot/spot. Looking to the future, further improvement of resolution using blueray technology, for example, will bring greater challenges to the laser printer, in terms of the design and cost of its optical and mechanical units. Researchers predict that in the future when blue-ray technology is applied, the resolution of an LED

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printer can reach 4800dpi! In order to overcome the imaging fidelity problem, OKI also adopted its Multi-Level LED printing technology, which can produce different levels of intensity, for instance, up to 64 shades or tones in the range between black and white. Conventional laser printers apply bi-level printing that only uses dots of two intensity levels — 100% black or 100% white — and these dots are grouped together to create halftone cells that simulate levels of grey, which means the bi-level technology will have to sacrifice resolution for color depth. By precisely controlling each diode’s switching time, Multi-Level technology can form more shades of grey or color within the same size halftone cell, which results in a higher level of detail and greater color depth. SLED: Fuji-Xerox "re-invents" LED printing The principal disadvantage of early LED technology was that the horizontal resolution was absolutely fixed, and while some resolution enhancements could be applied, none of them were as good as the resolution upgrades offered by true lasers, or the latest solid ink jet printers. That disadvantage vanished first, with Xerox’s introduction of the 7400 series printers, and again on November 9, 2011, when it rolled out the Phaser 7800. These two full-color, state-of-the-art LED printers use Xerox’s SLED (HiQ LED), high resolution technology to deliver 1200 x 2400 dpi at the rate of 35 and 45 ppm, respectively. SLED (Self-scanning Light Emitting Device) technology, also officially known as the DELCIS (Digitally-Enhanced Lighting Control Imaging System), strengthens the precise control of each LED through a high performance ASIC. Conventional LED printheads use a single signal line to control a whole row of LEDs. However, the new technology enables more precise control of LEDs, for example, one chip consists of 57 SLEDs, each of which is controlled by two signal lines (total of 114 signal lines for a chip). Such precise control can solve the color uniformity problem, and the high intensity ASIC greatly reduces the overall size, which makes it possible for LED printers to achieve a resolution of 1200 x 2400 dpi and beyond. Art Diamond (Diamond Research Corporation, CA) commented on the contribution of Xerox in the development of LED printer, “Initially, LED printing did not revolutionize imaging technology; rather it was a useful and profitable

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Features enables more precise control of LEDs, for example, one chip consists of 57 SLEDs, each of which is controlled by two signal lines (total of 114 signal lines for a chip). Such precise control can solve the color uniformity problem, and the high intensity ASIC greatly reduces the overall size, which makes it possible for LED printers to achieve a resolution of 1200 x 2400 dpi and beyond. Art Diamond (Diamond Research Corporation, CA) commented on the contribution of Xerox in the development of LED printer, “Initially, LED printing did not revolutionize imaging technology; rather it was a useful and profitable development that carved out an important niche in the printing industry. Introduction of the Xerox 7400 Series, however, and the latest Xerox 7800 entry, have upgraded LED printing to revolutionary status, in my opinion, by ‘re-inventing’ the technology”. Future prospects Globally, laser printers are still the mainstream choice, with some estimating the market share of LED printers at only 10% that of the laser printer; that share would be even lower if one includes other printer technologies, mainly solid and liquid ink jet. One reason for the slow adoption of LED printing technology is the familiarity and popularity of laser printing among end-users. Reaching a stage of maturity earlier, laser printers have accumulated a solid consumer base, especially in the business segment. Mikio Yamamoto, General Manager of Image and Media Research Department at OKI, who is also recognized as The Father of LED printing, once said that it is still too early for LED printing to overthrow the laser printer. The key may lie in the two top players offering page printers — Hewlett-Packard and Canon. Therefore, it is difficult to estimate when the two giants will start to use LED printheads. Yamamoto believes, however, that consumers will be the ultimate judges of the rise and fall of these two competing methods. At present, the requirements of these end-users are not high enough to make them switch from laser printers to LEDs. But their requirements will most likely become more demanding over time. It is only then that we might see a significant change in preference. LED printing is more than energy efficiency. It has great comprehensive performance and development potential that can challenge the laser printer, the ink jet printer, or any other competitor. As awareness of environmental sustainability and consciousness gradually spreads among people around the world, the LED printer, with its green and ecofriendly features, is bound to become more popular. Overall, however, competition between LED and laser printers is most welcome. It will bring technological, environmental and economic improvements to these important products, and ultimately benefit all consumers. Finally, looking beyond the horizon there is the possibility that blueray diode technology will find application in the LED printer, essentially doubling its current high resolution capability and making it everyone’s first choice for high speed, high resolution, photographic-quality printing. January 2012 |

