Customers Stand to Gain From Making a Switch to Inkjets

ME Printer speaks to Andrew Hurt, the Regional Sales Manager at Epson Europe B.V., about why it makes sense to switch to inkjet

Tell us about the new Workforce WF-C5000 Series.
The WF-C5000 Series is a series of small workgroup printers, which are perfect for the business environment. These printers offer up to 24 ppm in print speeds, 24 ipm in scan speeds, and the capability to print on glossy media. These printers also use our new ink packs that use lesser packaging material. We can use these printers in a workgroup of around 5 people, and it can also be used in an enterprise setup.

What is your target market with the new Workforce series?
We focus on small offices to large corporates who may have traditionally used lasers and want to cut costs, increase productivity and reduce downtime. They might also want to reduce their environmental impact and improve their CSR reputation.

What sort of benefits do these printers come with?
They offer a very competitive hardware price and they save at least 50% on cost per colour page when compared with laser models. These printers can print up to 10,000 pages in mono and 5,000 pages in colour without you having to change the supplies. The printer accompanies one of the largest ink yields in this segment. The printers also come with one of the largest standard paper capacity of 330 sheets, with an additional 500 sheet tray.

What sort of energy-saving functions can these printers offer?
These printers offer up to 66% reduction in the total energy consumption when compared with the previous models. You also get 50% lower total energy consumption when compared with laser models.

What kind of market trends have you seen in the inkjet category?
We are seeing that the demand is increasing. We are already on the market and we continuously work with our partners to get more traction in the market. We have a number of partners who are actively leading with ink and Epson has been at the forefront of this technology.

We have many customers who have switched from laser to inkjet printers. We have been running lots of campaigns and we will be doing some roadshows to educate the customers about the benefits of making the switch. The lower cost of printing, the increased productivity, and the sustainability aspects of inks, will be the key focus for us. We want to tell our customers that ink is really a viable alternative to laser.

What markets does Epson currently focus on?
You would expect organizations that are environmentally conscious to be interested in our new products. We have already put a fleet of inkjet printers into a hotel, for example. We are talking to a number government agencies to overhaul their printing needs.

Enviroserve is another company that is moving into a new facility and they have chosen to go with Epson products and solutions. Anyone who understands the benefits of ink solutions and has CSR initiatives with sustainability at the forefront of the program will always opt for an inkjet-based solution. The cost of ownership is also significantly less and these products offer better ROI.