The Recycler Issue 330

One planet 

Printers and cartridges lead the way in the 

European Union’s (EU) green deal that will do a lot 

to pave the way for future environmental gains. 

Starts page 4 

May 2020 

Issue 330 | £10 

Firmware Alert 

The Recycler has received reports 

of HP’s latest firmware update, 

which is affecting HP 903xl and 

953xl cartridges. 

Page 12 

Inkjet flies as cost per copy dies 

As the coronavirus pandemic continues 

to grow, teleworking is growing on the 

back of the “stay at home” message and 

inkjet benefits at the expense of 

corporate cost per copy plans. 

Page 14 

Horizon Capital backed DMC 

closes sixth acquisition 

DMC is pleased to announce the 

acquisition of Leemic, adding a further 

£3.5 million ($4.31 million/ €3.85 million) 

of revenue to the DMC Group and taking 

total revenues close to £70 million ($86 

million/ €77 million). 

Page 19 

Russia: Static welcomes harmonisation 

Effective 1 March 2020, electrotechnical 

products marketed in the EAEU (Eurasian 

Economic Union of the countries of 

Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, 

Kazakhstan) now require 

confirmation of conformity. 

Page 22

IN THIS ISSUE 

2 Issue 330 May 2020

EDITORIAL 

Don't miss a trick 

▲ Stefanie Unland Editor 

& Publisher, The Recycler 

A couple of days before we went to press 

with this issue, I had an interesting 

conversation with a dealer about the 

market today, having last spoken to him 

about two years ago. Then he shared that 

he had not actively sold a printer or MFP 

for about two years. The recent call was to 

catch up on where he was today. 

Interestingly he still had not actively 

sold a printer or MFP for four years 

now. While he is a regional player with 

supplying technology from two OEMs, 

he has over 120 MPS contracts supporting 

just over 730 printing devices, his focus 

is on IT. For him cloud services are 

booming and most of his customers want 

new servers, storage and networking and 

mobile connectivity. 

I didn’t want to talk about the 

coronavirus specifically, but it is in every 

conversation and the dealer had all his 

staff on short time working, having used 

up all their holiday as they work through 

the various distancing rules. So the big 

question was how has the virus affected 

you and your business? 

Two staff have the virus and are isolated. 

Business wise click rates dropped 30% in 

February and 70% in March. April looks 

something similar and he expects that to 

carry through the summer. He doesn’t 

think click rates will get back to 2019 

levels anytime soon. 

That said, his revenues are holding up 

because they have been working with 

their customers to role out home working. 

Basically, supplying second hand laptops 

and printers and using mobile technology 

to connect the teleworkers to the company 

via a cloud platform. 

The switch from new to second hand 

was interesting, he sees the market 

changing, clicks are down and are likely 

to stay down. The OEMs are increasing 

the pressure to sell more machines. While 

that is profitable as well as a commission 

of the finance packages. That profit is 

consumed by the costs of being a dealer. 

The ongoing profit is in the cost per copy 

model. His post virus plan is to keep the 

focus on IT but do more to keep machines 

in operation. Buy them back at the end of 

the lease and then rent them out, instead 

of selling them on to a broker. Oh, and for 

the machines he owns and rents out he is 

happy to use remanufactured products 

and has a good source in Germany. 

A UK supermarket manager went all 

out to organise twenty HP printers for 

a company that needed them for their 

homeworking employees. While he 

didn’t have enough inkjet cartridges for 

all the printers, he happily explained 

all the benefits of the HP Instant Ink 

programme. Blushing with all the praise 

he received from the customer, he soon 

paled as he then realised that the sale 

of twenty printers had generated £1100 

of sales, but he had given away how much 

to HP? 

In case you missed it HP, Lexmark, Sharp and 

Ricoh put out firmware updates in March that 

locked out aftermarket consumables 

In case you missed it HP, Lexmark, 

Sharp and Ricoh put out firmware 

updates in March that locked out 

aftermarket consumables. Set aside the 

millions of dollars it costs to do a work 

around on firmware. These OEMs are 

morally bankrupt to exploit the pandemic 

and consumers in such a way. 

The coronavirus will impact on all 

nations and all industries and has and 

will create large scale unemployment. 

That in turn will create strong 

recessionary pressures. Promoting reuse 

and remanufacturing could be part of 

the panacea to create jobs and rebuild 

economies. 

Let me know what your post virus plan 

is. Email me at s.unland@therecycler.com 

Stay safe and well everyone. ■ 

Issue 330 

May 2020 

3

FEATURE 

One planet 

Printers and cartridges lead the way in the European Union’s (EU) green deal 

that will do a lot to pave the way for future environmental gains. 

As the EU’s green agenda gets underway to 

move away from the take-make-use-dispose 

to a more circular model, printers and 

consumables are a front-runner in a new 

sustainable products policy initiative that 

will see massive changes in the electronics 

and information and communications 

technology (ICT) sector. 

A Circular Electronics Initiative to 

mobilise existing and new technology 

that will seek to promote longer product 

lifetimes. To achieve this there will be 

regulatory measures to ensure devices are 

designed for energy efficiency, durability, 

repairability, upgradeability, maintenance, 

reuse and recycling. Printers and cartridges 

will be covered by this legislation unless 

the sector reaches an ambitious voluntary 

agreement within the next six months. 

The Green Deal is a progressive and 

irreversible transition to a sustainable 

economic system and the cornerstone 

FEATURED 

A R TIC L E 

of the new EU industrial strategy 

and strengthen the EU’s industrial 

base and foster business creation and 

entrepreneurship among SMEs. 

What does that mean for the 

office imaging sector? 

Expect legislation to establish sustainability 

principles to regulate and improve product 

durability, reusability, upgradability and 

reparability. A case of make it well and 

make it last longer and make sure it can be 

reused and repaired. 

A key part of the strategy will go to 

addressing the presence of hazardous 

chemicals in products like decaBDE, 

Benzene, Naphthalene and Bis(2- 

methoxyethyl) ether all found in new-built, 

non-OEM products purchased in Europe 

in the last two years. Hand in hand will 

be increasing the energy and resource 

efficiency of products. 

The amount of recycled content in 

products will be increased and the same 

time ensuring product performance 

The Green Deal is a progressive and irreversible 

transition to a sustainable economic system 

and safety. This should enable greater 

levels of remanufacturing and highquality 

recycling and reduce carbon and 

environmental footprints. 

Topical in the office print sector should 

see a restricting of single-use products and 

countering premature obsolescence of 

printer and copier technology. 

Ending the wholesale destruction of 

unsold goods with the introduction of a 

ban on destroying unsold durable goods. 

New business models are likely to emerge 

like product-as-a-service or other models 

where producers keep the ownership of 

the product or the responsibility for its 

performance throughout its lifecycle. 

Right of repair 

In a new era of reuse and remanufacturing 

a key requirement will be a new ‘right 

to repair’ to broaden the narrow legal 

framework in play at the moment and that 

is one of the drivers in the new Green Deal. 

Reuse and repair will also need a rethink by 

manufacturers on the availability of spare 

parts or access to repair and, in the case of 

ICT and electronics, to upgrading services. 


You can contact visit www.therecycler.com The Recycler via Twitter for at all @RecyclerMedia 

the breaking news 

Ending greenwashing 

Greenwashing takes many forms, from 

saying a new product is remanufactured, 

to publishing touchee, feelee sustainability 

reports that make the company 

shareholders feel good but are nowhere 

near as sustainable as they could be. The 

Commission will propose that companies 

substantiate their environmental 

claims using Product and Organisation 

Environmental Footprint methods and 

integrate the methods in the EU Ecolabel 

and include more systematically durability, 

recyclability and recycled content in the EU 

Ecolabel criteria. 

What’s next? 

Printers and cartridges will be at the front 

of the queue and at the centre of this 

legislation unless the sector reaches an 

ambitious voluntary agreement within the 

next six months. 

Ambitious is the word, the current 

voluntary agreement introduced in 2015 

only covers the energy-efficiency and 

duplexing availability that must be met by 

at least 90% of products sold. 

The 2015 voluntary agreement was signed 

by most of the major OEMs that represent 

over 90% of the printer market. It aimed 

to reduce the environmental footprint 

of imaging equipment – both by design 

and by helping customers make informed 

choices during purchase and usage of the 

equipment. Including design requirements 

Printers and cartridges will be 

at the front of the queue and at the 

centre of this legislation 

relate to energy consumption, default delay 

times, recto-verso printing, the ability to 

print several pages on one sheet of paper, 

recycling and cartridge reuse. Machines 

must be designed for easy recycling of 

plastic and other materials and must be 

able to accommodate non-OEM ink and 

toner cartridges. 

You only have to look at the number of 

firmware updates that are issued that 

block non-OEM ink and toner cartridges 

to see that the 2015 voluntary agreement 

did not work as well as it might have. 

Urgency 

There is an urgency on the part of the 

OEMs to get a new voluntary agreement 

in place and to but keep printer 

consumables out of the legislation. 

EuroVAprint, the OEM group that 

negotiates on behalf of the OEMs is 

now reaching out to industry players 

and organisations to get around the 

table and map out what a new voluntary 

arrangement might look like and get the 

deal over the line as soon as possible. To 

do that they will have to give some ground 

to facilitate greater reuse. The OEMs are 

probably thinking small concessions, 

while the aftermarket is thinking big 

time concessions. The only thing driving 

the agreement is the OEMs’ desire to 

avoid the consumables market being 

heavily legislated. 


May 2020 

5

FEATURE 

That said there are conversations going 

on between one or two OEMs and other 

companies to develop bilateral agreements 

that would benefit both parties. That is 

more likely where access to OEM chip reset 

technology might be agreed. 

What is a voluntary 

agreement? 

In October 2009 the EU established a 

framework for the setting of ecodesign 

requirements for energy-related products 

including printers. The Ecodesign 

Directive is the legal framework for laying 

down ecodesign requirements for selected 

priority product groups like office printers. 

They have to be covered by either an 

EU regulation or a voluntary agreement 

concluded by industry. 

A voluntary agreement needs to meet three 

conditions: (i) it represents significant 

sales volumes, (ii) it has a significant 

environmental impact and (iii) it has a 

significant improvement potential. 

The drawback is that the voluntary 

agreement is only binding on the 

signatories. You could have a situation 

where the OEMs and a group of 

remanufacturing companies sign up to 

a voluntary agreement and have to work 

by the rules of the agreement. But the 

agreement would not be binding other 

companies that did not sign up. 

What is on offer in a new 

voluntary agreement? 

The discussions are confidential, but it 

doesn’t take a rocket scientist to expect 

the OEMs to offer some very basic level of 

functionality to ensure non-OEM ink and 

toner cartridges will work in printers. If 

the OEMs are to reach a reasonable level of 

reuse, then they may offer access to used 

consumables rather than shredding them. 

A new right of repair, mandatory reuse targets, 

and all the legislation set out in the Green Deal 

Talk to any remanufacturer and they 

would want to see an end to firmware 

updates that block their products and 

access to OEM chip reset technology. 

An OEM insider familiar with the 

discussions suggests that that sort of 

deal would not feature in the voluntary 

agreement because it is unlikely all the 

OEMs would all agree to it. 

The classic example is the motor industry. 

Every garage can sign up and get basic 

access to parts lists, dashboard reset codes, 

parts etc. Pay more and you get diagnostic 

technology, authorised repair centre status, 

parts, training etc. 

What is the alternative to a 

new voluntary agreement? 

Simple really, legislation. The EU have 

made it clear, do a voluntary agreement 

and do it soon, or they will legislate the 

ICT printer market. What is that likely 

to look like? 

A new right of repair, mandatory reuse 

targets, and all the legislation set out in the 

Green Deal. What it is unlikely to do is 

get into the detail of firmware, chip 

resetting etc. 

Legislation would apply to the whole 

market, OEMs, remanufacturers, non- 

OEM manufacturers and create a level 

playing field. A voluntary agreement is 

unlikely to achieve that but would possible 

advantage the bigger non-OEM players and 

disadvantage smaller businesses. 

Different perspectives 

OEMs answer to their shareholders. 

The EU Green Deal could massively 

impact on their business model and 

see market share and sales drop and the 

increased demand for parts and reuse an 

added cost. Just when print is a maturing 

technology. Apart from the status quo, 

many OEMs see a voluntary agreement as 

the least worst option. 

Non-OEM cartridge manufacturers 

would not be impacted by a voluntary 

agreement but would face the ongoing 

and expensive costs of developing and 

redeveloping chip solutions which can cost 

upwards of $10 million (€9.19 million). 

Legislation on the other hand would 

impose greater costs to produce safe, 

compliant reusable cartridges and support 

reuse across the European Union. Many 

of the smaller players would not make the 

transition from a high volume, low cost 

single use cartridge to a sustainable and 

reusable business model. 


You can contact The Recycler via Twitter at @RecyclerMedia 

Remanufacturers on the other hand could 

be the big winners with higher reuse 

requirements, less competitive pressures 

from low cost producers. ETIRA forecast 

some time ago that doubling the amount 

of cartridges that are remanufactured in 

Europe would create between 16,000 and 

20,000 new jobs in Europe. 

That number could double again if repair, 

reuse and remanufacturing reached fifty 

percent of the market share. 

Next steps 

Over the summer COVID-19 safe meetings 

will take place and a possible voluntary 

agreement could be outlined as early as this 

October. If there is agreement this could be 

ratified in the spring of next year. 

If there is no voluntary agreement, then 

the status quo remains until the EU 

legislates and that is likely to be 2022 or 

2023 at the earliest. A case of playing a 

short or long game. 

Winners and losers 

Whether it is legislation or a voluntary 

agreement there will be winners and losers. 

Any significant change towards a stronger 

and more sustainable market will impact 

on the OEMs at one end and the non-OEM 

manufacturers at the other end. 

Remanufacturers and the parts and 

supply channel behind them would 

befit most from legislation because that 

will create the demand and provide 

the market opportunity for large and 

small remanufacturers. Larger players 

might benefit from signing up to the 

voluntary agreement and possible bi-lateral 

agreements with individual OEMs. 

The big stick 

The purchasing power of European 

public authorities represents 14% of EU 

GDP and would be a powerful driver of 

any demand for sustainable products. 

Using that purchasing clout expect the 

EU Commission to propose minimum 

mandatory green public procurement 

(GPP) criteria and targets in legislation. 

And possibly the introduction of 

blockchain technology to effectively 

manage the compulsory reporting 

requirements to monitor the uptake of 

Green Public Procurement. 

The political perspective 

That change will happen is taken as read, 

but the scope and scale of the change is 

the political navigation exercise the EU 

member states need to navigate. Some 

EU member states see the Green Deal 

as essential, others see it as an economic 

burden. 

2020 is supposed to the year the first cycle 

of the Paris Climate Convention will 

end, and all signatories must register their 

increased climate targets before the end of 

2020. 

The EU’s Green Deal is taking shape: 

numerous initiatives and strategies like 

ICT, are seeing the light of day. Germany 

ETIRA forecast some time ago that doubling 

the amount of cartridges that are 

remanufactured in Europe would create 

between 16,000 and 20,000 new jobs in Europe 

takes over the EU Presidency in July 

and will be in the driving seat while the 

voluntary agreement is being negotiated. 