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Status and forecast: the printer industry in China By Zheng Xizhen Affected by the economic crisis started from late 2008, Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s import & export volume and total value of printers reached a low point in 2009. Later in 2010, the economic recovery brought a turn around for the printer market, with annual export volumes of 73.766 million units, up 39.38% year-on-year ( YoY ), and a total export value of USD 8.95958 billion, up 126.27% YoY. As for printer imports, the total volume and value were 19.4161 million units (up 57.89% YoY ) and USD 1.1111 billion (up 69.80% YoY ). As indicators of the overall picture, these figures suggest a rapid development of the printer industry. Statistics also reveal the sales performance of printers in the Chinese market. In 2010, the total sales volume of printers in the domestic market reached 11.5639 million units, a growth of 5.8% YoY, among which the single function printers recorded 8.256 million units (up 2.6% YoY ), and multifunction printers (MFPs) sold 3.3089 million units (up 28.9%). Inkjet printers still accounted for 40.9% of the total sales volume, especially the single function inkjets which accounted for 40.31% of all the single function printers sold. However, in terms of growth rate, color laser printers recorded a much better growth rate than the inkjet devices in both single or multi function printer categories, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.6%. Printer sales Since the beginning of 2009, the economic crisis significantly dampened the purchasing power for printers. To tackle the unfavorable conditions, the Chinese government strengthened the investment in domestic infrastructure and manufacturing industries. Consequently, procurement activities by the government and projects by various industries provided a stable growth for the printer industry. By 2010, the recovery brought great demand for low-end inkjet and laser devices stimulating a significant turnaround. In the first half of 2010, printer vendors invested more resources into channel management and expansion, which improved the profits, and stabilized the development of the channels, to achieve a win-win partnership between vendors

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and channels. In addition, the major vendorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; channel expansion has shown good results, especially in the cities of the fourth, fifth and sixth tiers. With all these comprehensive influences, the total printer sales in 2010 reached 11.5639 million units, a rise of 5.8% over last year. See figure 1.

â&#x2013;˛ Figure 1 Total sales volume and forecast for the Chinese printer market from 2008 to 2013

Multi function printers With higher efficiency, lower costs and the need for less space, together with the integration of print, copying, scanning, and fax functions, the MFPs attracted more and more purchasers. The trend in 2010 seen in Figure 2, 3, and 4, reveal a significant growth of 18.92% YoY. Looking at the segments more closely, laser MFPs sold 1.9061 million units, a growth of 59.68%, while inkjet MFPs sold 1.4025 million units, down 13.28% YoY. Sales of laser MFPs in 2010 were much better than their inkjet counterparts. According to survey results from ccidnet.com, 61 out of the 80 corporate respondents in China said they would purchase MFPs in 2011, accounting for 76.3%, and the corresponding percentages in 2010 and 2009 were 62% and 52% respectively,demonstrating a positive trend for MFP sales. In 2010, 3.3098 million units of MFPs were sold in the Chinese market (up 18.92% YoY ) as shown in Figure 2. And the market share of MFPs was about 28.9%, as shown in Figure 10, while the total installed base was 13.9131 million unitsas shown in Figure 13. Throughout the year, HP, Canon and Epson only experienced small changes as the first tier vendors, while

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Features shown in Figure 6, and their market share reached 24.96% (in Figure 10), with a installed base of 12.6416 million units (in Figure 14).

▲ Figure 2 Total sales volume and forecast for MFPs from 2008 to 2013 in China

▲ Figure 3 Total sales volume and forecast for laser MFPs from 2008 to 2013 in China

Inkjet printer Inkjet printers are still the mainstream products in the Chinese market. While the sales volumes of these devices were only 3.288 million units — a decrease of 17.46% YoY as shown in Figure 7 — they still accounted for 40.31% of the total market share (in Figure 10). Inkjet printers still have an installed base about 27.1232 million units (in Figure 15), but sales declined continuously following the popularity of laser MFPs as the choice for office use. Inkjet printer applications are being targeted more and more to business and industry. Dot-matrix printer With medium print resolution and speed, cheap consumables and easy maintenance, dot-matrix printers are still the popular choices for many applications. Their ability to print on multi-part stationary wins these devices an irreplaceable position in deposit books, invoices, scientific records and barcodes printing tasks. In 2010, dot-matrix printers recorded a significant sales growth, mainly attributed to the large-scale procurement of

▲ Figure 4 Total sales volume and forecast for inkjet MFPs from 2008 to 2013 in China

Samsung and Lexmark in the second tier have recorded substantial growthin sales volume and market share. Overall the vendor positioning in the market remained stable.The acceptance and popularization of some new technological applications and value propositions throughout the year were not high. For instance, cloud-based ePrint technology of HP was new and attractive, but it took some time to gain traction in the market. Before reaching maturity and popularity, all the new printer hardware business ideas have needed a similar time span to overcome technological difficulties and see changes in end-user habits. Single function printer Laser printer The total sales of single function printers (including laser, inkjet, dot-matrix and specialty printers) in 2010 reached 8.255 million units, a growth of 2.6% as shown in Figure 5. Driven by the demands from energy, health care, business and government sectors, sales performances were slightly better than 2009, but pressure from the more attractive and popular MFPs had some impact. Annual sales volumes of laser printers in 2010 recorded 2.036 million units, up 5.2% as

