Separating HP Myths from Reality
Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), like HP, make a great deal of profit from the sale of their imaging supplies. In fact, Lyra Research Inc. has documented that one OEM realizes as much as 50 percent profits on its supplies stream. As businesses and consumers have
increased their focus on cost savings and value, HP has begun fiercely attacking remanufacturers in an attempt to safeguard their most lucrative revenue stream while continuously forcing price increases in the US, Canada and Europe each year.
In their newest campaign, HP has boldly, and falsely, branded all remanufactured cartridges as being of poor quality, unreliable and offering no true value to users. This is blatantly untrue. There are remanufacturers,who have spent years and millions of dollars to ensure the integrity of their brand. Having been in business for forty years selling remanufactured supplies to resellers across North America, it's clear their success and livelihood are directly dependent upon repeat, loyal customers who trust the quality of their product. It's these high performing, high quality products that offer significant cost savings and value to the consumer and ultimately pose a threat to the
OEM's huge profits.
Here are HP's latest claims against remanufacturers and the real evidence refuting these untruths:
HP's Claim
Refilled or remanufactured cartridges will cause failures that increase printing costs.
The Truth
While it's true that print cartridge failures can increase overall printing costs, it is too easy and convenient to assume that all replacement print cartridges priced below the OEM are susceptible to the same risks of failure. In fact, failure rates vary widely from one manufacturer to the next, and are directly related to the quality of the components, reverse engineering, manufacturing and testing processes in place.many manufacturers have premium replacement print cartridges that are manufactured using sophisticated remanufacturing techniques, and undergo extensive testing to ensure that they perform to OEM standards. One of the most critical components of a cartridge is the OPC drum. OfficeTech Solutions uses only new aftermarket drums that have a harder and more durable surface than the OEM cartridge to provide superior performance. Another key component that determines the ultimate print performance of a remanufactured cartridge is the quality of the ink or
toner used.
HP's Claim
Replacement cartridge manufacturing processes are inconsistent and produce unreliable products.
The Truth
Reliability in manufacturing is the product of a well-defined, repeatable process using consistent, reliable raw materials and parts. To manufacture a product that performs reliably, a manufacturing process must itself be consistent and perfectly repeatable. Many manufacturers use in-house and in ISO 9001:2000-certified North American facilities that service the US and Canadian market. Many remanufacturers
and resellers have gone overseas or outsource their manufacturing, but many have used their experience and expertise acquired over many years to manufacture their carridges in north america.
HP's Claim
Refilled and remanufactured print cartridges can not produce OEM-quality prints over the life of the cartridge.
The Truth
Manufactureres of ink cartridges not only test for initial quality, but undergo lifecycle quality analysis to ensure consistent quality from start to finish. Not only these cartridges designed to perform like the OEM when first installed in the printer, they guarantee consistent performance over the life of the cartridge. In response to a recent Quality Logic's report which analyzed OEM cartridge page yields to various refilled and remanufactured cartridge page yields, remanufactured cartridges were tested against HP cartridges by the Rochester Institute of Technology. The HP 21, HP 22, HP 92, HP 93, HP 95 and HP 98 and comparable remanufactured cartridges were tested for page yield using ISO/IEC 24712 which consists of a series of five pages that are printed consecutively in order as a single job ending with a diagnostic page. As illustrated, the results of the testing determined that all cartridges remanufactured in a north american facility that followed a certain process functioned fully until end-of-life as did the OEM cartridges. Additionally, remanufactured cartridges yielded on average 20% more pages than the OEM cartridges.
OEM OEM Results OTS Results % Above OEM
HP21 176 211 19.89%
HP 22 146 186 27.40%
HP 92 184 221 20.11%
HP 93 206 261 26.70%
HP 95 331 371 12.08%
HP 98 395 545 37.97%
Average % Above OEM 24.82%
HP's Claim
Remanufactured cartridges are no better for the environment than OEM originals.
The Truth
Remanufacturing is a far superior choice to OEM recycling programs. Multiple government agencies, including the U.S. Dept. of Energy Office of Industrial Technologies and the Environmental Protection Agency, have echoed this stance. When a cartridge is remanufactured, it is reused. Reuse is superior to recycling in that it doesn't use non-renewable resources to break down plastic and metal. A cartridge and all its
components should always first be evaluated for refurbishment. If refurbishment is not possible then responsible recycling should be pursued. Many manufacturers of the types of cartridges ue a proprietary Closed-Loop Environmental Process ensures that every component of the empty cartridges collected is either remanufactured or recycled, ensuring nothing ends up in a landfill.
In her article, "A Response to HP's Argument for Recycling versus Reuse" that appeared in Imaging Spectrum Magazine, Tricia Judge, Executive Director of the International Imaging Technology Council, paints a vivid picture of where many of the world's empty cartridges, that are not remanufactured, find their final resting place - Guiyu, China. Judge also explains that while HP's recycling efforts should be applauded, their results don't come close to matching the impact remanufacturers are having on reducing landfilling, "The recycling of 140 million cartridges over 15 years pales in comparison to the reuse of 105 million cartridges in 2006 alone. That equates to 84,000 tons of industrial-grade plastic being reused annually, not just recycled, thanks to remanufacturing."