The COVID-19 pandemic will hit all 

government economies, so you might think 

the green deal will go on the back burner. 

However, the pandemic has and will create 

large scale unemployment. 

That in turn will create strong recessionary 

pressures. A green deal could be part of 

the panacea to create jobs and rebuild 

economies. 

One thing is for sure. Change is coming. ■ 

FEATURED 

A R TIC L E 


May 2020 

7

IN THIS ISSUE 

On the cover 

One planet 

Value based networking 

on LinkedIn 

30 

Is the future cloud driven? 

4 

34 

Editorial 

3 Don't miss a trick 

Feature 

4 One planet 

World Focus 

10 Italy: Revised environmental criteria 

for printer consumables 

11 Epson offers free ink for two years 

12 Firmware Alert • Abu Dhabi says 

NO to single-use plastics 

14 Inkjet flies as cost per copy dies 

16 EU VAT: New rules to detect tax 

fraud and help small businesses 

17 17 years and 45 million 

cartridges recycled 

City News 

18 OEM share prices April 2020 

• Hubei Dinglong 2019 

preliminaries show dip 

19 Horizon Capital backed DMC 

closes sixth acquisition 

20 Xerox announces three acquisitions 

• Ninestar’s 2019 results are in 

Around the Industry 

22 Russia: Static welcomes 

harmonisation 

23 Katun partners with PrintReleaf 

24 Hubei Dinglong re-opens factory 

• HYB vacuum receives 

certification • Ninestar offers 

online factory tour 

25 RoHS changes in Russia 

26 Bioservice scoops award 

• Advantia announced new MPS 

• Bureau Vallée opens a new store 

27 ImageNet taken to task over 

COVID-19 response 

28 Clover launches new reseller 

programme 

29 Marco launches new partner 

programme 

DM Column 

30 Value based networking 

on LinkedIn 

Feature 

34 Is the future cloud driven? 

Products & Technology 

36 Ninestar highlights new products 

• HYB announces latest releases 

37 Static Control chips beat the latest 

HP and Lexmark firmware updates 

38 Apex chips beat HP’s latest 

firmware update • Mito showcases 

latest products 

39 Armor expands OWA range 

40 Canon launches new portable 

printers • IR Italiana Riprografia 

adds to Graphic-Jet range 

42 Epson expands EcoTank printer 

portfolio • Clover adds new products 

43 Brother to resell ControlSuite 

globally • ThinPrint client as 

an upgrade 

However you consume your 

news make sure you engage: 

Like, Follow and Share 

News to share? Email: 

news@therecycler.com 


visit www.therecycler.com for all the breaking news 

Issue Issue 330 XXX 

May XXXX 2020 2020 9 5

WORLD FOCUS 

EUROPE Italy, CAM, ARTI-Italia, Reuse, Circular Economy 

Italy: Revised environmental criteria for printer consumables 

The Italian Ministry of the Environment and the Protection of the Territory and the Sea recently published new 

minimum environmental criteria for toner and inkjet cartridge supplies and for the rental or lease of printers and MFPs. 

This document, similar to the previous 

CAM, published in 2014, and which 

ARTI-Italia was heavily involved 

with stipulates rules and standards for 

government departments purchasing 

printers and consumables. The rules require 

that purchases include "at least 30% of 

"remanufactured cartridges" with yield 

and print quality equivalent to that of the 

original cartridges and toner powders or 

inks free of certain dangerous substances" 

and included in all procurement contracts. 

Also included are restrictions or bans on 

hazardous substances and metals in toner 

powders and inks for cartridges offered that 

are not remanufactured, as well as a solid 

demonstration of print quality and yield for 

compatible cartridges. 

decaBDE and other hazardous substances 

are a noted concern for the Public 

Administration following the discovery 

in 2018 of hazardous materials such as 

DecaBDE contained in the plastics of 

compatible/Clones/NBC cartridges 

(plastics recycled from electronic waste) 

imported into the EU. 

The CAM reflects that the low and 

sometimes very low prices indicate the 

origin of the cartridges where low wages 

and scant respect for labour conditions 

may exist and potentially expose workers 

to the harmfulness of the products. For 

all those mentioned above: "To allow the 

objectives set out in this document, the 

contracting stations must when defining 

the auction bases, take into account 

the market prices of the original toner 

and inkjet cartridges. Remanufactured 

cartridges cannot have a price that is 

excessively lower than the latter since the 

costs of an actual remanufacturing activity 

are significant and scarcely reducible". 

ARTI-Italia said that these unfair 

competitive practices could adversely impact 

on the market, and companies suffer unfair 

competition. The CAM describes how 

original cartridges are best for reuse: "unlike 

non-original and non-remanufactureable 

cartridges, which mostly end up in 

incineration plants or landfills after the 

first use. The lack of remanufacturability, 

combined with lower prices, are pushing 

more and more companies dedicated to 

remanufacturing to orient their activities 

differently, as they are not very valued also in 

public tenders". 

"The contracting authority reserves the 

right to ascertain that the intellectual 

property rights of the cartridges supplied 

have not been infringed by contacting the 

Anti-counterfeiting Information System 

of the Guardia di Finanza http://siac.gdf. 

it. If necessary, sending one or more of the 

cartridges supplied for checks to ensure they 

are compliant and not counterfeit", the new 

standard added. 

Hardware also features in the CAM and 

targets the rental or leasing of printers 

and MFPs. "Rather than simply renewing 

one's own fleet of printers and MFPs, it is 

therefore appropriate to "re-engineer" the 

document processes more effectively and 

reorganise the printing services taking into 

account the real printing needs ...". 

To support circular economy models 

and to favour the market opportunities for 

reused equipment, the rental and managed 

printing service sector should include 

new and used devices in their offerings. 

MPS devices are typically departmental 

size and at the end of the contract, still 

have their useful life. Reusing technology 

could lead to lower financial outlays by the 

contracting stations who acquire the lower 

cost reused equipment when compared 

to the cost of new equipment. Even when 

the maintenance and technical assistance 

included in the service which will induce 

bidders to offer products in good condition". 

"The installed image reproduction devices 

can be either new or used, but must comply 

with the technical specifications of the 

Minimum Environmental Criteria (CAM)", 

the document states. 

In addition, the consumables for rented 

printers and MFPs must also be partly 

remanufactured: "As of July 1, 2022, at 

least 30% of the toner and inkjet cartridges 

supplied must be remanufactured 

("prepared for reuse") in accordance with 

the technical specifications contained in 

the CAM for supplies of toner and inkjet 

cartridges in force and in possession 

of environmental labels conforming 

to UNI EN ISO 14024 or the alternative 

means of testing provided by the 

aforementioned CAM". 

"When the Voluntary Agreement of the 

industry will be published, test reports or 

data sheets will have to take into account 

the measurement methods and parameters 

provided for therein. In any case, products 

bearing environmental labels complying 

with UNI EN ISO 14024, and the other 

means of the test described at the end of 

the criterion, will be presumed to comply 

for a transitional period of one year from 

the publication of the Agreement," ARTI- 

Italia added. 

ARTI-Italia concluded: "In this regard, 

please note that products not regenerated 

from original cartridges do not comply 

with DIN 33870.1-2 and therefore do 

not comply with CAM! According to 

all the information provided by CAM, 

and market data, the compliance of 

cartridges for imported non-OEM 

products is extremely low or does not exist. 

In the absence of a "recognised quality 

certification method" for compatible/ 

NBC/Clones cartridges and there is very 

little or no evidence of compliance for 

WEEE, RoHS and REACH, we strongly 

recommended that private consumers and 

public administrations avoid the purchase 

of these goods. 

"These good practices would help to 

reduce the large amount of disposable plastic 

that is polluting and almost irreparably 

damaging the environment in which our 

children will live. If not for us, let us do it at 

least for those to whom it would be better to 

leave a world in better conditions than the 

one we found or transformed it." ■ 



NORTH AMERICA Epson, Unlimited Free Ink, EcoTank Pro Series 

Epson offers free ink for two years 

Epson is offering unlimited free ink for two years in the USA and Canada on its latest model launches in the EcoTank 

Pro series. 

The latest models launched by Epson in 

its EcoTank Pro series are the EcoTank Pro 

ET-5800, EcoTank Pro ET-5850, EcoTank 

Pro ET-5880, EcoTank Pro ET-16600, 

EcoTank Pro ET-16650 and EcoTank ET- 

15000 models. 

Epson said: “To further support the 

printing needs of businesses, Epson is 

introducing an ‘Unlimited Ink for Two 

Years Programme’ with EcoTank Pro 

models.” Customers who purchase and 

register an EcoTank Pro series printer 

are eligible to receive reimbursement for 

replacement ink bottles. 

Available for the above-mentioned 

printers, purchased between 26 March 

2020 and 31 March 2021, Epson offers 

to reimburse registered users for each 

purchase of ink bottles they make. Users 

will need to register their purchased 

printer and buy the ink upfront and then 

get the refund once they have sent in 

their ink receipt, usage history report and 

empty 542 ink bottles. 

Refunds are limited to four bottles per 

claim. Each claim cannot contain multiple 

bottles of the same ink colour. 

Epson first launched high-capacity ink 

tank inkjet printers in October 2010, in 

Indonesia, and by FY2018 had expanded 

into some 150 countries and regions. By 

first establishing a presence in emerging 

markets and then making inroads into 

developed economies, Epson has seen its 

high-capacity ink tank models account for 

a growing percentage of the total inkjet 

market each year. 

Epson originally launched in 2017 

its ReadyInk which was described 

by the company as a “hassle-free and 

subscription-free service” which allows its 

customers to register with their retailer or 

reseller when they purchase their printer 

and sign up for this automated system, 

which will supply “genuine ink cartridges” 

whenever their ink begins to run low. 

On 17 June 2019 Epson launched 

ReadyInk with Amazon Dash 

Replenishment which allows customers 

to register their Epson printer with Dash 

Replenishment in just “a few simple 

steps”. Customers can activate Dash 

Replenishment, which works with Epson 

ReadyInk technology to monitor ink levels 

and automatically reorder the moment 

more is needed, ensuring customers never 

run out of ink. ■ 


May 2020 11

WORLD FOCUS 

GLOBAL HP, Lexmark, Firmware Updates, HP 903XL, HP 953 XL 

EMEA Abu Dhabi, Single-Use 

Plastic, Ban 

Firmware Alert 

The Recycler has received reports of HP’s latest firmware update, 

which is affecting HP 903xl and 953xl cartridges. 

Richard Pateman of UK based World 

of Inks Ltd reported that customers are 

experiencing problems when installing 

remanufactured cartridges and the 

cartridges will not work again until new 

chips are available. 

If the printer is set to automatic update 

the updates in question allow the 

installed cartridges to continue to work 

until they are empty. When installing 

replacement cartridges, they fail to work. 

The cartridges are flitted with the v8 

chip version. 

The updates in question are: 

• HP 903xl = MCP2CN2006BR 

• HP 953xl = 

ELLISXLP1N003.2007A.00 

A factory reset of the printer shows the 

latest firmware version is still installed, 

so a new chip solution will be required. 

Customers who have disabled 

automatic updates are not experiencing 

the problem. Richard commented: “Yes, 

customer[s] who turned the firmware 

off or if there machine was on advise will 

be fine with the v8 chips, we have tested 

these on all older versions and they are 

fine, these firmware would be 1938A 

(903xl printers) 1942A (953xl) printers. 

Any chip not v8 we had issues with on 

the 1938a and 1942a firmware but with 

v8 all good.” 

According to Pateman, updating is an 

easy mistake to make. 

Click “Setup” on printer screen (this 

looks like a cog or wheel) 

• Click on “Printer Maintenance” 

• Click on “Update the Printer” 

• Click on “Printer Update Options” 

• Click on “Do Not Check” 

You then need to select “No” on the 

question that pop up. 

“If you clicked yes on last message, 

it would discard change, we found 

customers doing this, clicking yes and 

not no,” Pateman added. 

Since the story broke, we have been 

receiving reports from all over the world 

of people being affected by this latest 

update. 

Only a few days later, The Recycler 

reported about the new Lexmark 

firmware that has recently been seen in 

the market. Reports suggest that the 

update will prevent third-party supplies 

from working in its MS/MX310 and 

MS317 series printers. 

The Recycler understands that Lexmark 

has issued a new firmware (version 

LW75.PRL.P043). Reports suggest that 

the update released on 5 March 2020 

will prevent third-party supplies from 

working in its MS/MX310 and MS317 

series printers. Previously working chips 

are no longer being recognised and are 

reporting the error code 32.16 or 32.50. 

Static Control advised their customers 

that their replacement chips for the 

popular Lexmark 

MS/MX 310, 410, 510, 610, 710, 711, 

810, 811, 812 and MS/MX 317, 417, 

517, 617, 717, 718, 817, 818 series are not 

impacted by the recent firmware update 

released by Lexmark on March 5, 2020. 

Current advice for consumers is to 

disable automatic updates on MS/ 

MX310 and MS317 series printers so the 

firmware update will not be installed. 

If you are affected by these firmware 

updates, please let us know. Email 

news@therecycler.com if you have 

further details. ■ 

Abu Dhabi says 

NO to singleuse 

plastics 

Abu Dhabi has launched an initiative 

to phase out and eventually ban 

single-use plastic within two years. 

The Environment Agency of Abu Dhabi 

took to Twitter to launch what it calls a 

progressive policy to reduce consumption 

of single-use plastics in the Emirates. By 

2021 it aims for Abu Dhabi to be free 

of single use plastic bags and encourage 

using sustainable alternatives. 

Currently, the UAE consumes 

11bn plastic bags annually, 1,184 bags 

per person - over three times the 

global average. 

The Environmental agency is also 

looking to have in place by then a bottle 

recycling programme to be implemented 

across retail outlets. 

Like many governments lately, the 

issue of single-use plastics is high on 

the agenda in most countries. In 2018 

the Government of the Balearic Islands 

decided to ban single-use plastics. Details 

released recently show that the ban on 

the Balearic Islands will include 

single-use cartridges. ■ 



Let’s Work Together 

At times like these working together is more prominent than ever. We may 

not be able to visit our customers face-to-face, but we are working behind 

the scenes to ensure that we can support them and offer solutions to make 

business run as smoothly as possible. 

Ways Katun Can Help You: 

✔ We can deliver next day to your end-users 

✔ Excellent stock availability and competitive prices 

✔ We offer credit facilities for good standing customers* 

✔ Easy online ordering at www.katun.com/kolc 

*Subject to company credit checks and strict repayment terms. 


May 2020 13

WORLD FOCUS 

GLOBAL Inkjet, Cost per Copy, COVID-19 

Inkjet flies as cost per copy dies 

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to grow, teleworking is growing on the back of the “stay at home” message 

and inkjet benefits at the expense of corporate cost per copy plans and the industry is responding to the challenges. 