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▲ Figure 5 Total sales volume and forecast for single function printer from 2008 to 2013 in China

▲ Figure 6 Total sales volume and forecast for laser printer from 2008 to 2013 in China

▲ Figure 7 Total sales volume and forecast for inkjet printer from 2008 to 2013 in China

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Features

▲ Figure 8 Total sales volume and forecast for dotmatrix printer from 2008 to 2013 in China

million units (up 45.61% YoY ) in 2010, with a market share of 16.3%. See Figure 9 and 10. Specialty printers saw the largest growth rate of all printer types in 2010, which is believed to be driven by the demand from sectors like railway systems, transportation and communication, finance, the national tax system, postal services and shopping malls. The rest of the article, covering theimport and exportof printers, as well as the development forecast for various categories of printers, will be published in the February Issue of Recycling Times.

▲ Figure 9 Total sales volume and forecast for specialty printer from 2008 to 2013 in China

▲ Figure 13 Installed base and forecast of MFPs from 2008 to 2013 in China

▲ Figure 10 Market shares and forecast for printers from 2008 to 2013 in China

these printers following the adoption of IT technologies in the public medical service sector and the construction of medical information systems in China. Dot-matrix printer’s sales also were driven by the equipment upgrading in sectors like finance, telecommunication, media, and postal services, etc. According to the statistics, China’s total sales volume of dot-matrix printers in 2010 was 1.5993 million units (up 31.7% YoY ), its sales value raised 26.8%, and it occupied 18.43% of the total market share. See Figure 8 and 10. Specialty printer The annual sales volume of specialty printers was 1.329

▲ Figure 14 Installed base and forecast of laser printers from 2008 to 2013 in China

▲ Figure 15 Installed base and forecast of inkjet printers from 2008 to 2013 in China

Zheng Xizhen Mr. Zheng, was the former head of the Tianjin Xerographic Technology Institute, chairman and senior engineer of China’s National Xerographic Machinery Standardization Committee. With over 20 years of rich experience in the research and research management of office xerographic technologies, Mr. Zheng is a specialist of the technological advances, market development and the overall industry progress of the office printer and copier industry. His contributions to the industry include dozens of academic papers, as well as the draft and amendment of national and industrial standards.

January 2012 |

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The vivid Vivicolor story Menston enters its second decade of business

▲ Production plant in Shanghai

The printer consumables industry in China has been evolving for many years. During its development we discern two major pathways: Some players favor the technology road by manufacturing compatible cartridges with independent intellectual property rights (IPRs); others prefer the environmentally-friendly way by remanufacturing cartridges. Players following both paths have respected IPRs and have been actively pursuing technological innovations, which demonstrate a healthy development model for our industry. Menston Limited (also known as Shanghai Huatai Computer Consumables Co., Ltd) is a company that follows the ecofriendly remanufacturing path for its printer cartridges. These products are sold under the Vivicolor brand. Recycling Times was privileged to interview the Vice General Manager of Menston, Ms Ella Ding, during CIFEX 2011. We are grateful to Ms Ding for helping us to capture the vivid Vivicolor story. New directions and expansion Starting its venture into the printer consumables industry with an acquisition makes Menston special among its peers. When the company was preparing to enter the toner cartridge business in 2010, Menston chose acquisition and it turned out to be a successful strategy; it brought a great transformation to its business. At the end of the1990s, Menston’s parent, HDC, a veteran of the industrial automation industry, was seeking a promising

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industry to diversify its business. The printer consumables industry was an ideal candidate. Careful research proved that it matched HDC’s technological and capital resources. At that time, it was quite a coincidence that a printer consumables company based in Suzhou was trying to sell its production plant in Shanghai. HDC acquired that plant and in 1999 established Menston Ltd., as an independent company. Those were the years the computer printer supplies business was booming. Menston entered the market with its line of compatible consumables. However, the booming industry also attracted an increasing number of competitors, which led to a continuous shrinkage of profits. In extreme cases, some vendors dropped prices below cost to capture orders. At the same time, patent infringement lawsuits were being filed, casting a shadow on the industry, Menston looked for a breakthrough under those challenging conditions. As Ms Ding puts it, “We had no intention to leave the industry after winning the first barrel of gold; we wanted to stay in the consumables industry and make it our long term occupation. The OEMs and the aftermarket are like teeth and lips, just as the Chinese saying goes ‘the teeth are cold when the lips are lost’.” Ms Ding continued, “Our industry should respect the IPRs of OEMs, and seek a development pathway that respects the OEMs’ IPR, while exploring a unique value proposition and market position based on innovation. Finally we settled on the remanufacturing of inkjet ink cartridges.” Foreseeing the eco-friendly trend in the market, Menston entered the ink cartridge remanufacturing business in 2004. Upon achieving great results, it suspended the compatible cartridges business and concentrated on ink cartridge remanufacturing. It was a successful transformation, which enabled the company to break away from the ever-bitter, compatible inkjet cartridge business while seizing the best timing to enter the remanufacturing sector. Currently, Menston’s production plant in Shanghai has reached a floor