Conclusion
It's not surprising that HP is waging an assault on remanufacturers. Studies have shown that once consumers make the switch to quality remanufactured imaging supplies, they are not likely to go back to using OEMs cartridges.5 This is not a time that HP can let its most profitable revenue stream erode. However, in today's competitive environment when many businesses are looking for innovative ways to reduce costs and their environmental footprint, choosing remanufactured print cartridges is a smart choice.
increased their focus on cost savings and value, HP has begun fiercely attacking remanufacturers in an attempt to safeguard their most lucrative revenue stream while continuously forcing price increases in the US, Canada and Europe each year.
In their newest campaign, HP has boldly, and falsely, branded all remanufactured cartridges as being of poor quality, unreliable and offering no true value to users. This is blatantly untrue. There are remanufacturers,who have spent years and millions of dollars to ensure the integrity of their brand. Having been in business for forty years selling remanufactured supplies to resellers across North America, it's clear their success and livelihood are directly dependent upon repeat, loyal customers who trust the quality of their product. It's these high performing, high quality products that offer significant cost savings and value to the consumer and ultimately pose a threat to the
OEM's huge profits.
Here are HP's latest claims against remanufacturers and the real evidence refuting these untruths:
HP's Claim
Refilled or remanufactured cartridges will cause failures that increase printing costs.
The Truth
While it's true that print cartridge failures can increase overall printing costs, it is too easy and convenient to assume that all replacement print cartridges priced below the OEM are susceptible to the same risks of failure. In fact, failure rates vary widely from one manufacturer to the next, and are directly related to the quality of the components, reverse engineering, manufacturing and testing processes in place.many manufacturers have premium replacement print cartridges that are manufactured using sophisticated remanufacturing techniques, and undergo extensive testing to ensure that they perform to OEM standards. One of the most critical components of a cartridge is the OPC drum. OfficeTech Solutions uses only new aftermarket drums that have a harder and more durable surface than the OEM cartridge to provide superior performance. Another key component that determines the ultimate print performance of a remanufactured cartridge is the quality of the ink or
toner used.
HP's Claim
Replacement cartridge manufacturing processes are inconsistent and produce unreliable products.
The Truth
Reliability in manufacturing is the product of a well-defined, repeatable process using consistent, reliable raw materials and parts. To manufacture a product that performs reliably, a manufacturing process must itself be consistent and perfectly repeatable. Many manufacturers use in-house and in ISO 9001:2000-certified North American facilities that service the US and Canadian market. Many remanufacturers
and resellers have gone overseas or outsource their manufacturing, but many have used their experience and expertise acquired over many years to manufacture their carridges in north america.
HP's Claim
Refilled and remanufactured print cartridges can not produce OEM-quality prints over the life of the cartridge.
The Truth
Manufactureres of ink cartridges not only test for initial quality, but undergo lifecycle quality analysis to ensure consistent quality from start to finish. Not only these cartridges designed to perform like the OEM when first installed in the printer, they guarantee consistent performance over the life of the cartridge. In response to a recent Quality Logic's report which analyzed OEM cartridge page yields to various refilled and remanufactured cartridge page yields, remanufactured cartridges were tested against HP cartridges by the Rochester Institute of Technology. The HP 21, HP 22, HP 92, HP 93, HP 95 and HP 98 and comparable remanufactured cartridges were tested for page yield using ISO/IEC 24712 which consists of a series of five pages that are printed consecutively in order as a single job ending with a diagnostic page. As illustrated, the results of the testing determined that all cartridges remanufactured in a north american facility that followed a certain process functioned fully until end-of-life as did the OEM cartridges. Additionally, remanufactured cartridges yielded on average 20% more pages than the OEM cartridges.
OEM OEM Results OTS Results % Above OEM
HP21 176 211 19.89%
HP 22 146 186 27.40%
HP 92 184 221 20.11%
HP 93 206 261 26.70%
HP 95 331 371 12.08%
HP 98 395 545 37.97%
Average % Above OEM 24.82%
HP's Claim
Remanufactured cartridges are no better for the environment than OEM originals.
The Truth
Remanufacturing is a far superior choice to OEM recycling programs. Multiple government agencies, including the U.S. Dept. of Energy Office of Industrial Technologies and the Environmental Protection Agency, have echoed this stance. When a cartridge is remanufactured, it is reused. Reuse is superior to recycling in that it doesn't use non-renewable resources to break down plastic and metal. A cartridge and all its
components should always first be evaluated for refurbishment. If refurbishment is not possible then responsible recycling should be pursued. Many manufacturers of the types of cartridges ue a proprietary Closed-Loop Environmental Process ensures that every component of the empty cartridges collected is either remanufactured or recycled, ensuring nothing ends up in a landfill.
In her article, "A Response to HP's Argument for Recycling versus Reuse" that appeared in Imaging Spectrum Magazine, Tricia Judge, Executive Director of the International Imaging Technology Council, paints a vivid picture of where many of the world's empty cartridges, that are not remanufactured, find their final resting place - Guiyu, China. Judge also explains that while HP's recycling efforts should be applauded, their results don't come close to matching the impact remanufacturers are having on reducing landfilling, "The recycling of 140 million cartridges over 15 years pales in comparison to the reuse of 105 million cartridges in 2006 alone. That equates to 84,000 tons of industrial-grade plastic being reused annually, not just recycled, thanks to remanufacturing."
Conclusion
It's not surprising that HP is waging an assault on remanufacturers. Studies have shown that once consumers make the switch to quality remanufactured imaging supplies, they are not likely to go back to using OEMs cartridges.5 This is not a time that HP can let its most profitable revenue stream erode. However, in today's competitive environment when many businesses are looking for innovative ways to reduce costs and their environmental footprint, choosing remanufactured print cartridges is a smart choice.
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