“We sold 150 inkjet printers last week, 

it was all our stock,” one Dutch retailer 

told The Recycler. A similar story being 

heard in more countries as homeworking 

takes off on the back of the “stay at home” 

message most governments are now 

mandating. 

It is a similar story with inkjet 

consumables that are flying off the shelf 

to meet the needs of teleworkers and 

home schoolers. One UK parent reported 

printing 30 pages a day in the last few 

days as he printed out assignments and 

background material. It is the busiest the 

printer has been in a year. It is a picture 

being repeated across all the countries 

affected by the pandemic. 

Taking to social media, German 

remanufacturer wta Carsten Weser’s 

Collection Programme Manager, 

Dimitry van Raamsdonk is looking for 

empty printhead cores to meet demand 

and is requesting companies with good 

quantities available to contact him. 

While home printing booms, in the 

corporate and education sectors, the 

home of the cost per copy model, click 

rates are down as much as 90% in some 

sectors. One UK company we spoke with 

that supports 15 school MPS programmes 

has seen the click rate fall to just about 

zero as schools close. The knock-on effect 

is that several mid to large size European 

remanufactures are now beginning to 

implement short-time working. 

As the saying goes “Cash is king” and 

payments are slowing down. The Recycler 

payment index tracks payment habits and 

in December the average payment time 

across the sector in Europe was 48 days 

several companies but had gone to 63 days 

by the end of February. 

Some companies are now reporting 

that credit facilities are being withdrawn 

and pre-payment required for purchases 

of materials like toner, ink, chips etc.. 

As one supplier told The Recycler “it’s a 

perfect storm, the economy is reducing 

rapidly, customers are sitting on cash by 

not paying bills, our suppliers now want 

prepayment which can tie up funds for 

up to 240 days if we buy a container of 

product from Asia and triple our cash 

requirements." 

Our readers are telling us it is a similar 

picture being repeated across the sectors 

in countries affected by the pandemic. 

Empties become an issue as logistics 

companies focus of delivering priority 

supplies, the collection of empties for 

reuse and remanufacturing is expected 

to become for challenging in the coming 

weeks a leading remanufacturer told 

The Recycler yesterday. 

On social media, the United Arab 

Emirates company, German Imaging 

Technologies (GIT) held a town hall 

meeting with the UAE team at the factory 

grounds addressing the strategy and 

challenges of the current health, social 

and economic crisis due to COVID-19 

virus and the restrictions imposed on the 

society at large. 

GIT team is fully at work. With multiple 

government entities and over a dozen 

hospitals, pharma companies, medical 

laboratories and the National Ambulance 

service as our clients, we are fully involved 

in supporting those who are fighting 

every day to make our country safe again. 

Management is doing everything in its 

power to ensure continuity for all team 

members despite of repercussions. 


Search for The Recycler on Facebook for more news and industry coverage 

"We are committed to retain 100% of 

our team throughout the crisis. GIT 

plays also a vital role in supporting 

multiple Government entities and over a 

dozen hospitals, care providers, medical 

laboratories and the National Ambulance 

service during this crisis. Together we will 

manage and prevail," the company said. 

French cartridge collector LVL took to 

social media and advised they are “Not 

currently in a position to carry out empty 

cartridge removal, our cartridge collection 

activity is temporarily suspended.” They 

reminded their collection network “to 

keep your boxes full” and “as soon as we 

resume the activity, we will do our best to 

carry out the collections ASAP.” 

On 5 March Lexmark issued a firmware 

update that was closely followed by HP 

who issued a firmware update on the 17 

March. Both updates effectively locked 

out aftermarket consumables when they 

became empty. 

Fortunately for consumers with 

aftermarket supplies affected by the 

update’s, aftermarket solutions were 

available within a matter of days from 

leading providers. 

Editor's Opinion: The pandemic has 

certainly had an impact on the imaging 

market. Opportunities in home printing 

and a contraction in some corporate 

sectors. But you have to ask the question 

why did two leading OEMs issue the 

firmware update during a pandemic. 

Were they technically necessary, or was it 

just an opportunist update to lock out the 

aftermarket and exploit consumers? 

I hope it is one, bust suspect the other. 

Editor’s Note: We appreciate all the 

feedback we are receiving and have 

anonymised contributions where 

requested so we can share the “big 

picture” with our audience. 

Please keep us updated. ■ 

Specialists in the Purchase 

of Unused OEM Toner for 

over 10 years 

Purchasing 

WE BUY SURPLUS UNUSED PRINTER TONERS & INKS 

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May 2020 15

WORLD FOCUS 

EUROPE EU, VAT, Business 

EU VAT: New rules to detect tax fraud and help small 

businesses 

The European Union (EU) has introduced new rules to simplify tax and facilitate the detection of tax fraud in 

cross-border e-commerce transactions. 

From 1 January 2021 the EU MOSS 

scheme is being extended and special 

provisions concerning the obligations of 

electronic interfaces will enter into force 

on 1 January 2021 as IT systems need to be 

adapted or developed. 

Businesses operating electronic interfaces 

such as marketplaces (Amazon etc) or 

platforms will, in certain situations, 

be deemed for VAT purposes to be the 

supplier of goods sold to customers in the 

EU by companies using the marketplace or 

platform and they will have to collect and 

pay the VAT on these sales. 

The EU scheme for intra-EU supplies 

of telecoms, broadcast and electronic (TBE) 

services will be extended to all types of B2C 

services as well as to intra-EU distance sales 

of goods and certain domestic supplies 

facilitated by electronic interfaces. 

A new import scheme will be created 

covering distance sales of goods imported 

from third countries or territories to 

customers in the EU up to a value of €150 

($168.38). 

Currently, the price of all goods shipped 

between EU member states is inclusive of 

value-added tax (VAT). This ensures that 

a proper amount of tax. This is not true for 

goods shipped from outside the EU. 

All incoming packages entering the 

EU and valued above €22 ($24.69) must 

go through customs where VAT and 

processing fees are charged. Under the new 

import scheme is used, the seller will charge 

and collect the VAT at the point of sale to 

EU customers and declare and pay that 

VAT globally to the relevant Member State. 

These goods will then benefit from a VAT 

exemption upon importation and a speedy 

release by customs. 

The introduction of the new import 

scheme will see the abolition of the 

current VAT exemption for goods in 

small consignment of a value of up to 

€22 ($24.69) which often led to the 

underestimation of the value of goods, 

so that their price does not exceed the 

limit of €22 ($24.69), and avoided the 

payment of taxes. This is also in line with 

the commitment to apply the destination 

principle for VAT. 

Where the import OSS is not used, 

a second simplification mechanism will 

be available for imports. Import VAT will 

be collected from customers by the customs 

declarant (e.g. postal operator, courier firm, 

customs agents) which will pay it to the 

customs authorities via a monthly payment. 

From the 1 January 2024 EU member 

states will collect the transaction records 

electronically available by payment service 

providers, such as banks. A new central 

electronic system will be set up for the 

storage of the payment information and for 

the further processing of this information 

by national anti-fraud officials. 

Payment service providers will be required 

to keep records of cross-border payments 

related to e-commerce. This data will then 

be made available to national tax authorities 

under strict conditions, including those 

related to data protection. 

These changes complement the VAT 

regulatory framework for e-commerce 

coming into force in January 2021 which 

introduced new VAT obligations for online 

marketplaces. 

Reducing the administrative burden and 

compliance costs for small enterprises will 

see changes to help small enterprises grow 

and trade across borders more efficiently. 

The cost of compliance is proportionately 

higher for small enterprises than for bigger 

businesses. The existing VAT system 

foresees that VAT exemption for small 

enterprises is only available to domestic 

players. The new reforms that come into 

effect on the 1 January 2025 will enable 

a similar VAT exemption to be applied 

to small enterprises established in other 

member states. 

The updated rules will reduce VAT 

compliant costs and encourage voluntary 

compliance and reduce revenue losses due to 

non-compliance and VAT fraud. 

Small enterprises will be able to qualify for 

the simplified VAT compliance rules where 

their annual turnover remains below a 

threshold set by a Member State concerned, 

which cannot be higher than €85 000 

($95,400). ■ 



AUSTRALASIA Cartridges 4 Planet Ark, Cartridges, 

Recycling 

17 years and 45 million 

cartridges recycled 

Australian initiative Cartridges 4 Planet Ark has 

reported it has surpassed the 45 million mark of 

recycled cartridges since it first began collecting in 2003. 

Ahead of Global Recycling Day on 18 March with its theme 

of 'Recycling Heroes' Cartridges 4 Planet Ark acknowledged 

and thanked its recycling heroes across Australian workplaces, 

schools and homes who have helped recycle over 45 million 

printer cartridges since the programme began in 2003. 

Cartridges 4 Planet Ark’s participating manufacturers, 

Brother, Canon, Epson, HP, Konica Minolta and Kyocera are 

major contributors to the recycling programme. Cartridges 

4 Planet Ark explained that collectively these manufacturers 

have proactively and voluntarily joined together to take 

responsibility for the end of life of their printer cartridges and 

provide a national programme for homes and workplaces across 

the country to have access to a free and accessible recycling 

programme. 

One of Cartridges 4 Planet Ark recycling partners is Close 

The Loop, a Melbourne based recycler who not only achieves 

a zero waste to landfill promise but also, are innovators in 

finding end products for printer cartridges to be turned into 

like its patented Toner Plas additive made from cartridge toner, 

soft plastics and recycled glass. When put into asphalt this 

makes the road stronger and is more sustainable than normal 

asphalt. 

Cartridges 4 Planet Ark’s next milestone is 50 million. ■ 

TRUE PERFORMANCE. 

INTEGRAL TONER. 

From the only independent manufacturer 

of toner powder in Europe. 

Market leading quality solutions 

Wide product range 

High quality – low cost per page 

Brilliant colors 

REACH compliant 

Benefit from one of the largest ranges in the industry of 

compatible copier and printer toners and the many 

years of manufacturing experience from the only 

independent producer of toner powder in Europe. 

Our programme of quality leading toners offers important 

cost savings, low cost per page, 

brilliant colours and full REACH compliance. 

To find out more, call us +49-2833-606-0 or visit 

www.integral-toner.com 


May 2020 17

CITY NEWS 

OEM share prices 

April 2020 

Share Prices 

Prices correct as of 1 st April 2020 

ASIA Hubei Dinglong, Financials, Speed Infotech, Business 

Company MARCH APRIL 

Brother Industries (Yen) ¥ 1834 1736 

Canon (Yen) ¥ 2662 2256 

Dainippon Ink & Chemicals (Yen) 

Sun Chemicals parent company 

¥ 2494 2418 

HP Inc. (US$) $ 21.54 15.86 

Hubei Dinglong (RMB) ¥ 12.96 11.84 

Jadi (MYR) M 0.045 0.035 

LG Chem (S Korean Won) W 400k 326.5 

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. 

(Yen) Panasonic parent company 

¥ 968 803.9 

Mitsubishi Chemicals (Yen) ¥ 698 611.3 

Ninestar Corporation (RMB) 

Formerly Apex Microelectronics 

¥ 41 29 

Oki (Yen) ¥ 1186 1007 

Seiko Epson (Yen) ¥ 1440 1053 

Turbon AG (Euro) € 2.58 2.26 

Xerox (US$) $ 31.66 18.8 

UK Waste Prices 

price per tonne 

Aluminium € 186.22 194.85 

Plastic € 363.51 340.17 

Paper € 9.4 11.6 

Currency 

€/US$ 1.13 1.1 

€/£ 0.87 0.87 

£/US$ 1.3 1.26 

£/€ 1.15 1.15 

Oil Price 

Crude oil - (US$) 'Brent Crude 

futures, 1-Pos IPE close' per barrel* 

Shipping Prices 

Europe 

(Hamburg/Antwerp/Felixstowe 

/Le Havre) 

Mediterranean 

(Barcelona/ Valencia/Genoa/Naples) 

USWC 

(Los Angeles/Long Beach/Oakland) 

USEC 

(New York/ Savannah /Norfolk 

/Charleston) 

$ 47.57 31.38 

$ 830 734 

$ 915 859 

$ 1361 1630 

$ 2679 2720 

Sources: HMRC, FT.com, krx.co.kr tse.or.jp, Environment Exchange, 

packagingnews.co.uk *Brent Crude price is for March 2020 

Hubei Dinglong 2019 

preliminaries show dip 

In their recently published preliminary accounts for 2019 

the company reports market conditions and plant closure 

impact on sales and profits. 

Hubei Dinglong Holding 

Co. Ltd. Recently announced 

their 2019 Annual preliminary 

accounts to the Shenzhen 

Stock Exchange and reports 

that sales were down 12.29% 

at RMB 1,173,918,800 (US$ 

168,953,607/ €149,127,053) 

and profits on the same period 

were down 86.9% at RMB 

44,943,751 (US$6,466,586/ 

€5,711,559). 

The company attributes the 

changes to the macroeconomic 

situation and changes in 

industry policies and increased 

competition in the toner 

cartridge market where 

prices have dropped and they 

have made some goodwill 

impairment provisions for the 

toner cartridge business. 

During 2019 the company 

was impacted by the 

environmental protection 

shutdown and rectification 

of the company's Wuhan 

headquarters plant and adding 

additional environmental 

protection facilities. The plant 

closure also resulted in the 

production of charge control 

agents (CCA) being stopped. 

In the latter half of 2019 

colour toner production 

was also impacted due to 

insufficient stock [of raw 

materials]. However, the 

company continued to increase 

the R & D expenses for new 

projects such as CMP polishing 

pads used in semiconductor 

manufacturing and polyimide 

(PI) slurry. 

Additionally, the company 

has accelerated the integration 

and industrial layout of the 

toner cartridge industry and 

strengthened cost management 

and tapped potential and 

increased efficiency across the 

company. 

At the end of the reporting 

period, the company’s total 

assets amounted to RMB 

426,397,800 (US$61,351,976/ 

€54,164,740), an increase of 

7.66% from the beginning of 

the period and mainly due to 

the increase in the scope of 

the consolidated statement of 

assets reorganization, mergers 

and acquisitions, and Beihai 

Jixun Technology Co. Ltd. 

(Speed Infotech) during the 

reporting period. ■ 



EUROPE DMC Group, Acquisition, Managed Services 

Horizon Capital backed DMC closes sixth acquisition 

DMC is pleased to announce the acquisition of Leemic, adding a further £3.5 million ($4.31 million/ €3.85 million) 

of revenue to the DMC Group and taking total revenues close to £70 million ($86 million/ €77 million). 

▲ Simon Davey, 

DMC CEO 

▲ Warren Colby, 

Regional Managing Director 

Established in 1972 and headquartered 

in Stockport, Leemic serves a significant 

number of customers across the North 

West of England and Scotland. The 

business will form part of the northern 

region headed up by Regional Managing 

Director, Warren Colby, and strengthens 

DMC’s business in the north, which 

already has operations in Gateshead, York 

and Manchester. 

Warren Colby commented: “Leemic 

is an excellent business which we know 

well having worked together previously 

with great success. When the opportunity 

to acquire Leemic arose, we had no 

hesitation in adding their expertise to 

the group.” 