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Profiles space of 5,000 square meters, with a monthly output of 250,000 cartridges. In June 2011, Menston announced its entry into the toner cartridge business, and again it chose the acquisition strategy. As early as December of 2010, Menston completed the acquisition of a toner cartridge plant in Hefei, Anhui province which was previously owned by a European company. When we asked why Menston still preferred to enter the toner cartridge business through acquisition, Ms Ding said, “By acquisition, we accumulate valuable resources, such as, clients, core collection, production experience, etc, and believed it was the right time to make our move into the toner cartridge business. However, the land and the manpower costs in Shanghai made it unrealistic to build a new factory. We were paying close attention to all possible alternatives, until at last we seized the opportunity to purchase a well-established plant.” The new plant acquired by Menston covers 20,000 square meters. After half a year of reorganization and trial production, it was put into regular operation. “Currently, there are some adjustments to our production lines and inventory,” Ms Ding added, “so our toner cartridge plant now produces a small amount of compatible cartridges. But in the future, we will focus on toner cartridge remanufacturing.” Professionalism and personnel Naturally, acquisition has its own risks. The key is to integrate the acquired new parts to the original vehicle. Menston’s previous experiences give it a clear solution— assign a professional, dedicated managerial team to integrate the new parts. “This has become one of our principles — to employ professionals to do professional tasks. We nurture talents with our corporate culture, practices and standards, and these talents will in turn bring and integrate unique characteristics to the new recruits, in order to make them an

▲ Production facilities

▲ Production plant in Hefei

organic part of Menston.” From the very beginning, Menston has treated personnel training as one of its priorities. Starting every year from campus recruitment, university graduates are trained, work and grow with Menston, which consequently brings a stable talent base for the company. “Another important principle for us is the whole-hearted trust of our employees. Micromanagement will drain one’s energy and hamper the achievement of real efficiency, so managers should avoid overcontrol by trusting their employees,” Ms Ding added, “This is a crucial matter for Menston, especially when we are now expanding our business with the recruitment of more and more employees with technological and sales talents.” Cartridge collection & remanufacturing The collection of spent cartridges (called “cores”) and their repair and recharging are two major obstacles for the remanufacturing industry. Menston has its own ways to deal with both of them. In terms of collecting empties, Menston’s previous experience in the cartridge remanufacturing has brought the company reliable core suppliers at home and abroad. “Years of cooperation with our core providers strengthened our mutual trust, and gave us the priorities of high-quality sources. These affiliations are especially important with certain cartridges that may be hard to find in the marketplace. Here, Menston enjoys the priority of having first choice on these cores before others.” According to Ms Ding, Menston has built its own empty collecting channels by cooperating with retailers at home and abroad. “Depending on their usage history, some cores will need to be rinsed three times, while others will need five rinse cycles. If we do not wash them for enough times, they cannot be used. But, if we wash them all for the maximum washing time, it will be a great waste of resources. So we will further classify the empties before the actual washing process.” As is well-known by participants in our industry, to remanufacture cartridges is more complicated than to January 2012 |

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Profiles manufacture new compatible ones. The most prominent difficulty is generated by the differences between cartridge models, which can come up anytime when a new printer model is launched, and unlike compatible cartridge manufacturing, the inconsistency of models is hard to control. That’s why technological control during the remanufacturing process is so important for remanufacturers. Ms Ding said “The cost of cores is very high. If one cartridge is damaged during the remanufacturing process and cannot be reused, it means we have lost the profit of remanufacturing 6 or 7 cartridges. We must maintain a high success rate in remanufacturing, in order to save costs and ultimately turn it into our competitiveness”. With such an idea in mind, control of the production process at Menston begins with the procurement of empties. Although their core providers will classify the empties, Menston still conducts a manual selection process to further exert control. Ms Ding also confirmed that all the washing and filling equipment used are designed by Menston itself. Menston keeps improving and updating its equipment and production procedures as well. Once a visitor, amazed by a tour of the Menston facility, asked what are the key factors in its plant operation. Ms Ding replied, “Our key lies in the remanufacturing process. Constant reexamination and identifying problems are helping us to overcome obstacles and improve plant efficiency, regardless of any trouble or inconvenience.” No doubt, this requires determination and perseverance, and Menston has spent its 10 years of time to develop its business and corporate image step-by-step in such a manner. In Menston’s markets like Europe, the Americas, Australia and Southeast Asia, the company’s reputation for high-quality products and reputable business practices is well-established. Remanufacturers make an important contribution to environmental protection and energy conservation. However, if there are inappropriate procedures used during the reman process, remanufacturers could pollute the environment. This is a point well understood by Menston. “We have two basic doctrines in our business — avoid patent infringement and avoid secondary pollution.” Ms Ding explained. Menston fulfilled these tenets by investing over

