TCPglobal - news, views and issues on total cost of printing

Issue #0304/1 - While customer surveys are inclined to put ‘Cost’ low on the list of priorities for purchase, managers within the printer industry know that cost is amongst the top drivers within the customer base. This week, Michael Buck, category manager for commercial colour printer products at Hewlett-Packard EMEA told industry analysts “Hewlett-Packard has an obligation to drive the cost of ownership [Total Cost of Ownership – TCO] down”, a comment that was closely followed by “Watch this space”, from Kim Holm, EMEA VP for IPG supplies category.

Issue #0302/5 - Noisy and slow they may be, but the dot matrix printer is not dead yet! Epson has updated its range to include the new 24-pin LQ-630, designed as a small and reliable printer for counter applications and where multi-part printing is required. Costing a hefty UKP 270 to purchase, the CPP (consumables only) of the LQ-630 is quoted as 0.235 Ukppp (or only 18 percent of the cost of the cheapest laser above).

Issue #0224/2 - A 12ppm print/copy/fax device, the iR1200 series is Canon’s entry point to laser based multifunction functionality for small workgroups and SOHO environments. It is designed to provide all the functionality and convenience that small offices require in a format that is claimed to be compact, space saving and economical.

Issue #0224/3 - In its launch of two new colour laser printers (AcuLaser C900 and AcuLaser C1900), Epson is declaring its intent to tackle the issue of the cost of mono printing on colour devices in the hope that users will buy colour printers instead of mono printers.

Issue #0222/1 - The recommendation for organisations to take a comprehensive view of their print activities and procedures is nothing new. From CharisCo Printer Labs’ point of view, it was highlighted in our report ‘The importance of Total Cost of Ownership in a world of Digital Convergence’ (see Special Offer above).