0919_Go2-Launch_ RecyclerAd.pdf 1 29/08/2019 17:13 

DMC CEO, Simon Davey, said: 

“Warren and I want to expand our 

presence in the north with high quality 

acquisitions and Leemic absolutely meets 

these criteria, with the same customercentric 

values and excellent OEM 

relationships”. 

The acquisition also provides DMC 

with the opportunity to expand into 

Scotland where Leemic has a growing 

sales and service operation, the company 

explained. 

Luke Kingston, Partner at Horizon 

Capital, said: “Leemic is a high quality 

and well respected operator and a great 

addition to the DMC Group. We look 

forward to continuing to support 

DMC as it executes its strategy to 

consolidate the fragmented MPS sector 

as the leading B2B document service 

provider.” 

The DMC group said it has a clear 

strategy to consolidate the fragmented 

MPS sector with high quality acquisitions 

and create a market-leading managed 

services provider. 

Horizon Capital first invested in DMC 

in July 2018 and since then the Group 

has made five acquisitions, diversified 

its offering and expanded its geographic 

reach across England. 

Most recent acquisitions were Condor 

Office Solutions, Systems Technology and 

CSL Business Machines. ■ 

C 

M 

Y 

CM 

MY 

CY 

CMY 

K 

Say hello to Go2 

the new name for DMC Distribution 

From 1st October, your specialist copier and printer supplies distributor will be 

rebranding as Go2 Distribution. 

We’re changing our name, but not our focus. Knowledge is a key element to our 

success, with almost 30 years of trading experience and we will build on this 

insight and continue to put resellers needs first. 

For more information on how these changes will benefit you or how to apply for 

EDI ordering and real time stock information, please get in contact. 

020 8686 5949 | www.go2-distribution.co.uk 

The new name for DMC Distribution, your ‘go-to’ supplier of printer & copier supplies. 


May 2020 

19

CITY NEWS 

GLOBAL Xerox, Acquisitions, Digitex, Altodigital, ITEC 

Xerox announces three acquisitions 

Xerox has acquired two UK based services and technology providers, Altodigital and ITEC Connect, further 

expanding its SMB reach in Europe and Digitex Canada with which Xerox is looking to grow its presence in the 

North American SMB market. 

The Altodigital and ITEC acquisitions 

have received government approval. This 

is the third acquisition targeting the 

fast-growing SMB market this year. In 

January, Xerox announced the purchase 

of Arena Group, which provides office 

technology, software, solutions and 

services. 

“We’re supporting small and midsize 

businesses seeking a modern work 

experience through two acquisitions in 

the UK,” said Xavier Heiss, EVP and 

President of EMEA Operations, Xerox. 

“Altodigital and ITEC are both leaders in 

managed print services and specialists in 

IT services, an area into which Xerox is 

rapidly expanding with new offerings.” 

“Altodigital is joining Xerox on its 

incredible journey as it undergoes a 

digital-first transformation and invests in 

customer-focused innovation,” said James 

Abrahart, CEO and Owner, Altodigital. 

“We share Xerox’s vision to broaden 

the range of services and technologies 

available to SMBs requiring a modern 

work experience.” 

“Our ambition is to deliver the latest 

innovation and technology to help 

businesses work smarter,” said Nick 

Orme, CEO, ITEC Connect. “Together 

with Xerox, we’re in a prime position to 

offer workplace solutions that evolve and 

support SMBs as they seek growth.” 

Xerox also announced the acquisition of 

Digitex Canada, the largest independent 

services, software and technology 

provider in Western Canada. 

"We're expanding our footprint in the 

fast-growing North America small and 

midsize business market (SMB) with 

our acquisition of Digitex Canada," said 

Mike Feldman, President of Americas 

Operations, Xerox. "With Digitex 

Canada's geographical presence, strong 

SMB customer base, and technology and 

services expertise, we are well placed to 

bring our growing portfolio of workplace 

technology solutions to new customers 

seeking a modern work experience." 

"Our aim is to provide innovative 

offerings and unparalleled customer 

service," said Hugh Porter, CEO and 

President, Digitex Canada. "Joining 

Xerox gives our customers access to the 

industry's most comprehensive portfolio 

that supports their digital transformation 

requirements and ensures a secure and 

sustainable experience." 

Terms of the transactions were 

not disclosed. ■ 

ASIA Ninestar, Financials, Business 

Ninestar’s 2019 results are in 

Ninestar Corporation has released its preliminary full year 2019 results 

recording steady growth during the reporting period. 

The company recorded a total operating 

income of ¥23.245 billion ($3,32 billion/ 

€2.98 billion) for the full year 2019, an 

increase of 6.01% over the same period 

of the previous year. Operating profit 

increased 50.57% to ¥1.210 billion 

($173.25 million/ €155.45 million) yearon-year. 

The operation of Ninestar’s consumables 

business segment continues to improve. 

Ninestar said that its patented technology 

advantages and excellent product quality 

gives the company growth and market 

share advantage. In its report, Ninestar 

said that the growth rate of the company’s 

general consumables segment in 2019 is 

much higher than the industry level. Sales 

revenue increased by 14% year-on-year. 

For the chip business segment, 

Ninestar said operations are stable with 

steady growth. Total shipments were 

approximately 373 million, a year-on-year 

increase of 15%, of which 32-bit high-end 

MCU chips shipped in 2019 were 2.13100 

million units, a year-on-year increase of 

188% and 32-bit MCUs in the non-printer 

industry shipped about 27 million units, 

a year-on-year increase of 759%. In terms 

of the market, Ninestar also says in this 

segment market competition has been 

fierce and says as a result profits have 

declined for this segment. 

Lexmark printer sales increased by 

7% year-on-year, the growth rate is at 

the forefront of the global market, the 

company adds. Consumables revenue 

increased by 4% year-on-year. Ninestar 

adds that various unfavourable factors 

such as European and South American 

exchange rates fluctuations and the 

increase in tariffs due to Sino-US trade 

war in 2019 did have a significant negative 

impact on Lexmark's revenue and 

profits. Ninestar writes that these two 

effects mean that profit decreased by $64 

million (€57.44 million) and in addition, 

Lexmark's RMB loans will be affected by 

exchange rates in 2019. ■ 



REACH 

READY 

20 

05/20 


May 2020 

21

AROUND THE INDUSTRY 

NORTH AMERICA Static Control, Reseller, Thailand, RoHS, REACH, Compliance 

Russia: Static welcomes harmonisation 

Effective 1 March 2020, electrotechnical products marketed in the EAEU (Eurasian Economic Union of the countries 

of Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan) now require confirmation of conformity. 

As reported earlier this month in The 

Recycler new-build cartridges are subject 

to the new rules and cartridges that violate 

the requirements of the Restriction of 

Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS) 

are no longer allowed in the EAEU. 

The stricter controls cover 

several product groups including 

telecommunications equipment and 

computers, printers and consumables and 

similar devices are being made compulsory 

in accordance with Technical Regulation 

037/2106. The regulation limits the 

content of lead, cadmium, mercury, 

hexavalent chrome, Polybrominated 

biphenyl and Polybrominated diphenyl 

ether in electrotechnical and electronic 

products. 

The EAEU TR 037/2016 is harmonized 

with the European Union’s Directive 

2011/65/EU (RoHS 2), but varies in that 

instead of a simple proof of conformity, 

such as a manufacturer's declaration, a 

RoHS test report from a test laboratory 

must be used as the basis for the 

confirmation of conformity. Later this 

year, Russia will also adopt REACH 

requirements for toxicity. 

Static Control sees this as a welcome 

change for the area as these regulations 

help ensure a cleaner future. “The 

company has spent many resources 

through the years to be able to provide 

the industry’s best compatible cartridge, 

not just in performance, but also in 

compliance. Our manufacturing 

operations have always met global 

standards that ensure we provide 

environmentally responsible products.” 

The company said. 

“However, even with the best-laid plans, 

things can happen and in late 2018, it was 

discovered that a small number of Static 

Control cartridges tested positive for 

decaBDE, a fire retardant that is used in 

recycled plastics, but was finally prohibited 

by the European Union for its RoHS 

standards in March 2019. Static Control 

underwent the process of testing our entire 

product line, including components. 

Suppliers were reviewed, vetted and our 

agreements were strengthened to prevent 

this from happening again. We also 

continuously perform random product 

testing to ensure that suppliers are meeting 

their end of the agreement.” 

Static Control added that it “has already 

conducted the necessary measures needed 

to not only have a cartridge offering that 

meets RoHS and REACH regulations, 

but any applicable regional environmental 

standards. In recent years, toners have 

also become more scrutinized as other 

potentially regulated additives have been 

discovered, such as formaldehyde. Static 

Control’s toners met all local environmental 

standards throughout Europe. 

Also, it is important to note that Static 

Control has an in-house legal and technical 

compliance teams that reviews its products 

from a legal and environmental standpoint 

to bring you the most IP-considerate and 

environmentally compliant cartridge 

range.” 

In other news, Static Control announced 

Full Line Computer as an official reseller 

in Thailand. The company will be selling 

a wide range of Static Control products, 

including chips, toner, drums, blades 

and cartridges. 

“We are thankful to Static Control, 

who has stood by our side from the 

very beginning of our journey,” said 

Somboonchai Pawanarksopon, President 

of Full Line. “The success of doing 

business is to be professional and to take 

care of your customers with dedicated 

service with great efficiency. Static Control 

helps us achieve this.” 

“Static Control is excited for Full Line 

to offer a full line of products, including 

cartridges and components, to businesses 

throughout Thailand,” said Dennis 

Gutierrez, Static Control’s Regional Sales 

Manager for Southeast Asia. “We seek 

out the best and brightest in the industry 

when looking for a reseller, and Full Line 

Computer was the right fit to provide 

local support, knowledge and product 

availability to customers in the area.” ■ 

To contact Full Line: 

Full Line Computer Co., LTD. 

No. 815, Jarunsanitwong 40th Road, 

Barngyeekhun, Barngplud, Bangkok, 

Thailand. Postal code 10700. 

THAILAND 

Tel: + 66-2-8833797 

+66-2-8833243 

Email: fulllinecomputer@gmail.com 



NORTH AMERICA Katun, PrintReleaf, Environment, Sustainability, 

Circular Economy, Reforestation 

Katun partners with 

PrintReleaf 

This new partnership enables Katun’s customers to offset 

paper consumption through reforestation. 

All Stock Available 

Right NOW 

Toner Cartridges 

Chips 

Waste Toner Bottles 

Fuser Units 

Drum Units 

Developers 

OEM STOCK 

One of Katun’s core values is to 

protect the environment and promote 

sustainability. The company understands 

the importance of preserving resources 

and strives to conduct business with an 

environmentally friendly approach. 

In keeping with these core values, 

Katun has expanded its offering of ecofriendly 

customer solutions by partnering 

with PrintReleaf, a global company 

providing an automated software 

platform that makes reforestation a 

reality. With this software, available 

alongside Katun’s KDFM MPS packages, 

customers will be able to offset their 

paper consumption by converting pages 

printed into trees planted. With eight 

registered forestry projects around the 

world to choose from, Katun customers 

are in control of where their trees are 

planted and have access to certification 

to validate their participation to their 

customers. 

“We are excited to partner with 

PrintReleaf and leverage their automated 

sustainability program,” said Heidi 

Boller, Katun EAME General Manager. 

“The programme is perfectly in line 

with Katun’s environmental values and 

offers us the opportunity to provide 

our customers with a solution to reduce 

their environmental footprints, preserve 

the planet and build a more sustainable 

future.” 

“PrintReleaf is excited to partner with 

Katun and further expand our global 

distribution footprint with a company 

that shares the same environmental 

values,” said Jordan Darragh, CEO 

of PrintReleaf. “We look forward to 

growing and planting more trees with 

Katun and their customers.” 

In addition to this new partnership, 

Katun also contributes to the circular 

economy in other ways and encourages 

customers to recycle their used cores and 

cartridges with one of the company’s 

recycling partners. This reduces the 

amount of waste in landfills and 

allows materials to be reused for other 

remanufactured products. 

For more information about 

PrintReleaf, KDFM services or recycling, 

please contact your local customer service 

representatives or visit Katun online at 

www.katun.com/eu/. ■ 

Our award winning range 

of reprographic parts and 

consumables guarantees 

Quality, Performance and 

Reliability 

State-of-the-art filling 

machines in the UK 

ISO 9001 & 14001 certified 

products, services & facilities 

Dedicated research and 

development teams 

The largest range of 

products and parts in the UK 

Contact ECS NOW 

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+44 (0)1427 337 346 

Effective Consumable Solutions 


May 2020 

23


ASIA Hubei Dinglong, Business, COVID19, Coronavirus, Factory 

ASIA HYB Toner, Vacuum, CE Mark 

Hubei Dinglong re-opens factory 

Hubei Dinglong Co.,Ltd are pleased to advise that it’s Wuhan based HQ that 

is the centre for Toner Manufacturing and R&D is scheduled to re-open on 

25 March after receiving Government approval to resume manufacturing. 

As China brings the virus under control 

and it continues to escalate in many other 

countries self-isolating in one of the key 

measures in play to contain the virus. 

Hubei announced that it will re-open its 

factory and R&D centre which is located 

in Wuhan which was the epicentre of the 

virus outbreak in China. 

As mandated by Central Government 

& Public Health Authorities, there is a 

strict control of employee monitoring 

upon return to work and Hubei 

Dinglong Management will be observing 

this in accordance with Government 

requirements. 

ASIA Ninestar, Video, Factory Tour 

Hubei Dinglong said: “The health 

and wellness of our employees remains 

a top priority and we have put in place 

many actions to ensure an ongoing safe 

environment, while at the same time 

remaining committed to serving our 

customers. 

“As you would expect, there is a phased 

plan to ramp up production of key material 

first that is in high demand. Thereafter it is 

to replenish the pipeline of Toner products 

in numerous warehouse locations in Asia 

and Europe.” 

Customers are encouraged to email their 

sales contacts for any further information 

and any product requirement. 

“Finally, I would like to thank all our 

customers for their ongoing support 

through these troubling times. In 

particular our thoughts and kind wishes 

are with those regions of the World that 

are now approaching a critical point with 

the Covid-19 virus,” Ian Copsey, General 

Manager Europe added. ■ 

Ninestar offers online factory tour 

In response to the coronavirus outbreak and with the many travel restrictions 

in place, Ninestar uses technology to offer an insight. 

Anyone who had planned to go and visit 

Ninestar’s factory in Zhuhai, China, has 

now got the possibility to go for the tour 

out of the comfort of their home office. 

First opened in 2013 Ninestar’s industrial 

park hosts the company’s printing supplies 

manufacturing facility. The company 

explained that the foundations for the 

automatic production were laid back in 

2012, and in 2018 the company announced 

that it featured 30 automatic production 

lines. 