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RMB 800,000 in sewage treatment facilities at its Shanghai plant. It also conducts sewage treatment inspection and data recording on a daily basis, with results monitored by the local environmental protection office. Sewage from the Shanghai plant must comply with strict emission standards before reaching the city’s sewage system. While actively exploring overseas markets, Menston still pays close attention to domestic opportunities. In recent years, it has strengthened investments in its home country, targeting government agencies, public organizations and larger enterprises, etc, as potential clients. As a matter of fact, an increasing number of municipal governments in China have included eco-friendly remanufactured printer supplies into their procurement list, following the rising environmental awareness of the entire country. The journey ahead In its 10 year history, Menston has successfully completed two acquisitions and one transformation. Today, as it enters the next 10 year period, Menston has taken a position in the toner cartridge remanufacturing business. It has also begun to devote a larger investment in the domestic market. Both strategic moves highlight an impressive starting point for the journey ahead. We can expect more vivid stories generated from Vivicolor imaging and its parent, Menston Limited in the coming decade of its evolution.

▲ Workshop in the plant

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Market Data

Worldwide hardcopy peripherals market grew in 3Q 2011 By IDC A current press release from market researchers at IDC (Framingham, MA) shows that, despite growing economic uncertainty, the worldwide hardcopy peripherals market returned to a year-over-year growth rate of 1.6% in the third quarter (3Q) of 2011. Worldwide market grew 1.6% IDC released news of its report, Worldwide Quarterly Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker, showing multifunctional printers (MFPs) had a 66% market share with shipments totaling 20.8 million in 3Q 2011. Color laser MFPs increased 24.1% year-over-year and grew 8.9% quarter-over-quarter. “We believe most vendors have recovered from the production issues caused by Japan’s earthquake and tsunami in March. While this is a good sign, the market is expected to remain flat for the remainder of the year due to growing concerns about the economy,” said Phuong Hang, Program Manager, Worldwide Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker. Technology highlights The inkjet market, specifically the color inkjet MFP market, is still the technology that holds the majority share of hardcopy peripherals, with over 19.6 million units shipped worldwide, 16.1 million of which were color inkjet MFP units. In 3Q11 monochrome laser devices continued to rank second in units shipped (8.6 million) with 29% share of the hardcopy peripherals market. All regions except EMEA

( Western Europe, the Middle East and Africa) saw year-overyear growth in monochrome shipments. Color laser devices retained a 6% share of the hardcopy market in 3Q11 with 1.8 million units shipped. The MFP penetration at 51% and year-over-year growth of 24% for the color laser market beats these same metrics for the monochrome laser market which were 43% and 17%, respectively. Vendor highlights Hewlett Packard continued as the number one ranked vendor in 3Q11 with worldwide market share of 42.9% and 13.5 million units shipped. The Americas region was strongest for HP in terms of unit growth in 3Q11, with 21% year-over-year growth, followed by EMEA and APeJ (Asia/ Pacific excluding Japan) regions with 13% and 9% growth, respectively. Canon maintained its position as the second ranked vendor, with worldwide year-over-year growth of 5.2%. This performance was driven by 8% year-over-year growth in the APeJ region. Epson held onto the number 3 position worldwide. Despite seeing year-over-year increase in the Americas, EMEA, and APeJ, Epson witnessed a decline of 9.4% year-over-year in the worldwide hardcopy market and lost one point share from a year ago to 12.6% in 3Q11. Samsung strengthened its position as the number 4 vendor

Worldwide Hardcopy Peripherals Market Top 5 Vendor Shares and Year-Over-Year Growth, Third Quarter 2011 Vendors

3Q11 Unit Shipments

3Q11 Market Share

3Q10 Unit Shipments

3Q10 Market Share

3Q11/3Q10 Growth

1. HP

13,457,500

42.9%

13,357,073

43.3%

0.8%

2. Canon

5,673,319

18.1%

5,393,465

17.5%

5.2%

3. Epson

3,945,467

12.6%

4,352,584

14.1%

-9.4%

4. Brother

1,798,171

5.7%

1,660,896

5.4%

8.3%

5. Lexmark

1,733,795

5.5%

1,612,986

5.2%

7.5%

Others

4,736,568

15.1%

4,466,857

14.5%

6.0%

Total

31,344,820

100.0%

30,843,861

100.0%

1.6%

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Market Data

U.S. Hardcopy Peripherals Market Top 5 Vendor Shares and Year-Over-Year Growth, Third Quarter 2011 Vendors

