*NEWS*EMPTY CTGS:LIFEBLOOD OF REMAN-IND.

[Anonymous]

 Empty Cartridges: Lifeblood of the Remanufacturing IndustrY
From The Hard Copy Supplies Journal, January 2005, Lyra Research, Inc.

It has often been said that empty cartridges are the lifeblood of the remanufacturing industry. When empties are in short supply or unavailable, all of a remanufacturer’s operations can grind to halt. In addition, the cost of empties can be the single most expensive item in a remanufacturer’s bill of materials. As in all markets, supply and demand influences the prices that remanufacturers pay for empty cartridges, and those prices vary widely depending on the make and model of the cartridge. In general, prices are influenced by the amount of time that has passed since the printer’s introduction, the size of the installed base of printers, and the price of the new OEM cartridge. To a lesser extent, currency exchange rates, OEM anti-remanufacturing strategies, and intellectual property issues also influence empty cartridge prices.

Demand for remanufactured and compatible cartridges (i.e., aftermarket cartridges) has grown steadily over the past five years. Lyra estimates that aftermarket toner cartridges will exceed 30 percent of total worldwide laser cartridge shipments in 2004, and aftermarket ink cartridges will approach 17 percent of worldwide shipments that same year. For the past four years, the aftermarket’s share of the toner cartridge market has grown by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of almost 14 percent, while the aftermarket’s share of the ink cartridge market has grown by a 13 percent CAGR. The reasons for this growth are twofold. First, more users are aware of the availability of third-party cartridges, and many believe they are comparable in quality to OEM products. Second, aftermarket cartridges are generally priced from 10 percent to 30 percent lower than OEM products, making them an attractive value to customers, especially in times of low economic growth, such as the world economy has experienced since the beginning of the century.

 

[Author]

February 3, 2005 at 10:26 AM