Introducing the video, Ninestar said: 

“Snoop around the industrial park at your 

own pace, you will find out something 

you’ve never seen before. Are you curious 

about what behind the 

scenes? All you have to do 

is scan the QR code to start 

your tour. Bon voyage!” ■ 

HYB vacuum 

receives 

certification 

Developed and manufactured by 

HYB, its Service Vacuum Model 

XC-168 was launched in October 

2019 and has now received the 

Certificate of Conformity. 

After independent testing, the Certificate 

of Conformity (#EBO1912114-V314) has 

been granted to HYB (Zhuhai HaoYinBao 

Printing Consumables Co., Ltd.) the 

manufacturer of the Vacuum Models XC- 

168 and XC-169. 

“This means that the CE mark 

can be used under the liability of the 

manufacturer, after completion of EC 

declaration of Conformity with all 

compliance of relevant EC Directives,” 

HYB said. 

At the time of the launch, HYB said: 

“The initial intention to develop this 

machine was to offer a more economic 

but high quality tool to keep the 

remanufacturing workshop clean and tidy. 

There were already several models existing 

in the market but most of them are simply 

copying the successful model without 

consideration of the feedback from the 

technicians. Most of them never discover 

that tube they are using for this machine 

don’t resist to the particle’s movement in 

the entire process and the life of the tube is 

very short. 

“Some are made without FQ convertors 

and the power of the machines maintain 

too strong all the time and it’s very frequent 

for them to repair. We really want to make 

a difference by offering quality and costsaving 

solutions to our customers." ■ 



ASIA Print-Rite, Environment, RoHS 

RoHS changes in Russia 

Effective March 1, 2020, stricter controls on a large number of product groups including telecommunications 

equipment and computers, printers and consumables and similar devices are being made compulsory. 

Importers will need to obtain an 

EAC label for market approval in the 

Russian market and it will be necessary 

to comply with the Russian RoHS 

requirements from March 2020 onwards 

as well as proof of the electromagnetic 

compatibility of a product in accordance 

with Technical Regulation 037/2106. 

New-build cartridges are subject to 

the new rules and cartridges that violate 

the requirements of the Restriction of 

Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS) 

are no longer allowed in Russia. 

This recent change in law prompted 

Print-Rite to highlight its continued 

environmental commitment and to 

explain again about the company’s 

“unshakable commitment to making 

products that comply with the 

requirements of health, safety and 

environmental protection legislation.” 

Within the imaging aftermarket, 

environmental issues have become a huge 

issue since it was discovered in 2018 that 

some aftermarket cartridges contained 

elevated levels of DecaBDE. The Recycler 

recently reported on Print-Rite being one 

of the first aftermarket suppliers to be 

accredited with QC 080000. 

The company states that all of Print- 

Rite products sold in the European Union 

meet RoHS requirements. All materials 

used in Print-Rite’s manufacturing 

site have been RoHS compliant since 1 

January 2006. 

“For decades, our products, from our 

toner and inkjet cartridge line to each 

individual component, are made with the 

intention of the highest quality with the 

lowest environmental impact. By selecting 

Print-Rite products, customers can be 

crystal clear that no hazardous substances 

are being used in production and they can 

avoid the risk of breaching the relevant 

law and regulations when selling products 

across national borders,” Print-Rite 

added. 

RoHS is an abbreviation for Restriction 

of Hazardous Substances and it is a 

directive for the European Union that 

limits certain chemical substances 

from appearing in electrical equipment 

including both toner and inkjet 

cartridges. 

The prescribed test scope is based on the 

EU Directive 2011/65/EU ROHS 2 and 

EEE and the Russian standard (ГОСТ/ 

GOST EN 50581-2016) is identical to the 

two European standards EN50581:2012 

and EN 62321. 

It is important to note that this change 

also applies retroactively to devices and 

products that have already been approved 

for the Russian market. This means that 

RoHS conformity must also be provided 

for products already bearing an EAC 

label, so that they can continue to be 

sold on the Russian market and in the 

Eurasian Economic Union. ■ 


May 2020 

25


EUROPE Bioservice, Awards, Radio Bilbao 

EUROPE Advantia, MPS, New Service 

Bioservice scoops award 

Voted for by its audience, Radio Bilbao’s Kutxa Labor Prize has been awarded 

to Bioservice. 

Listeners of Radio Bilbao have voted and 

decided the Kutxa Labor Prize awarded by 

the audience, this year goes to Bioservice. 

The company is no stranger to winning 

awards, having been awarded the Recycler’s 

2018 and 2019 Collector of the Year award. 

Bioservice was chosen by the audience 

from three final nominees, the goalkeeper 

of the Athletic Club, Ainhoa Tirapu, Zero 

Plastiko Urdaibai, the sustainable initiative 

that aims to clean up the Biosphere Reserve 

and Bioservice, which trains and offers work 

to people with disabilities and performs 

school programmes in cartridge recycling. 

Radio Bilbao listeners chose Bioservice 

for promoting the integration of people 

with disabilities into its labour force and its 

commitment to the environment through 

sustainable development and encourage 

recycling among children. 

Other winners of the fourth Bilbao Radio 

Awards for Excellence are Jorge Fernández, 

EUROPE Bureau Vallée, Franchise, Business 

the School of Hospitality of Leioa, BC3, 

Eroski, Álex Mumbrú or Asier Etxeandia. 

Alejandro Pedro and his four other 

partners created the company ten years 

ago and employs twenty-four people and 

an authorized waste manager to collect 

printer cartridges and sell them (cartridges, 

drums, waste container, fuser, transfer 

belt, etc.). 

Focused on the collection from end users 

gives Bioservice the opportunity to get all 

kinds of empties (popular ones and niche 

ones) and means the company is focused 

on quality so it could offer maximum 

quality and a very competitive price. 

The gala evening of the Bilbao Radio 

Awards for Excellence will be on 24 March 

at the Euskalduna Palace where the awards 

will be handed to the winners. 

To learn more about this award-winning 

company, you can read the Inside Track 

feature in issue 324 of The Recycler. ■ 

Bureau Vallée opens a new store 

Bureau Vallée continues to grow and strengthen its presence throughout 

France and has recently opened a new store in Montivilliers and increasing its 

presence in the Normandy region. 

The new store opened on the 5 

February in Montivilliers, the second 

largest city in the Normandy region and 

is the 5th store in the region. 

The store is managed by François 

Cauchois who has worked for 10 years 

in the international transport sector, as 

a trainer and then as a training director, 

and then worked for 15 years in national 

education. He joins his wife and brother 

as franchisees. His brother has been 

a franchisee of the brand since 2011, 

and his wife opened her Bureau Vallée 

franchise in 2013 in Fécamp. 

Located at 1b rue des Ginkgo Biloba, 

Bureau Vallée de Montivilliers, the store 

has a sales area of 530 m² and offers its 

customers, professionals and individuals, 

expert advice as well as a wide range 

of products from major brands at 

unbeatable prices. ■ 

Advantia 

announced 

new MPS 

Dealer group Advantia have 

partnered with Synergy 

Technology to offer a 

comprehensive Managed Print 

service for their members through 

Sharp UK. 

This fully supported service will 

provide members with all the tools 

required to confidently offer a 

service that is often avoided due to its 

complexity, Advantia announced. 

Advantia said that diversification into 

new markets is critical to providing 

growth opportunities for members 

and is a key objective for the group. 

MPS is an additional service which 

if implemented in a fully supported, 

structured way will contribute towards 

this objective, according to Advantia. 

Beck Miller, Advantia Marketing 

& Operations Director commented: 

“Advantia want to stand out from the 

crowd. We are actively pursuing areas 

that will help our members to grow. 

What is important to us is selecting 

partners who share the same vision and 

don’t just want to put an agreement 

in place and leave it at that. When we 

launch any new product or service we 

make sure that all of the key elements 

are in place and that they are simple 

to implement. This includes training 

days offered with site visits and full 

demonstrations which help provide the 

confidence required to step outside run 

of the mill products and services and to 

move into new areas with the potential 

for real growth.” ■ 



NORTH AMERICA ImageNet, COVID-19, USA 

ImageNet taken to task over COVID-19 response 

As the pandemic continues to roll out one company, ImageNet Inc, was taken to task over their employee response 

to the pandemic. 

Responding to the coronavirus 

pandemic, the Oklahoma based ImageNet 

consulting asked top executives to forgo 

their pay and capping all salaries at 

$75,000 (€69,450). Other lower paid 

employees didn’t fare so well… 

The company employees were also 

being asked to sign over the value of their 

government support to the company and 

negating the benefits of the government 

support. In the employee agreement the 

company also wanted employees to forgo 

50% of any government support any of 

their dependents might receive. If your 

pay drops below zero with this deal, the 

company will let you split the repayment 

over two weeks… 

Oklahoma based “The Lost Ogle” news 

website ran the story and Patrick, the 

writer said of the ImageNet actions as 

“I don’t know about you, but that’s pretty 

badass in a shitty, corporate-asshole type 

of way!” 

The story was picked up online 

including the “Albino Terrorist” blog 

on the Daily Kos website who took 

issue with “the company that does over 

$100,000,000.00 (€93,000,000.00) year 

in business, so one would assume that they 

have the resources to weather this storm, 

PARTICULARLY since their business 

falls into the category of “essential”, 

and work from home would make their 

services even MORE demand.” 

ImageNet did an about turn on Monday 

and issued a statement rescinding the 

potential programme and apologised for 

any pain or confusion it caused. 

The Lost Ogle ran the about turn update 

on the story and gave the company a pat 

on the back for reversing their decision, 

but commented “It’s good the ImageNet 

had a change of heart and everything, but 

you have to admit it’s still very disturbing 

that they thought this was a good idea. 

There are lots of other less controversial 

ways for wealthy business owners to 

screw over employees. The fact that they 

went this controversial route really makes 

me question the decision-making of the 

company’s leadership.” 

US Government support comes in the 

form of a one-time stimulus payment 

of up to $1,200 (€1,111) for nearly all 

Americans that is part of the $2.2 trillion 

(€2.03 trillion) economic rescue package 

that President Donald Trump signed on 

Friday, 27 March. ■ 


May 2020 

27


NORTH AMERICA Clover Imaging Group, Resellers, CIA Programme, Sustainability, Purchasing 

Clover launches new reseller programme 

Clover Imaging Group launched Clover Imaging Alliance (CIA) Partner Programme, a new reseller programme which 

promises profitable growth for its partners. 

Clover Imaging Group announced 

the launch of the Clover Imaging 

Alliance (CIA) Partner Programme, 

a new programme aimed at helping 

imaging resellers maximise growth 

and profitability. Participants in this 

new programme will enjoy maximum 

flexibility through solutions that help 

them handle fluctuations in the market 

and in businesses’ purchasing behaviours, 

the company explained. 

Eric Martin, President of Clover Imaging 

Group, said: “As a leader in the industry, 

Clover is committed to helping its partners 

achieve their business goals and more 

effectively navigate the changeable imaging 

market. The CIA Partner Programme 

is the most robust, reseller-positive 

framework to date and provides our 

valued partners significant discounts and 

premium access to services that help them 

pivot as needed to improve profitability 

and gain marketshare.” 

The CIA programme is by invitation 

only and is one of the most comprehensive 

partnership programs in the industry. 

Highlights of the programme include: 

• 10% account credit on incremental 

sales growth 

• Up to 30% off current Clover pricing 

with Silver Bullet OEM conversion 

programme 

• 50% rebate on eCommerce set up 

• 0% financing on equipment (OEM 

and refurbished) 

• 50% rebate on monthly BEI Services 

• 20% off Amplify marketing agency 

services 

• Cash bonus on new business referral 

• Managed print services software, tools 

& education 

• Artificial intelligence & machine 

learning assessment for your supply 

chain 

• Environmental calculator for your 

website 

• Ongoing monthly incentives and 

services enhancements 

Resellers interested in getting access to 

this exclusive programme can find the 

complete list of qualifications as well as 

extensive information on the CIA Partner 

Programme at www.cloverimaging.com/cia. 

Clover Imaging Group also joined 

Clover joined the Sustainable Purchasing 

Leadership Council, joining forces with 

leaders from government, industry, 

academia, standards organisations, and 

NGOs to develop a guidance programme 

for leadership in sustainable purchasing. 

Clover announced that as a member of 

the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership 

Council, Clover will play an instrumental 

role in solving the biggest obstacle to 

sustainable institutional purchasing: a 

lack of standardisation in how sustainable 

purchasing is defined, guided, measured 

and rewarded. 

Public and private sector organisations 

use this programme to guide trillions of 

dollars in collective purchasing towards 

goods and services that simultaneously 

meet the needs of their organisation, 

society, and the planet. 

“The Council supports a strategic 

approach to sustainable purchasing that is 

consistent across sectors,” said Executive 

Director Jason Pearson. “The potential for 

alignment, market influence, and supply 

chain innovation accelerate dramatically 

when we all speak the same language 

and use similar processes to evaluate and 

mitigate the impacts associated with 

institutional purchasing. The Council’s 

visionary members are working to unleash 

the full transformative potential of global 

institutional purchasing, which in the US 

alone annually represents an estimated $10 

trillion (€8.83 trillion) in spending.” 

Eric Martin, Clover Imaging’s 

President, noted: “We are excited to join 

the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership 

Council and be part of the dialogue on 

supply chain sustainability. At Clover, we 

take great pride in our commitment to 

develop environmentally friendly print 

solutions that are not only better for the 

planet, but that also offer businesses and 

consumers a way to reduce printing costs. 

In this way, we continually demonstrate 

that strong business practices and 

environmental responsibility are not 

mutually exclusive.” ■ 



NORTH AMERICA Marco, Managed IT Services, Partner Programme 

Marco launches new partner 

programme 

Marco announced the launch of a new partner programme that allows 

certified partners to resell its Managed IT Services. 

Marco’s Managed IT Services offer 

technical expertise that helps companies 

manage their complex infrastructures 

and end users. These security-focused 

services include unlimited help desk 

support, managed network services, 

security applications and training, risk 

management services and more. The 

services allow organisations to stay up to 

date with the latest business technologies 

without adding expenses or staff 

through receiving regular maintenance 

upgrades to their IT infrastructure and 

applications, Marco explained. 

Jake Vande Hey, Channel Sales Director, 

said the programme offers partners several 

valuable benefits. 

“Besides offering our partners more 

wallet share with a premium solution to 

sell, our Managed IT Services provide 

valuable insight and analytics into their 

customers’ infrastructures. We can offer 

critical technology roadmaps and lifecycle 

asset planning for their customers. This 

enables our partners to see and address 

issues more easily and take advantage of 

ongoing sales opportunities for expanding 

into the account,” said Vande Hey. 

Partners will have the option to sell any 

additional solutions identified by Marco 

through Marco’s partner programme or 

through another provider. 

“Most companies don’t have critical 

strategies nailed down and they need 

help—from backup strategies to workfrom-home-strategies. 

With Managed IT 

Services, they’ll get consultation from us 

on technical strategy, budget planning, 

timeframes and implementation. 

Ultimately, we’re mutually serving end 

users and giving them better outcomes,” 

added Vande Hey. 

Matt Kanaskie, VP of IT Sales, said 

Managed IT Services also allow partners 

and end users to take advantage of the 

highest-level security solutions at an 

affordable cost. 