3Q11 Unit Shipments

3Q11 Market Share

3Q10 Unit Shipments

3Q10 Market Share

3Q11/3Q10 Growth

1. HP

3,679,191

56.2%

3,669,906

54.1%

0.3%

2. Canon

824,422

12.6%

898,539

13.2%

-8.2%

3. Epson

417,365

6.4%

475,056

7.0%

-12.1%

4. Brother

360,953

5.5%

364,582

5.4%

-1.0%

5. Lexmark

329,558

5.0%

436,049

6.4%

-24.4%

Others

936,464

14.3%

940,767

13.9%

-0.5%

Total

6,547,953

100.0%

6,784,899

100.0%

-3.5%

in the worldwide hardcopy market with 5.7% share. That slice is up one point from a year ago. The vendor grew 8.3% yearover-year and recorded shipments of 1.8 million units during 3Q11. Brother rounds out the top 5 with more than 1.7 million units shipped and 5.5% share, unchanged from a year ago. The vendor’s shipments grew 7.5% year-over-year and posted positive shipment growth in all regions except for the U.S. Western European market grew 0.2% According to IDC, the hardcopy market in Western Europe returned a slender year-over-year growth rate of 0.2% in 3Q 2011 with 6.4 million unit shipments. In revenue terms, however, the market actually experienced an 11.9% year-overyear decline, falling to $2.8 billion from $3.1 billion in 3Q10. Total printer shipments in Western Europe shrank by 8.7% to 1.52 million units, while MFP shipments experienced resilient growth of 3.4% to reach 4.8 million units. Arnaud Gagneux, Director of IDC’s Western Europe Imaging Hardware Devices and Document Solutions group, said, “The market for print hardware in the region has been affected by stalling consumer and commercial demand across Western Europe as economies struggle to deal with the uncertainty caused by the sovereign debt crisis, which continues to threaten the wider economic recovery.” Gagneux went on to explain that print hardware destined for the consumer end of the market, including inkjet printer and inkjet MFP segments, was being further impacted by weakening demand for PCs, which has the effect of reducing attachment sales between the two product categories. Gagneux pointed out that the laser MFP product segment is delivering robust growth despite the tough trading conditions. Phil Sargeant, Research Manager at IDC’s Western Europe Imaging Hardware Devices and Document Solutions group, said: “For many years printers and MFPs featuring inkjet technology were largely destined for the consumer and SOHO markets. But in recent years and following significant

investments by vendors such as HP, inkjet technology is increasingly being positioned as a cost-effective alternative for low-volume office applications.” Germany Germany remains the largest hardcopy market in Western Europe, with total shipments of 1.7 million units in 3Q11, an increase of 2.6% over 3Q10. Shipments of inkjet devices grew 1% to 0.9 million units, while laser printers increased 14.4% to o.2 million units. United Kingdom The United Kingdom is the second-largest hardcopy market in Western Europe and in 3Q11 total shipments surpassed 1.26 million units. Inkjet shipments, MFPs and printers combined increased 12.6% over 3Q10. France France was the only top 3 European country to experience negative market growth. Total hardcopy shipments fell slightly from a year-over-year perspective and now amount to 1.1 million for the quarter, a slight decline of 0.8%. Shipments of high-value products, including the laser MFP segment, reached 0.1 million units, growing 7.4% year-over-year. About IDC IDC is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology (IT ), telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. IDC helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community make fact-based decisions on technology purchases and business strategy. More than 1,000 IDC analysts provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. For more than 47 years, IDC has provided strategic insights to help clients achieve their key business objectives. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world’s leading technology media, research, and events company. You can learn more about IDC by visiting www.idc.com. January 2012 |

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Market Data

InfoTrends reports on printer markets By InfoTrends M a r ke t r e s e a r c h f i r m I n f oTr e n d s ( We y m o u t h , Massachusetts) has released several reports on its printer market surveys. These studies provide insight into digital mailbox services, photo printing and the wide-format, aqueous inkjet market Two billion transactional documents delivered by digital mailbox The Emergence of Digital Mailbox Services: Moving Beyond Online Bill Consolidation in the U.S. is a report designed to serve the new universal delivery needs of today’s connected and tech savvy consumers through digital delivery of critical customer communications, as well as payment, archiving, and other account management tools. This report is based on an extensive analysis of surveys involving over 1,500 consumers, 300 businesses across 8 vertical markets, and in-depth interviews with 25 leading service bureaus, billers, financial institutions, and digital mailbox service providers. InfoTrends estimates that digital mailbox services will deliver two billion paperless transactional documents to U.S. consumers in 2015—representing 7% of all

▲ Expected Distribution of the Transactional Document Delivery Market (Volume)

transactional documents, 19% of all paperless delivery, and $323 million in transactional document delivery fees alone. Matt Swain, an Associate Director at InfoTrends comments: “All players in the customer communications delivery value chain will be impacted by digital mailbox services as volumes shift, the economy changes, and new competitors, partners, and suppliers emerge. It is critical that companies understand the opportunities that digital mailbox services present and

