Sunday, April 24, 2011

8 Duplicating Duplicator Tips for Ricoh

With a recent flurry of duplicator sales, wow it was probably two years since I sold my last duplicator!  I've been thinking of ways to improve or market Ricoh duplicators.  Here's 5 tips about changes that I would make to Ricoh's HQ 9000.  Just so everyone knows the Ricoh HQ 9000 is the flagship of the line and has the highest dpi setting, although they don't state 600x600 it's very close and the system has awesome print quality.  here we go!

1.) Add a duplex unit to to the system so it will auto print or copy two sided on letter size.  (Ricoh has the duplex feature in the DX4640PD, however this is only a 400x400 dpi system.)

2.) Increase the paper feed weight to110lb cover.

3.) Bring back an optional high capacity feeder and stacker (3,000 in and 3,000 out), especially with the feeder one that will allow you to load paper or envelopes on the fly with a top down feed system.

4.) Make Adobe PSIII a standard feature and not an option.

5.) Add a cover for the paper feed tray to help eliminate damp paper, and contaminates from entering the system.

6.) Add an optional hi speed scoring and perforating system to create tent style business cards, occasion cards, and or tickets.

7.) Add an optional hi speed inkjet print head for variable data or numbering.

8.) Certify the system for printing onto Pressure Seal paper.

What's the purpose of all of these enhancements?  Well duplicators are not dead yet, problem is that there's no creative thinking going on!!!!  Ricoh has a system called the TCII, basically this system prints two colors in a single pass and they've had this for years. So, why did they not ever design a TCIV with 4 drums units for four color (full color) work??? Duplicator engineers need to get off their butts and back on the street with sales people and find out what's needed in the field and what customers needs are.  Low cost digital printing at hi speed is the ticket!

 With the 8  additions the HQ9000 can become a powerhouse solution in any print shop (whether large or small), any Direct Mail business and can also break into many backroom print applications along with CRD's. 

All of this is easy, there's no rebuild of the system, the hardest part maybe the software and the inkjet print head, but what you've got is powerful, reliable, good quality digital print system that can span many different markets, applications and could offer additional solutions to increase clicks.

The coup de grâce would be to change the name of the system from Priport. I'd love to meet the dam genius that adopted that name! Get rid of it, retire it, times change, needs change and change the name of the system to something like DocuPrint, DocuPRESS, imagePRINT or something is that nature!

Just another hint, come to market with a TCIV and kick some real ass in the digital print market.

Check this third party link out Ink jet addressing with duplicator
-=Good Selling=-

4 comments:

TomCrac said...

Also not dead yet, Riso, they still make some very good duplicators, although they can be on the pricey side.

Unknown said...

They all have some great duplicators, but I wouldn't deal with Riso direct in Massachusetts, the horror stories just keep growing.

Unknown said...

They all have made some good machines.
But the service from RISO has failed so badly, RISO isn't selling much in MA where they discontinued their local dealer, and have such outrageous pricing. And that is too bad, because in the hands of someone that knows how to properly work with their RIP the HC5500 could be a killer machine.....

Unknown said...

Karl S & Tom, thanx for the replies!