“The sophistication we’re offering 

around our security solutions within 

Managed IT takes a lot of training, money 

and expertise to acquire. Most companies 

don’t have ability to hire people with our 

level of expertise. We offer them Fortune 

500-level IT and security services at a 

per-user basis without having to buy 

the technology or hire the people to 

implement and support it,” said Kanaskie. 

Kanaskie said Marco’s Managed IT 

Services also offer channel partners 

a way to improve customer retention 

by broadening and enhancing their 

offerings. 

“As technology becomes more complex, 

more companies are looking for a singlesource 

technology provider. Marco’s 

Managed IT Services give partners 

who offer a narrower solution set an 

effective way to offer a broader and more 

comprehensive set of solutions,” Kanaskie 

added. 

Certified partners will also have access 

to Marco’s training specialists and 

proposal team, so they will know how 

best to promote the services and get the 

best price for everyone. 

More than anything, Kanaskie said 

Marco’s Managed IT offers partners and 

end users 24/7 peace of mind. 

“Managed IT doesn’t get sick, take 

vacation or go home at five pm. It also 

doesn’t consume health insurance and 

other benefits that many companies 

are trying to put a cap on. Managed 

IT is already prepared to support your 

entire your company even if it’s a remote 

workforce. That’s never been more real 

than right now,” he said. ■ 


May 2020 

29

DM COLUMN 

Value based networking on LinkedIn 

The global non- stop professional business networking event. 

▲ Zoltan Matyas, Founder 

of PrintEvery Consulting 

I often call myself a value networker. What 

do I mean by that? Its quite simple. I love to 

connect with people and I’m always looking 

to bring value to my connections be it on- or 

offline, business or private life. LinkedIn is 

the booth. I asked him if he has a LinkedIn 

profile. He replied: “No, I don’t need one. 

I’m not looking for a job”. That was the 

moment when I decided to write this article. 

Right after making that decision I basically 

begged him to come and listen to me for the 

next 45 minutes on stage. I must confess 

he did for about 20 minutes and then left… 

many others stayed. 

Without a doubt my all-time favourite 

presentation to give is the one about 

attend these events and I do believe it brings 

real value so here you have the essence of it in 

a written form. 

I truly believe LinkedIn is by far the most 

interesting platform for our industry in 

2020. In the last few years LinkedIn have 

gone through an amazing transformation. 

From a job search platform, it converted 

itself to a content distribution platform. 

I often refer to it as Facebook for adults 

(okay business people). It definitely has the 

I truly believe LinkedIn is by far the most 

interesting platform for our indurtry in 2020. 

the new way of business networking in the 

digital age and its one of my new favourite 

place. 

During Paperworld 2020 in Frankfurt a 

few minutes before I went on stage to do 

my presentation about LinkedIn strategy I 

was having a conversation with someone at 

LinkedIn. It’s because it’s both strategical 

and at the same time gets down to real 

tactics and practicality. I even share a 

working immediately applicable strategy at 

the end of it. Email me if you are interested. 

The first version I did at the Recycler 

Live event in Brussels and in January I 

did an update at Paperworld. Both had 

great feedback. Since many of you who 

are reading The Recycler magazine did not 

scale and the amount of attention that is 

required to make a real difference. If we all 

manage to use it correctly and efficiently it 

will not only benefit each individual and 

businesses who use it but it can potentially 

connect us in a way that will raise our 

industry profile and ultimately makes us a 

stronger business community. And I’m not 

even talking about its available premium 

tools and features and groups, just the real 

basics. 

What is LinkedIn? Well I came up with 

the following definition (not patented yet) 

“Linkedin is a huge global never-ending 

virtual business networking event… and 

guess what ITS FREE!” All you need is an 

internet connection and some common 

sense. 

Does it worth your time? Let’s see some 

numbers so you can decide. 

The world total population is 7,75 billion 

(counting children and elderly), unique 

mobile phone users 5.19 billion (penetration 

of 67%), iInternet users 4.54 billion (59% 

penetration) and active social media users 

3.8 billion (49% penetration). 



The latter two has been growing 7 and 

9.2% respectively in the last 12 months. So, 

what does that tell us? All your customers 

are online. If you are not you are out of the 

room and don’t hear the conversation. 

LinkedIn has 610 million members and 

303 million active users per month, 40% 

of which visit it daily. More than half of 

all LinkedIn traffic comes from a mobile 

device. 90% of LinkedIn members use 

Facebook – this is to the ones saying 

Facebook is not for my business…. (he 

chuckles). LinkedIn is home to over 30 

million companies today. However, not 

every company manages a page. LinkedIn 

automatically generates company pages 

when a user adds work experience within an 

organisation or when an organisation posts 

a job. 

The LinkedIn audience is quite different 

from other social media platforms, with 

more than one-third of its members in upper 

management positions. According to the 

latest LinkedIn statistics, 2019 counts 90 

million senior-level influencers, 63 million 

decision makers, and another 6 million 

decision makers from the IT sector. 

Among LinkedIn’s members, there are 

also 17 million opinion leaders, 10 million 

C-level executives, and 40 million mass 

affluent members. The percentage of 

premium LinkedIn users currently stands 

at 39%, while 61% of members are still 

satisfied with the basic free accounts. 

(Source: https://99firms.com/blog/linkedinstatistics/#gref) 

I could continue with more stats but I’m 

pretty sure you can also find them on 

google. My point here is simple. If you are 

not on LinkedIn, you are missing out on 

business opportunities big time. If your 

company does not have a company page and 

not leveraging the reach and visibility of its 

employees’ professional network it is missing 

out. Can you afford it? 

LinkedIn is one of the best content 

distribution channels out there. 91% of 

marketing executives list LinkedIn as 

top source to find relevant and quality 

content. LinkedIn is the No. 1 channel 

B2B marketers use to distribute content. It 

is by far the largest and most efficient lead 

generation platform this world ever seen. 

Does your business need a stable flow of 

relevant and highly qualified business leads? 

Believe it or not LinkedIn drives more traffic 

to blogs and sites than Twitter and Facebook 

90 million senior-level influencers, 63 million 

decision makers, and another 6 million decision 

makers from the IT sector. 

combined. Over 80% social platform 

generated leads come from LinkedIn. 

Does your company site need traffic? 

So how exactly does this platform work and 

how can you make it work for you? To the 

task and clarify the mindset needed I always 

say: “Think about LinkedIn as a room 

full of business people where you have the 

opportunity to be part of the conversation.” 

Its basics and a pinch of common sense… 

listen, think and talk. Bring value to others, 

connect and network. 

When we talk about LinkedIn we must 

mention the word social selling. What is 

social selling? It is a sales process which 

outperforms older selling methods by 

leveraging all the varied benefits of social 

media platforms to reach traditional sales 

objectives more efficiently. 

Social selling can help you 

1. Find new customers 

2. Connect with existing customers 

3. Understand your customers 

4. Nurture possible sales prospects 

5. Keeping your brand at the forefront 

of your followers’ minds 

If you have social media profiles in active 

use, then, you’re already using the basics 

of social selling. Obviously like everything 

in business, if you take and analytic and 

strategic approach you have better chances 

to reach your goals instead of shooting 

random posts in the dark about how great 

you are. 

Then there are the two secret ingredients 

that drive Linkedin. First is the algorithm 

which decides what content is being shown 

to who and when. (By the way organic 

post reach on LinkedIn is by far the best 

compared to any other social network 

today). Second is the social selling index 

which ranks profiles and decides whose 

professional profile is stronger than others. 

If you have a profile you can go ahead and 

check yours. To check out your SSI you need 

to be logged into your LinkedIn account 

and then follow this link. https://www. 

linkedin.com/sales/ssi 

In case you don’t, here is a screenshot of 

mine so you understand that you are being 

measured and scored like an asset: 


May 2020 

31

DM COLUMN 

The SSI algorithm monitors profile quality 

and completeness, use of tools, frequency 

of activity, quality of activity, engagement 

(likes, shares and comments on your posts), 

quality of connections, acceptance and 

many many more secret aspects… 

The better you use the platform the better 

the platform will treat you. 

Then there is the big beast the LinkedIn 

sales navigator. An app that allows you to 

build a reliable qualified lead pipeline by 

identifying and allowing you to engage with 

real time leads who are connected to your 

network. Here are a few facts about sales 

navigator: 

1. It has a short learning curve and easy to 

get started 

2. It is simpler than what you do now to get 

qualified leads 

3. Helps leveraging your LinkedIn network 

in a new way 

4. Advanced search with lead builder 

5. Lead recommendations 

6. Real time updates, lists and more... 

You can get the app going for a price of 

€61.97 ($67.63) per month per user and 

believe me it’s worth every cent. BUT, if 

you are just starting to get familiar with the 

strategic use of LinkedIn you really don’t 

need if for now. 

Before signing up and start paying and even 

before you start engaging with potential 

connections make sure your profile is up to 

the task and helps you to reach your goals 

otherwise it will not work. 

Here are some practical tips for the profile as 

promised: 

• LinkedIn ranks very high on Google, 

that is the reason if you Google someone’s 

name you will most likely get his or her 

LinkedIn profile right on the top of the 

Google search result page. If you want 

to be visible on Google then have a good 

profile with keywords relevant to you. 

Over 25 million LinkedIn profiles are 

viewed every day on Google. 

• Show that you care and personalise your 

profile url. It’s very easy to do and gives a 

professional shareable link to your profile 

that again indexes your name on Google. 

I will not explain how. Just Google: “How 

to personalise my LinkedIn url” and 

follow the steps. 

• You can upload multimedia to your 

LinkedIn profile and to each section of 

your experience. You can link a file or even 

a video. .pdf, Power point, word txt, .jpg, 

.png, .bmp and even in .gif format. 

• Have an effective headline and a good 

summary. Don’t talk about yourself in 

3rd person. Use common sense and think 

about how you would introduce yourself 

during a live networking event. 

• Include call to actions in your profile. Lead 

visitors to do what you want them to do. 

Connect, email me, message me, visit my 

site…etc 

• Write articles. The LinkedIn article 

platform is extremely powerful to share 

your long form thoughts and ideas. It will 

tray there forever for everyone to read and 

will index high on Google. It is much more 

effective than blogging on a site nobody 

reads. 

• Recommend people and get 

recommendations. 

• There are many more and I encourage you 

to Google around and see “how to make a 

LinkedIn profile effective”. 

And finally let me attack the most often 

asked question I find when I talk about 

LinkedIn. Who should I connect with? 

Who should I accept as a connection? 

Well there is no right or wrong answer to 

that and it must be a personal decision. 

What I can and will do is share the 3 most 

common human approaches and tell you 

which one I agree with. 

1. “The Open Networker” approach - the 

more connection the better it is. Connect to 

absolutely everybody and use the number 

of connections as a measure of success. The 

goal is 50.000+ connections and to be a 

proud LION (Linked In Open Networker) 

2. The Closed Networker - not connecting 

to anyone unless they sit together, eat 

together, shake hands and actually like each 

other. Nobody else can connect. 

3. The Value Networker - a value-based 

connection philosophy. Somewhere in 

the middle of the two, based on a simple 

question. Can we add value to each other’s 

world? If the answer is a yes, we should 

connect. 

Before signing up and start paying and even 

before you start engaging with potential 

connections make sure your profile is up to the 

task and helps you to reach your goals. 

I think if you read a bit between the lines 

and maybe you even know me, you already 

know the answer. I’m a Value networker. 

Are you? ■ 

Zoltan Matyas 

Zoltan Matyas is a Digital Marketing 

and Sales specialist in the independent 

imaging industry with over 15 years 

of front-line sales experience. He is 

a regular contributor in industry 

publications and speaker at industry 

events. 

You can connect with him on 

LinkedIn or email him at zoltan@ 

printevery.com. 



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May 2020 

33

FEATURE 

Is the future cloud driven? 

Business as usual: How your ERP can help you manage your 

MPS business from home. 

▲ Laryssa Alexander, President 

of the Field Service Division at 

ECI Software Solutions 

As many begin a lengthy spell of homeworking, 

due to the current COVID-19 

pandemic, a large number of businesses 

have been left with no alternative but to 

move their operation online, highlighting 

the significant benefits of cloud-based ERP 

systems. 

Here, Laryssa Alexander, President Field 

Service at ECI, discusses some of the 

ways software can help MPS businesses 

manage their devices, contracts, team and 

profitability from home. 

Accessible 

The logistical challenges imposed by 

remote working is a big concern for MPS 

businesses. From ensuring staff have access 

FEATURED 

A R TIC L E 

to the required data or files, to keeping 

sensitive information secure - the endless 

list of considerations can leave any business 

with a real headache. 

An online ERP can help eradicate many 

of those concerns. Via the cloud, you and 

your team can easily access live data and 

information relating to devices in the field, 

ensuring staff remain connected and fully 

in the loop - despite working potentially 

miles apart. 

Via the cloud, you and your team can easily 

access live data and information relating 

to devices in the field, ensuring staff remain 

connected and fully in the loop 

Staying on top of IT upgrades can be 

challenging too, especially if you manage 

a busy team with limited IT support. A 

lapsed system or software program can 

cause significant disruption - especially 

for remote workers and with a significant 

reduction in productivity, could mean a 

breakdown in ensuring your customers 

print needs are met. 

With online ERP systems there is no 

hardware or software to update, meaning 

your entire business operation can work 

off one, automatically updated system, 

ensuring you always have insight into the 

most accurate print and device data. 

Efficient 

Implementing a fully integrated ERP 

system drives more efficient ways of 

working and despite your team being 

spread across multiple locations, this 

doesn’t need to change. 

Operating across several, disconnected 

platforms limits profitability. A cloudbased 

system requires no infrastructure 

investments such as servers, hardware 

or software updates - removing the cost 

associated with expensive upgrades and 

saving time on implementation and set-up. 



For MPS, outdated processes and 

disconnected software is likely to make 

the transition to remote working far more 

difficult. Employees will be forced to 

duplicate documents, increasing the chance 

of mistakes, wasting time and ultimately, 

leaving you at risk of making poor business 

decisions. 

With cloud-based technology, you and 

your team can access a 360° view of the 

business, allowing you to quickly generate 

reports and track the profitability of 

each customer, product, contract or even 

employee - ensuring you make proactive 

and joined up decisions. 

Improve cash flow 

A fully integrated ERP system will also 

help you manage your accounts and 

maintain cash flow, even if you are not 

in the office. From automatically posting 

accounts receivable invoices and credit 

notes, to automatically matching accounts 

paid invoices to received POs, these systems 

require little manual input and can be 

accessed at any time, from anywhere. 

Additionally, online systems offer the 

capability to accept credit card payments 

for outstanding accounts receivable, 

reducing the chance of late payments. 

