With a global downturn biting hard and prices increasing rapidly, both organisations and consumers are looking for more ways to save money. As a result, it’s not surprising that the sales of compatible printer consumables is increasing, but many people are still confused about the implications of using alternative ribbons for their card printers.
We hope this introduction overcomes any fears you maybe harbouring!
What are High Performance (HP) Compatibles?
Compatible ribbons are consumables produced by third parties, as opposed to the printer manufacturer’s chosen supplier.
Plus-Ribbon HP was born in 2004 out of a partnership with SONY Chemicals whom shortly after became the official supplier of Fargo card printer ribbons.
By 2008, SONY Chemicals was acquired by a Japanese company. This strategic acquisition also delivered them the return of Fargo’s printer ribbon business, but more interestingly it provided an unprecedented opportunity to close down the fast growing ‘SONY produced’ compatible ribbon division.
Around 85% of the world’s card printer ribbons are purchased by Zebra, Datacard, Magicard, Fargo & JVC. Around 3.3million ribbons are produced by just one company, the very same one that acquired SONY Chemicals and which ever way you look at it, that’s a lot of control by just one company!
Plus-Ribbon was launched in 2004 to support two fundamental objectives…
1. First and foremost ‘to save’ organisations a lot of money by providing choice
2. Ensuring that choice, delivered comparative print quality
What are the advantages of using compatible ID ribbons?
The obvious advantage is cost – Plus-Ribbon compatible range is now available on a wide range of card printers and just keeps growing. Savings of up to 60% are typical when compared to original branded ribbons.
How are compatible ribbons made?
Some compatible ribbons are derived from only one type of film (material), in theory, many compatible ribbon makers commission a jumbo size roll of film that is then slit and wound onto varying cores to suit different types of printer models and brands.
These companies believe a simple ‘one type’ material approach to fit all is a worthy contender – but this belief is incorrect!
Whilst the jumbo roll material maybe purchased from reputable manufacturers, compatibles produced in this way are generally poor quality, unreliable and produce results that negate the savings first offered. Ribbon composite values must first and foremost be designed to suit the differing characteristics presented by each card printer in each class. For example, heat tolerances and ribbon tension management.
Plus-Ribbon uses a technique of carefully creating film with composite values that may mirror the original ribbon. We also experiment with completely different methods and many people have commented on
Plus-Ribbon print quality actually surpassing that of the corresponding original ribbon! Nice compliments!
Quality Assurances
Plus-Ribbon will continually adopt a route of perfection and constantly undergo strict QA controls. Ongoing development by professionally qualified personnel will ensure Plus-Ribbon quality will continue to out perform all other third party makers, and achieve at least an equal status when compared to original ribbons.
How do you guarantee good quality?
Plus-Ribbon is now selling in over 55 countries and responsible for more than 15 million cards so we’ve learnt a thing or two over the years and print quality is comparative, unlike its cost.
Plus-Ribbon is so confident you will like the print quality that each ribbon comes with a 7 day no quibble money back guarantee.
How reliable are they?
Plus-Ribbon is very reliable which is why popularity continues to grow. Paying as much as the printer price again with just a handful of ‘original’ ribbons is these days totally unacceptable! Nobody has money to waste!
Will using compatibles invalidate my warranty?
We doubt it, to do so would be very dubious practice indeed and likely to violate anti-trust laws and/or anti compete laws in the USA & Europe. Apart from anything else, that’s not a nice way to win your continued brand support and custom!
To quote Hewlett Packard: "The use of non-Hewlett Packard toner cartridges does not affect either the warranty or any maintenance contract purchased from HP". They go on to state "however, if an HP Laserjet printer failure or printer damage is found to be directly attributable to the use of any non-HP product, the repair will not be covered under the warranty or HP maintenance contract" there is no reason to suppose that other manufacturers would take a different line.
In the extremely unlikely event that Plus-Ribbon™ should damage your printer and your card printer manufacturer confirms such a claim in writing, it would be covered by our Plus-Ribbon™ product liability insurance. This is really only a fall back cover. Since 2004, many tens of thousands of ribbons have been sold and to date we’ve had only one inconclusive claim, and that was when a ribbon was left in the printer returned, to date the claim has not been supported by any evidence from the manufacturer.
In practice the way in which a card printer operates means that any damage likely to be caused by a defective ribbon is almost zero, in fact, it stands to reason that it is your plastic cards that should be monitored more closely for contamination (dust/debris), burs and uneven surfaces which frequently cause printhead damage and inevitability poor print quality. As far as we are aware, manufacturers permit you to select any card you wish! Plus-Card™ is a perfect solution to overcome poor card and inferior print quality as with Plus-Clean for preventative routine maintenance.
That aside, you’ll be pleased to know that Plus-Ribbon is manufactured in first class laboratories and ribbon contamination is never an issue.
To Sum Things Up...
The decision on whether to save money by purchasing compatible ribbons is entirely yours.
As a leading card printer and consumables provider, we provide both original and compatible consumables so you can be assured we are catering for your every need and extending to you the widest range of card printer products available today, and all under one roof.
In conclusion, compatible ribbons are a sensible option to cut your ribbon costs dramatically. We too use high performance compatibles in our own printers throughout every area of our business for one reason only, to save a fortune!
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There is a reason thousands of organisations choose the world’s best compatible card Printer RIBBON… Cost per card for ‘colour’ Photo ID as low as £0.08p
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Any use of a brand name or model designation for Plus-Ribbon is made solely for purposes of demonstrating ribbon compatibility. Plus-Ribbon is a compatible ribbon which compares on quality but at substantially lower prices – or your money back!
Eagle Technologies Ltd is an international wholesaler and manufacturer of Card ID Printers/Systems, consumables, plastic cards and general badge accessories.
Eagle Technologies Ltd is located in the UK, Europe and USA and specialise in providing superior product and support via value add resellers, system integrators and ID Agents.
Eagle Technologies Ltd 8 & 9 Brickfields, Kiln Lane, Bracknell, Berkshire, RG12 1NA
Tel: +44 (0) 1344 303 700 www.EagleTechnologies.co.uk