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the future impact this emerging channel will have on their businesses.” Existing and announced providers in the U.S. today include: Doxo (Seattle, WA), Manilla (New York, NY ), Volly (Stamford, CT ), and Zumbox (Los Angeles, CA). All four of these providers enable paperless delivery options of multiple types of critical customer communications, among other services. Most consumers prefer to store photos electronically InfoTrends claims photo prints are still the best way to ensure that important photos will be easily accessible and shared with family and friends in the future. Despite this fact, many consumers still prefer electronic storage to save and protect their most valued photos. It is up to vendors to change this perception and educate customers on the downside of electronic storage and encourage photo printing as a primary back up method. According to InfoTrends’ most recent survey, over 40% of respondents store photos in one or multiple folders or subfolders on their computer. This compares to only about 6% of respondents who choose to save printed photos as their primary photo storage method. “It is not surprising to see that computer folders are the most popular choice for storage since the computer is most often used for viewing photos,” commented David Haueter, an Associate Director at InfoTrends. “However, consumers are overlooking the vulnerabilities of these storage methods. Computers are vulnerable to failure and viruses, while CDs and DVDs, which are another popular storage method, degrade over time and may not be a viable storage format in a decade. Social networking sites compress file sizes; online sites can go out of business; and, so on and so forth. The truth is there is no foolproof method for storing digital photos. Redundancy is the only option to keep our memories truly safe--but printed photos are one of the best options and should be an option that more people use.” InfoTrends suggests with many effective ways to print photos today and at lower costs than ever before, now is the

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Market Data be.” To be successful in these growth markets, it will be critical for manufacturers to develop competent and reliable distribution and support capabilities. The most important driver is the durable aqueous ink segment, which has become one of the highest growth segments within the wide-format sector. “This technology has grown quickly because of the high image quality on a wide range of substrates, low operating cost, and the low VOC emission it offers which enables ▲ What is the Primary Method You Use for Storing Digital Photos? the technology to be billed as a perfect time to spread the photo printing message. ‘green’ printing solution,” continued Greene. Sales of printers The option of printing from a mobile device may in this category are attracting a lot of attention and InfoTrends also encourage users to print more photos. There is an expects several major vendors to enter this segment of the encouraging level of interest in printing from mobile devices market in the coming years. such as camera phones/smartphones and tablets. Also, as Color technical printing is another growth driver within the image quality of camera phones continues to improve, the wide-format aqueous inkjet market. These applications InfoTrends believes more photos will be printed from these require faster and more robust color printers and are expected devices. Therefore, vendors should invest in mobile printing to erode print volumes away from wide-format, monochrome, solutions that allow the consumer to quickly and easily print toner-based printers. Aqueous inkjet vendors should take their photos anytime, anywhere. advantage of this shift in order to expand their businesses. The 2011 Wide-Format Aqueous Inkjet Hardware & Supplies Wide-format aqueous inkjet market grows Forecast discusses these and other growth drivers affecting According to InfoTrends’ recent forecast projections, this complex market. The report provides forecast figures for revenues for global wide-format aqueous inkjet hardware and the aqueous inkjet market for the period from 2010 to 2015. supplies are expected to grow at a 4.2% compound annual It presents numbers for hardware, ink, and media and offers growth rate (CAGR) through 2015. InfoTrends expects the a detailed breakdown in terms of the technical, desktop, and primary growth drivers to come from: market expansion in production graphics market segments. In addition, the report emerging markets; continued rapid growth in the durable examines the market and technology developments that could aqueous segment; and, the growing use of printers for negatively affect the overall growth of this market and explains architectural, engineering and technical illustrations (charts, in detail why these risk factors could pose a threat. This report graphs, diagrams, etc.). InfoTrends calls this application “color accompanies a MS-Excel pivot table that provides a modular technical printing.” view of the wide-format aqueous inkjet printer and supplies Competing in emerging markets will be a key success factor market. for vendors looking to grow. “The mature economies of North America and Western Europe are not providing the growth, About InfoTrends or even the recovery, that many vendors looked for in 2010 InfoTrends is a worldwide leader in market research and and 2011,” commented Tim Greene a Director at InfoTrends. strategic consulting for the digital imaging and document “However, the fast-growing economies in the Asia-Pacific solutions industry. It provides research, analysis, forecasts, region and in South and Latin America are representing a and advice to help clients understand market trends, identify greater portion of the shipments of wide- format printing opportunities, and develop strategies that help them grow equipment than ever before. That is where the focus should their businesses. January 2012 |

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Tech Zone

Remanufacturing the HP LaserJet CP1025 Series color toner cartridges By Mike Josiah and the Technical Staff at Uninet Imaging LaserJet 4500 machines. The printer is a carousel type with a central drum unit. The toner cartridges just have the toner and developer rollers. No drum or waste sections. The cartridges for this printer are rated for 1000 pages color and 1200 pages black. These cartridges also have a series part number and a specific cartridge part number, so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a bit confusing. The part numbers and info on them is:

In January 2011, Hewlett Packard released the LaserJet CP1025 series of color laser printers. The HP CP1025 series of laser printers are based on a 17 ppm black and 4 ppm color, 600 x 600dpi engine. These cartridges and the printers take a page from the old HP color

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HP 126A Black

CE314A

1200 pages

$49.99ea*

HP 126A Cyan

CE311A

1000 pages

$55.99ea*

HP 126A Magenta

CE313A

1000 pages

$55.99ea*

HP 126A Yellow

CE312A

1000 pages

$55.99ea*

HP 126A Drum Unit CE314A

*Pricing as of March 2011

14k pages black, 7k color $79.99*

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Tech Zone

▲ Figure A

▲ Figure B

The cartridges seen so far also do not use an Air Bag type of insert in the box; they use a cardboard fold around type. See Figure A. They do however have a developer roller cover. See figure B. The only machine released so far in this series is the CP1025W These are very simple, easy cartridges to remanufacture. While the OEM costs are low, they will be simple enough and fast enough to make doing

them worthwhile. Cartridge troubleshooting as well as running test pages, cleaning pages and some simple printer troubleshooting will be covered at the end of this article. As stated above, this series of printers uses a carousel type system. Figure C shows the basic parts layout and lists what each of the parts are.

▲ Figure C

Supplies required: • HP CP1025 dedicated toner • Replacement chip (Dedicated) • Developer roller (Optional) • Doctor blade (optional) • Sealing strip (Optional) • Cotton Swabs • Isopropyl Alcohol

• Drum Padding Powder • Conductive Grease Tools Required: • Phillips head screw driver. • Small Common screw driver • Needle nose pliers • Jewelers Screwdriver set January 2012 |

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step >

Remove the screw from the inner white end cap.

step >

Remove the two screws and doctor blade.

Clean out all the remaining toner from the hopper and feed roller.

step >

Remove the 2 small gears.

Remove the white seal plug from the chip side of the cartridge. See Figure 12

step >

Remove the black plastic end cap.

step >

Tech Zone

Fill the hopper with the appropriate color CP1025 dedicated toner.

step >

Remove the White plastic inner end cap.

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Remove the developer roller. Clean with a lint free cloth and place aside. We do not recommend any chemicals be used to clean this roller. step >

step >

On the gear side of the cartridge, remove the 2 screws from the black plastic end cap. Note the spring loaded drive gear. The spring and drive gear will stay with the end cap when removed, there is no need to remove them separately.

If you are using a seal, install it now. Make sure the tail of the seal comes out through the seal plug hole. step >

step >

With the white plastic handle on top and the label facing you, remove the left side 2 screws and white plastic end cap from the cartridge.

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step >

Tech Zone

Install the two gears on the developer roller shaft and feed roller shaft.

Install the foam washer onto the feed roller shaft.

step >

Install the seal plug. Make sure the fins are on the bottom side and that the plug fits over the seal.

Install the black end cap and two screws. Make sure the drive gears are meshed properly and the spring on the black drive gear is in place. step >

step > step >

Install the white end cap onto the gear side of the cartridge. Install the screw as shown.

Install the developer roller long shaft side to the gear or non chip side of the

step >

Slice the top of the chip holder off and replace the chip.

Install the developer roller cover.

step >

Install the doctor blade and two screws. NOTE the Db must be gapped for the cartridge to work properly. Use either DB shims, or set the gap manually to 1.8mm. NOTE: The Db gap is set from the back 90 degree edge of the blade not the top or screw side. In other words, the gap is to set the distance of the edge of the Db to the developer roller. NOT the height of the blade.

step >

cartridge.

Install the opposite side white end cap and 2 screws.

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Tech Zone Repetitive Defect chart: OPC drum:

95mm

ITB drive roller

76mm

Lower pressure roller:

63mm

Upper fuser film:

58mm

Transfer roller:

47mm

PCR:

26mm

Developer roller:

22mm

Running Test Pages Press and hold the RESUME button for 2-3 seconds. The configuration page and the supplies status page will print. Running the Cleaning Page The cleaning page for these machines can only be run from the Printer menu. HP recommends that for best results, a transparency be used. If a transparency is not available, user copier grade paper with a smooth surface. To run this page, in the windows system tray: Right click on Device Settings and then click on the printer name. Click the Device Settings tab; click the Print Cleaning Page tab. The page will start and stop. Do not turn the printer off until the cleaning page has finished printing.

Mike Josiah Mike Josiah is the East Coast Technical Director at Uninet Imaging. A global distributor of toner, OPC drums, wiper blades and other supplies. An industry veteran since 1987, Mike is a member of ASTM committee F.05, the STMC Technician Certification Committee as well as an STMC trainer. He regularly contributes articles and teaches seminars at association meetings and trade shows.