In such difficult circumstances, having 

sufficient cash on hand is essential to the 

longevity of your business. Cloud-based 

ERP systems are low cost to run, but offer 

significant financial insight, allowing you 

to analyse where every penny is spent, how 

this could be maximised and keep your 

team on top of their game despite working 

from various locations. ■ 

Laryssa Alexander, President, 

Field Service Division 

Laryssa’s goals are to deliver stellar 

customer service and innovation 

while balancing financial results and 

growth. She accomplishes this by 

leveraging her 20+ years of industry 

experience and ability to build 

strong collaborative teams. 

Laryssa joined OMD Corporation 

in 1997 where she held various 

leadership roles including 

Implementation Manager, Sales 

Manager, Marketing Manager and 

ultimately, President. Laryssa has 

been instrumental in the acquisition 

and successful transition of La 

Crosse Management Systems in 

20008, FMAudit and Digital 

Gateway in 2011, PrintFleet in 2017, 

and Print Audit and ODC in 2018. 

She has progressively assumed the 

role of President and associated 

responsibilities for each company 

which make up ECI’s Field Service 

Division. 


May 2020 

35

PRODUCTS & TECHNOLOGY 

ASIA Ninestar, Firmware, Cartridges, Remanufacturing 

Ninestar highlights new products 

Ninestar has announced that remanufactured toner cartridge for use 

in HP M652 series printers, Xerox and Dell devices and its solution for 

HP952/953/954/955 and HP902/903/904/905 series cartridges are 

available now. 

ASIA HYB Toner, Cartridges, 

Aftermarket, New Products 

The newly introduced remanufactured 

toner cartridges are for use in HP 

Color LaserJet Enterprise Flow MFP 

M681z/M682z; M652dn/M652n/ 

M653dh/653dn/M653x and MFP 

M681dh/M681f devices. The cartridges 

boast page yields of 12,500 for the black 

cartridges and 10,500 for the colour 

cartridges. 

Ninestar delivered its solution 

in three days. A fix for HP’s latest 

firmware update that effects 

the HP952/953/954/955 and 

HP902/903/904/905 series cartridges. 

On 17 March 2020, The Recycler 

reported news of the HP firmware update 

affecting the HP952/953/954/955 and 

HP902/903/904/905 series cartridges. 

Ninestar spotted the story and 

commented “After our R&D team’s 

intense development, we are happy to 

announce that Ninestar’s solution for 

latest HP firmware upgrades is available 

now!” 

The HP firmware update will prompt 

a message of “Cartridge Problem” and 

cartridges will fail to work when a 

compatible or remanufactured cartridge 

is newly installed. Ninestar recommends 

that users do not remove the current 

installed cartridges because the upgraded 

printers allow the installed compatible or 

remanufactured cartridges to continue 

working until they are empty. 

The company urges resellers to continue 

to educate customers to disable the 

printers’ auto update function. Once 

disabled, their use of compatible or 

remanufactured products will not be 

affected by further firmware upgrades. 

Ninestar said it will resume the supply 

for HP952/953/954/955 series and 

HP902/903/904/905 series products 

from 20 March 2020. 

Other products added to 

Ninestar’s product portfolio include 

remanufactured cartridges for use in 

various Xerox and Dell devices. 

Targeted at mid-sized business 

enterprises, Xerox launched its C400 

series printers in Feb 2017. Ninestar 

replacement remanufactured toner 

cartridges for use in Xerox C400 series 

printers are available now. Ninestar 

states that these newly introduced 

remanufactured cartridges offer 

“outstanding and stable printing 

performance”. 

The company announced 


Xerox VersaLink C400DN/C405DN/ 

C400/C405, Xerox WorkCentre 

6655/6655i/6655iXM/6655XM, Xerox 

Phaser 6600N/6600ND/6600YDN, 

Xerox WorkCentre 6605N/6650DN 

devices. These cartridges are available for 

North America, Europe and the Middle 

East region. 

Also now available are remanufactured 

cartridges for use in Dell C2660DN/ 

C2665DNF, Dell C3760n/C3760dn/ 

C3765dnf MFP and Dell S3840CDN/ 

S3845CDN devices. ■ 

For the abovementioned 

cartridges or 

any other products in 

Ninestar’s product range, 

please scan the QR code. 

HYB 

announces 

latest releases 

HYB Toner has announced 

its latest addition to its products 

range, replacement cartridges 

for use in various Ricoh, 

Kyocera ECOSYS and TASKAlfa 

devices. 

Ricoh’s colour laser multifunction 

printer models MP C501, MP C501SP 

are a 50 pages per minute (ppm) MFP 

and has been aimed at small offices. 

The latest addition to HYB’s toner 

cartridge range are replacement 

cartridges for use in the abovementioned 

machines with page yields 

of 14,500 for the black and 14,000 for 

the colour cartridges at 5% coverage. 

Recent additions also included new 

compatible toner cartridges for use in 

Kyocera TASKalfa 352ci printers. 

HYB Toner also announced new 

compatible toner cartridges replacing 

Kyocera’s TK-6330 cartridge which is 

for use in Kyocera ECOSYS P4060dn 

devices. The compatible cartridges 

come with page yields of 33,000 pages. 

The A3 monochrome printer, 

Kyocera ECOSYS P4060dn, was 

released in Europe in February 2020. 

HYB’s product range was also 

expanded with the addition of new 

compatible toner cartridges for use in 

Kyocera TASKalfa 352ci printers. ■ 

For more information 

on the above and other 

products from HYB 

visit their website by 

scanning the QR code. 



GLOBAL Static Control, Chips, Remanufacturing 

Static Control chips beat the latest HP and Lexmark 

firmware updates 

The recently released firmware updates by Lexmark and HP will not impact Static Control’s replacement chips. 

Static Control’s replacement chips for 

the popular Lexmark MS/MX 310, 410, 

510, 610, 710, 711, 810, 811, 812 and 

MS/MX 317, 417, 517, 617, 717, 718, 817, 

818 series are not impacted by the recent 

firmware update released by Lexmark on 

5 March 2020. 

The new firmware version LW75.PRL. 

P043, has been seen in the market and has 

been reported to stop third-party supplies 

from working. 

Static Control said in its customer release: 

“In general, Static Control encourages 

customers to avoid printer firmware 

upgrades which can potentially “lock out” 

aftermarket cartridges. Static Control’s 

chips are designed and engineered to be 

most resistant to firmware changes.” 

Static Control has also confirmed they 

have started shipping replacement chips 

that work after the latest firmware update 

that HP has issued. 

Earlier this month The Recycler reported 

about HP’s latest firmware update 

affecting HP 903xl and 953xl cartridges. 

The updates in question are: 

• HP 903xl = MCP2CN2006BR 

• HP 953xl = ELLISXLP1N003.20 

07A.00 

If automatic updates were enabled, 

cartridges already installed in the printer 

are not affected, but when a user comes to 

exchange the cartridges, the printer will 

not recognise the cartridges. 

The Ninestar Group has been very 

proactive on this firmware update and 

Apex had a solution available within a day 

of the firmware update coming out. Static 

also confirmed that their replacement 

chips for the above models are available, 

are being shipped and work after this latest 

update. ■ 

If you would like to learn more about 

the above or any other 

of Static Control’s 

products, please visit 

their website by scanning 

the QR code. 


May 2020 

37


ASIA Apex, Chips, Remanufacturing, Firmware Update 

Apex chips beat HP’s latest 

firmware update 

Apex has announced that it has resumed shipping of its 90X/95X cartridge 

series replacement chips and is offering updates through its Apex Unismart 

Service Platform. 

HP launched the new firmware 

2006/2007 at 5pm on 17 March 2020 to 

all HP printers used with 90X/95X series 

cartridges, causing all compatible chips 

on the market to fail on the upgraded 

printers. 

On 18 March Apex detected the new 

firmware and immediately set out to put 

its response plan in motion to debug 

and verify its chip solution to beat the 

firmware update. 

On 19 March, Apex was ready and 

launched the chip solution to global 

customers and resumed taking orders 

and beginning production of its latest 

solution. 

Its Unismart System-based Firmware 

Upgrade Response Service Platform 

also sprang into action and meant that 

on 20 March, Apex released the remote 

synchronous chip upgrade solution for 

finished ink cartridges worldwide. 

The upgraded chips can now be used in 

the printers with the latest firmware. 

Apex launched in October 2019 

its Unismart Service Platform which 

integrates hardware, software, and cloud 

services. Unismart customers can update 

the chip data remotely through this 

platform with a few simple operations. 

Compared to directly replacing the chip, 

the Platform greatly saves logistics time 

and costs, reducing the impact caused by 

firmware upgrades. 

With a comprehensive OEM firmware 

upgrade monitoring system, industryleading 

technical strength and complete 

remote reworking software and hardware 

system, Apex provides the fastest 

and most timely solutions for its core 

customers. 

In January 2020, Canon launched 

the imageRUNNER 2600 series of 

black-and-white multifunction copiers 

in China. It is aimed at large corporate 

offices and workgroups with speeds of up 

to 25/30/35/45 pages per minute, meeting 

the needs of different users. 

Apex said its chips offer “consistent 

performance” and are “easy to install 

in recycled cartridges” and said that 

this first-to-market replacement chip 

solution “helps you seize the market 

opportunities”. 

Boasting a page yield of 6,700 and 

available for the Chinese market, the 

latest chips introduced by Apex are 

for use in Canon imageRUNNER 

2625/2630/2635/2645 devices. 

The latest addition to the company’s 

replacement chip range are replacement 

chips for use with Kyocera TK-6330 series 

cartridges. 

In February 2020, Kyocera released the 

A3 mono printer ECOSYS P4060dn in 

Europe. With a print speed of up to 60 

pages per minute for A4 size paper and 

a fast first print out in 3.8 seconds, it is 

placed as the perfect choice to increase 

overall productivity in workgroups and 

production offices, according to Kyocera. 

These latest replacement chips launched 

come with “consistent performance” and 

are “easy to install in recycled cartridges”, 

Apex said. 

The replacement chips are for use in 

Kyocera ECOSYS P4060dn devices and 

boast a page yield of 32,000 pages and are 

regionalised for Europe. ■ 

For more information on 

the above or any other of 

Apex’s range, please scan 

the QR code. 

ASIA Mito, Cartridges, New Products 

Mito showcases 

latest products 

The company has announced new solutions 

for use in various HP Color LaserJet printers. 

Mito’s product range has seen the 

addition of its latest replacement solution 

of cartridges for use in HP Color LaserJet 

Enterprise M652dn, M653dh, M653dn 

and M653x devices. The CMYK set of 

replacement cartridges comes with page 

yields of 27,000 for the black cartridge and 

22,000 for the colour cartridges. 

Also newly introduced are replacement 

cartridges for use in HP Color LaserJet 

Enterprise Flow MFP M681f, M682z, 

M681z and M681dh devices. This CMYK 

set of replacement cartridges boasts page 

yields of 28,000 for the black cartridge and 

23,000 for the colour cartridges. 

Mito said that these newly introduced 

solutions come with “excellent 

performance” and “self-developed 

patents”. Its “chemical toner formula 

offers great colour reproduction and high 

resolution, perfect printing performance”, 

allowing for “images of vivid colours”. ■ 

For more information 

on the above-mentioned 

products as well as Mito’s 

full range of products, 

please scan here: 



EUROPE Armor, OWA, Cartridges, Remanufacturing 

Armor expands 

OWA range 

The French remanufacturer has announced 

the expansion of its OWA range with remanufactured 

toner cartridges for use in various HP, Canon, Brother, 

Konica Minolta and Sharp devices. 

The latest additions to Armor’s OWA 

range are remanufactured toner cartridges 

for use in Canon imageCLASS LBP- 

640/620 series devices which come in 

a normal yield (1,500 for the black and 

1,200 for the colour cartridges) and a 

high version (3,100 for the black and 

2,300 for the colour cartridges). The 

company’s remanufactured Canon 

cartridge range also saw the addition of a 

CMYK set of cartridges for use in Canon 

imageRUNNER Advance C250i/C350i/ 

C351iF devices which come with page 

yields of 19,000 for the black and 21,500 

for the colour cartridges. 

Armor’s OWA range was also expanded 

with remanufactured cartridges for use in 

SHARP MX-2301N, MX-2600N, MX- 

3100N devices, which come with page 

yields of 18,000 for the black and 15,000 

for the colour cartridges. 

The company now offers 

remanufactured Brother cartridges for 

use in Brother HL-L 3210/30/70, DCP-L 

3510/50 and MFC-L 3730/50/70 devices. 

The black cartridges boast a page yield of 

3,000 and the CMY cartridges boast page 

yields of 2,300. 

Also available now are remanufactured 

black cartridges for use in HP Pro M 

118/M 140 devices which come with page 

yields of 2,800 pages. 

The company’s Konica Minolta 

range saw a variety of additions. Firstly, 

newly introduced were remanfuactured 

monochrome cartridges for use in Konica 

Minolta bizhub 3320 

DEVELOP Ineo 3320 devices with page 

yields of 10,000, Konica Minolta bizhub 

4020 DEVELOP Ineo 4020 devices with 

page yields of 20,000, Konica Minolta 

bizhub 3300P/3301P and DEVELOP 

Ineo 3300P/3301P devices with page 

yields of 10,000 and remanfuactured 

monochrome cartridges for use in Konica 

Minolta bizhub 4700P and DEVELOP 

Ineo+ 3100P devices with page yields of 

20,000. Also added were remanfuactured 

cartridges for use in Konica Minolta 

bizhub C3100P and DEVELOP Ineo+ 

3100P devices, which come with page 

yields of 5,000 for the CMYK cartridges. 

And finally, newly announced were 


Konica Minolta bizhub 4000P devices and 

Konica Minolta bizhub 4050, bizhub 4750 

devices, both of which come with page 

yields of 20,000 pages. ■ 

For more information on 

Armor’s cartridge range or 

any other OWA products, 

please scan here: 

Unused and unwanted 

empty cartridges? 

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To find out more, call Terry Bridgeman on +44 1328 633013, or email him at info@ohanatl.com 


May 2020 

39


GLOBAL Canon Europe, PIXMA, 

Mobile Printers 

Canon launches 

new portable 

printers 

Canon Europe announced the launch 

of the Canon PIXMA TR150 and 

PIXMA TR150 with battery. These 

compact models feature versatile wireless 

connectivity and smartphone control. 

Canon describes it as perfect for a business 

on the move with the improved battery 

and ability to print more pages than before. 

The Canon PIXMA TR150 with battery 

encompasses fast and accessible charging 

through either the AC power adaptor 

or the bundled USB Type-C cable using 

a compatible in-car charger, power bank 

or laptop. 

Building on Canon’s heritage for easy-touse 

printers, the PIXMA TR150 features a 

1.44” mono OLED high-resolution screen, 

providing real-time ink levels and battery life 

indication (for PIXMA TR150 with battery) 

for easy navigation and complete visibility. 

Unique to this mobile printer, the PIXMA 

TR150 can store up to five pre-saved custom 

templates which the user can print directly 

from the screen without the use of a laptop, 

PC or smart device, and can quickly produce 

core documents with speeds of 5.5 ipm for 

colour and 9 ipm for mono. 

