While it's not easy to factor into cost calculations, lost productivity due to bad quality prints and printer downtime makes up a considerable portion of the total cost of printing, says Bernhard Bette, HP supplies category manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Speaking during a presentation on the technology behind HP printing supplies held in Istanbul, Turkey, yesterday, Bette stressed that when comparing printing costs, customers should consider the total cost of ownership, including factors such as image quality, reliability, efficiency and productivity.
“If you consider the labour costs involved when people reprint documents that are bad quality, and the time associated with that, it's not something that's easy to factor into your cost calculation, but it counts.”
For Bette, it comes down to quality, with inferior cartridges resulting in wasted toner, ink and paper.
While the impact of this for individual home users may be comparatively small, Bette explained that in a company where economies of scale factor in, it can become a significant drain on resources.
“An HP cartridge may cost around $100, while a remanufactured cartridge could be $60, so people say 'why not buy the cheaper one?' But you have to consider the visible costs versus the hidden costs.”
Bette noted that Quality Logic tests commissioned by HP show 51 out of the 168 remanufactured cartridges exhibited a problem during testing. In addition, over 30% of the pages inspected from remanufactured cartridges tested were of limited or no use, compared with 96% of the original HP cartridges which were acceptable for use.
HP is ploughing considerable resources into its printing technologies and designs, with billions being spent on integrating printers, cartridges and media so they work as an efficient system, rather than combining disparate parts.
Bette stated that innovation in terms of toner particle size and the fusing process, which can require a lot of time and energy, are key considerations in more efficient printing. “There's no such thing as 'universal toner'. Each toner has to be designed for a specific printing engine,” he stressed.
According to the company, 70% of the imaging system is contained in the cartridge itself - so every cartridge replacement is similar to replacing a car's engine. “The cartridge is not just a vessel for ink,” said G'eraldine Morel, marketing product manager for HP IPG, “it's developed as an integral part of the system.”
She noted that remanufactured and refilled cartridges often lack the proprietary technology used in original cartridges, meaning they are not designed to work as compatibly with the rest of the printing system.
According to Bette, HP is sticking to the original design vectors it entered the printing business with almost 30 years ago. “There's no 'latest' strategy; we've been following the same strategy since we started, focusing on print quality, reliability and reducing the environmental footprint, and I don't see that changing.”
Share