Information

[Tommy B]

Hello to all. We have been involved in offset for many years, and now we see the future of digital. We are trying to gather information on the supplies for that industry. Looking at Indigo, nexpress, xerox, konika etc.
Do most vendors supply the toners in the click charge or are they sold separtely? Are there other alternatives to the OEM supplies? Would you use an alternative toner if available? Any help in trying to understand the market would be very helpful.

 

[lfelton]

Most vendors are on an all inclusive click rate (I think only Kodak aren't) and I wouldn't touch 3rd party toner with a bargepole. The best piece of advice anyone will give you today is this: hire a qualified and experienced digital printer. Don't try to retrain anyone in the short term, you can't afford it. I can't believe that I'm giving good advice to potential competitors, must stop it.

 

[RonSmithPrinting]

It will most likely come down to how you work out your lease contracts assuming you're planning to lease the machines. Our machines are all set up with a per month lease charge, plus the cost per click which covers all the service and parts as well as the toners. This is pretty standard. You can, of course, work out other arrangements depending on the machine(s) you end up choosing.

There are a couple of shops in our area that own the machines they run and pay for a separate service contract. I'm not sure how they handle the toners and other consumables they require, but I would assume they purchase them. Over the long haul, which is better value, who knows?

I would be hesitant to buy off-brand or third party toners. Most manufacturers we looked into had clauses that would void the warranty or could cause issues with service contracts if we used any parts or consumables not provided by them.

I do agree the best thing you can do is to find someone who knows digital well. Experience in this realm, as in any production area, goes along way!

 

[Tommy B]

Re Information

Re Information

Sorry if I was confusing, we are not looking to get a digital machine. We sell offset supplies and were trying to find out if we should move to try to sell toners to our dealers. Thanks for the 2 answers, it is pretty much what I expected.