Fast and functional, the PIXMA TR150 

with battery employs quicker charging (2 

hours 20 minutes via the AC adapter) and 

the ability to print up to 330 pages from a 

single full charge. For enhanced usability, an 

easy attach-detach battery function ensures 

no tools are required which is ideal for when 

working on the go. 

The PIXMA TR150 is compatible with 

iOS and Android, users can print wirelessly 

via the Canon PRINT app or print from 

popular cloud services such as Google Drive 

and Evernote with the PIXMA Cloud Link. 

For those needing to make copies of 

documents on the move, Smartphone 

Copy can be used to easily take photos 

of documents and send directly to print. 

Users can also print using Mopria for 

Android, AirPrint for iOS or Windows 

10 Mobile without having to download 

any additional apps. 

Users without a router can simply click 

the dedicated Wireless Connect button and 

initiate a 1-to-1 connection with the printer 

to their smart device. 

The hybrid ink system facilitates quick 

delivery of high-quality text and graphics, 

including last-minute presentations, charts 

and graphs when on the road. The system 

boasts a pigment black cartridge for sharp 

text, and a combined dye based four-colour 

cartridge (cyan, magenta, yellow and black) 

to achieve vivid photo prints with 

up to a 100-year album life. When 

running low on pigment black, the ‘save 

black ink’ mode allows for economical 

printing by reducing the use of black ink, 

so users are never caught short. 

Capable of producing A4 borderless prints 

and the rear feed able to hold 50 sheets of 

plain paper, this model is perfect for pop-up 

shops needing to create vibrant point of sales 

materials at the touch of a button. 

The Canon PIXMA TR150 and PIXMA 

TR150 with battery will go on sale from 

April 2020. ■ 

EUROPE IR Italiana Riprografia, 

Cartridges, Remanufacturing 

IR Italiana 

Riprografia adds 

to Graphic-Jet 

range 

The Italian-based company 

announced new Graphic-Jet 

remanufactured inkjet cartridges 

for use in HP devices. 

IR Italiana Riprografia announced 

the widening of its Graphic-Jet 

products range with the addition of 

remanufactured inkjet cartridges for use 

in HP Designjet T1500 devices. The 

newly added cartridges boast an ink 

capacity of 130 ml. 

IR Italiana Riprografia is proud to say 

that the remanufactured toner cartridges 

provide not only “OEM equivalent 

print quality,” but also “100 percent 

compatibility” with OEM products, 

as well as “significant savings” over 

the OEM. The remanufactured toner 

cartridges also offer MSDS in compliance 

with REACH. 

Additionally, the cartridges were 

produced “in a certificated environment” 

including the ISO 9001:2015 quality 

management system certificate; the ISO 

14001:2015 environmental management 

system certificate; and the BS OHSAS 

18001:2007 occupational health and 

safety management system certificate. 

The company added that all of its 

remanufactured products have the 

environmental certification (Ecolabel) 

ISO 14021:2016. The product 

performances of several items distributed 

by IR Italiana Riprografia follow the 

standards set by STMC and ISO 19752 

and ISO 19798. Products in compliance 

with the RoHS II directive (when 

required). ■ 

For more information, 

please visit their website 

by scanning the QR 

code. 



30. 1. – 2. 2. 2021, Frankfurt am Main 

paperworld.messefrankfurt.com 

Remanexpo: 

Product Group 

Connecting people 

and businesses 

The dedicated part of the 

event focused on reuse 

and remanufacturing of 

printer cartridges 

Powered by 

Visit www.therecycler.com/live 

for more information 


May 2020 

41


GLOBAL Epson, EcoTank Pro Series, New Printers 

Epson expands EcoTank printer portfolio 

The OEM has launched five new EcoTank Pro models which come with its new two year unlimited free ink, 

just in time for the home office wave. 

Epson America, Inc. announced five 

new EcoTank Pro cartridge-free printers. 

These high speed, heavy-duty models are 

designed to provide worry-free, costeffective 

printing to small businesses, 

home offices and workgroups. 

Epson explains that the new EcoTank 

Pro series offers business savings up 

to 80% with low-cost replacement ink 

bottles vs. standard capacity colour laser 

toner cartridges and leverages Epson 

PrecisionCore Heat-Free Technology 

to deliver fast, consistent, heavy-duty 

performance and print-shop-quality 

output. In addition, Epson also expanded 

the current EcoTank portfolio with the 

announcement of the EcoTank ET-15000 

all-in-one, designed for SOHO printing 

up to 13" x 19". 

Epson partnered with Shaquille O'Neil, 

NBA Hall of Famer, business leader and 

philanthropist, in 2019 encouraging 

people to "Just Fill and Chill" with Epson's 

EcoTank printers featuring zero cartridge 

waste, which includes the new EcoTank 

Pro series and EcoTank ET-15000. 

EcoTank Pro wireless all-in-one printers 

offer fast cartridge-free printing with 

easy-to-fill supersized ink tanks producing 

ultra-low cost per page at about 2 cents 

per colour ISO page compared to 14 cents 

with standard-sized colour laser toner 

cartridges, ideal for businesses pursuing 

low-cost replacement ink options. Despite 

producing unparalleled output at speeds 

up to 25 ISO ppm black with no warmup 

time for fast first page out, the EcoTank 

Pro series has low energy consumption. 

Epson DURABrite pigment ink delivers 

professional-quality output and vibrant 

borderless prints. Additional features 

include two 250-sheet front paper trays 

and rear specialty-paper feed, plus a large 

4.3-inch colour touchscreen and handsfree 

voice-activated printing. 

"Supertank printer adoption is growing 

rapidly worldwide; in 2019, nearly 

one out of every three inkjet printers 

shipped was a Supertank. This new fleet 

of Pro performers will accelerate that 

growth," said Nils Madden, Director, 

Consumer Marketing, Epson America. 

"PrecisionCore Heat-Free Technology 

is optimal for office printing and we 

are looking to further disrupt the 

industry, demonstrating that cartridgefree 

EcoTank Pro Series printers are 

cost-effective and offer fast, reliable 

professional-quality colour prints. While 

these robust machines are designed for 

heavy-duty performance, the EcoTank 

Pro printers are also a great solution for 

high-volume production now being done 

at home." 

To further support the printing needs 

of businesses, Epson is introducing 

an ‘Unlimited Ink for Two Years 

Programme’ with EcoTank Pro models. 

Customers who purchase and register 

an EcoTank Pro Series printer are eligible 

to receive reimbursement for replacement 

ink bottles. 

The EcoTank Pro ET-5800 ($799.99/ 

€725.68 MSRP), EcoTank Pro ET-5850 

($849.99/ €771.04 MSRP), EcoTank 

Pro ET-5880 ($899.99/ €816.40 MSRP), 

EcoTank Pro ET-16600 ($999.99/ 

€907.10 MSRP), EcoTank Pro ET- 

16650 ($1129.99/ €1024.88 MSRP), and 

EcoTank ET-15000 ($599.99/ €544.18 

MSRP) are now available through major 

computer, office and electronic retailers, 

and on the Epson store. 

All printers feature a two-year limited 

warranty with registration. ■ 

NORTH AMERICA Clover Imaging Group, Cartridges, Remanufacturing 

Clover adds new products 

Clover Imaging Group has announced the addition 

of remanufactured Dell and Canon cartridges to their 

product range. 

The latest addition to Clover Imaging 

Group’s products range is a full CMYK 

set of remanufactured toner cartridges 

for use in Dell 5130CDN devices. 

The cartridges come with page yields 

of 18,000 for the black cartridge and 

12,000 for the colour cartridges at 5% 

coverage. 

Clover Imaging Group also released 

new remanufactured toner cartridges 

for use in Canon imageCLASS LBP- 

7780CDN devices. 

This latest addition to Clover Imaging 

Group’s product range, are high yield 

remanufactured toner cartridges 

replacing the Canon CRG-332 colour 

series toner cartridges for use in 

imageCLASS LBP-7780CDN devices. 

These remanufactured cartridges come 

with page yields of 12,000 for the black 

cartridges and 6,400 for the colour 

cartridges at 5% coverage. ■ 

To learn more about 

these and other products 

from CIG, please scan 

the QR code. 



GLOBAL Brother, Kofax, ControlSuite 

Brother to resell 

ControlSuite globally 

Brother International Corporation announced it will be reselling 

Kofax’s ControlSuite on a global basis. 

Brother International Corporation 

announced a partnership with Kofax, 

providing an embedded solution 

on selected Brother laser printers, 

multifunction devices and inkjet models. 

Dedicated Brother Sales and Technical Pre- 

Sales teams will be trained to deploy Kofax 

ControlSuite and empower organisations 

to manage, secure and govern documents 

with unified print management, capture 

and document security. 

"Kofax is excited to partner with Brother," 

said Chris Strammiello, Senior Vice 

President of Channels at Kofax. "Their 

award-winning imaging devices and our 

market-leading security and automation 

software will combine to offer a high value, 

compelling and comprehensive solution." 

ControlSuite is the next generation print 

management, capture and document 

security software solution, simplifying 

and enabling central management and 

governance of content flowing through 

mobile and desktop devices, email and 

print streams. ControlSuite also actively 

manages, secures and governs virtually 

every aspect of document distribution via 

printing, scanning, routing and storing 

throughout the enterprise – across 

any combination of hybrid systems, 

technologies and devices. This provides 

unmatched productivity through 

unified printing, scanning and 

workflow processes. 

"Businesses are more likely to suffer 

significant material losses due to a 

document-related breach than a data 

breach," said Joe Ashcraft, Vice President, 

B2B Sales. "The compatibility of Brother 

devices with ControlSuite addresses 

the core challenge of secure document 

management: making sure information 

lands in the right hands with a single, 

streamlined solution that reduces mistakes 

and boosts productivity." 

ControlSuite pairs well with Brother's 

SMB laser devices and enables enterprises 

to securely manage and govern documents, 

supporting compliance by automatically 

generating audit trails that track 

documents and how they are accessed 

and used. 

"Security, compliance and the impact 

on business continues to be a top priority 

for organisations of all sizes," said Keith 

Kmetz, Vice President of Imaging, Printing 

& Document Solutions at IDC. "When 

implementing a document management 

strategy, IT professionals need to look 

at solutions offering confidence their 

network won't be breached. To satisfy this 

need Brother is partnering with Kofax, 

considered by IDC to be a global leader 

in device and print management. 

This partnership allows Brother to broaden 

its security offerings and help organisations 

navigate their digital transformation 

journey." 

The Brother – Kofax ControlSuite 

product offering will be available in 

Q2 2020. ■ 

NORTH AMERICA Brother, ThinPrint 

Client, Integration, Partnership 

ThinPrint client 

as an upgrade 

48 Brother printers and 

multifunction colour laser, 

monolaser, and inkjet series 

devices now print with ThinPrint 

technology. 

Brother and print management 

expert ThinPrint have deepened their 

cooperation. ThinPrint’s client has 

been integrated into 48 printer models 

belonging to the professional laser printer 

series L5000, L6000, L8000 and L9000. 

The Business Smart X is the first Brother 

inkjet series to include a ThinPrint client. 

ThinPrint explained that with the 

latest TLS encryption of print jobs, the 

ThinPrint client guarantees more security 

for businesses and offers compression 

and streaming technology. This enables 

especially fast print outputs for both 

headquarters and branch offices. Dealers 

and system houses can activate via a license 

key the pre-installed ThinPrint client as 

one of the numerous upgrades. 

Brother International and ThinPrint 

have had a successful OEM partnership 

for many years. ThinPrint clients were 

available on request for some of the 

Japanese manufacturer’s printers. Now 

cooperation has been intensified once 

again. “ThinPrint is an important partner 

when it comes to enterprise printing,” 

said Dominique Maier-Sinkovic, Product 

Manager at Brother. “We’re pleased that 

we now also offer our important business 

series customers, secure and highperformance 

printing with ThinPrint”. 

“We’re happy to have taken productive 

cooperation with Brother to a completely 

new level,” said Bernd Hausmann, 

Director Business Development Printer 

Manufacturers at ThinPrint. “All series 

were certified in a multifaceted process. 

As a result, our technology is integrated 

as standard in all of Brother’s major 

enterprise printers. Included for the 

first time are also inkjet printers – an 

increasingly interesting option for office 

printing among many companies.” ■ 

More information 

about printing with 

Brother and ThinPrint 

can be found at: 


May 2020 

43

MARKETPLACE 

TONER MANUFACTURER 

COLLECTOR 

COLLECTOR 

CBC (Europe) GmbH 

toner@cbc-europe.com 

Tel: +49 211 530670 

www.cbc-europe.com 

FBO Organisation, S.L. 

fbo@fbo-org.com 

Tel: +34 936724863 

www.fbo-org.com 

LVL 

bp.sales@lvlcartridge.com 

Tel: +33 251709249 

www.lvl.fr 

REMANUFACTURER 

RESELLER 


wta Carsten Weser GmbH 

info@wta-suhl.de 

Tel: +49 3681 4529710 

www.wta-suhl.de 

Copyclic 

info@copyclic.com 

Tel: +33 01 60 78 78 78 

www.copyclic.com 

Integral GmbH 

info@integral-international.de 

TEL: + 49 (0) 28 33 60 60 

www.integral-international.de 

MARKET INTELLIGENCE 

CARTRIDGE CLEANING SYSTEMS 

SUPPLIER 

LightWords Imaging 

admin@lightwords.co.uk 

Tel: +44 1270 878850 

www.lightwordsimaging.com 

Futor Cleaning System AG 

info@futorag.ch 

+41 716800549 

www.futorag.com 

TOKO Srl 

toko@toko.ro 

Tel: +40212327270 

www.toko.ro 

SUPPLIER 

BROKER AND RECYCLER 


Freckles Ltd 

info@freckles.bg 

Tel: +359 2 955 5560 

www.freckles.bg 

The Greener Side 

info@greener-side.co.uk 

Tel: +44 1427 700 700 

www.greener-side.co.uk 

Primedia Products 

tmiller@primediamicr.com 

Tel: +1 304-277-2050 

www.primediamicr.com 


Contact us to advertise here: t.01993 899800 e. info@therecycler.com 

Airbags for Toner Cartridges 

Ideal for packing and 

repacking toner cartridges 

• Universal and reusable 

• Fast, free delivery throughout the EU 

• European stocks at affordable prices 

• Terms available 

Visit our new webstore now: 

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ETIRA membership benefits include: 

Meeting new clients and partners at our 

network meetings! 

A strong fight against clever chips, unfair 

patents, waste transport rules etc.! 

PR-work to tell the world about remanufactured 

cartridges and why they are good for both 

consumers and the environment! 

Promotion of top-quality remanufacturing 

(standardisation)! 

Join our business Code of Conduct, and sell 

more cartridges thanks to our logo! 

Meeting 60 top remanufacturers already 

members of ETIRA... 

ETIRA brings the remanufacturing Industry 

together. Be part of the family! 

Haydnlaan 13, 4837 CS Breda, 

The Netherlands Tel: + 31 6 414 614 63 

info@etira.org 

www.etira.org 

ETIRA: WORKING FOR ALL REMANUFACTURERS AND PARTNERS 


May 2020 

45

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