New Articles
Titile:Eli Kahn
Date: April 14, 2007
Eli Kahn, a sixteen year old boy, had suffered from Leukemia in his early years. He had experienced the struggle, pain, and fear in going through all the treatments required to cure his ailment. He then decided to raise money and give back to the facility that had helped him clear his cancer. He did a lot of research and found out how effective it is to raise money by simply collecting empty printer cartridges, which most people throw away. He was able to raise an ample amount of funds and had been given recognition by VOLVO FOR LIFE AWARDS for his exemplary works.
Titile: Toner cartridge recycling industry
Date: April 02, 2007
Toning up: the growth of the toner cartridge recycling industry can be attributed to a very effective grassroots approach to recycling.
While the traditional recycling industry, in many ways, has moved away from its image as a way for Boy Scouts to raise money, the fairly rapid development of the toner cartridge recycling industry has happened precisely because entrepreneurs have made pitches to schools, non-profits and other organizations that cartridge recycling can be a way to make money and save on some costs.
The growth has been abetted by the explosive growth in the computer and the desktop printing industry.
While this growth has generated some niche markets for many remanufacturers, refillers and commodity recyclers, in some ways the industry is only now starting to come into its own, moving from a segment of the industry that had flown under radar to one that has developed an effective marketing campaign to offer a wide range of recycling methods.
FROM THE GROUND UP. Russ Thomas, with Rethink Ink, a refiller of copier and primer cartridges, notes that the company has very successfully approached schools to build up its business.
The company, which began in Kansas City, Mo., less than 10 years ago as an experiment with the Kansas City Star newspaper and one school, has now grown to serve mote than 4,000 schools throughout the United States.
Clover Technologies Group, Marseilles, Ill., also has seen its business explode. The company, which began less than 10 years ago, has seen sales jump from $2 million fewer than five years ago to $80 million last year.
The growth in Clover Technologies' business, as well as the creation and/or growth of a host of other companies catering to this niche market, follows the trajectory of the overall computer market.
With more homeowners having home computers and printers, ink jet cartridge demand is growing.
At the same time, the business world has also readily embraced computers.
While the electronics industry has seen some rapid growth in the use of computers and peripherals, the downside to this has been the growth in the amount of obsolete electronics generated.
Many corporations, not wanting to be seen as polluters, have tried to find ways to become more "environmentally friendly," while possibly saving money on new cartridges.
The result has been impressive. From its humble origins only several years ago, ink jet refillers, reclaimers, remanufacturers and recyclers have exploded. While the companies are numerous, concerns are growing about the impact they may have on the overall printer industry.
Hewlett Packard, Palo Alto, Calif., one of original high-tech firms (the company has been in business for 65 years) and one of the companies that has most successfully incorporated the recycling mindset into its overall manufacturing process, has what it feels is a model program to become a good corporate citizen.
What the company doesn't do is refill or remanufacture ink jet cartridges, toners and other printing accessories. Rather, HP runs all the collected material through a more traditional recycling process that separates the plastics, metal and other materials into their core commodities. The separated materials are processed and recycled into other products.
While researching in order to process spent cartridges, the company found that much of the existing equipment it was using to process the cartridges was not suitable. The result was that HP ended up designing its own equipment.
Boris Elisman, vice president of marketing and sales for HP's Imaging and Printing Supplies Organization, says that the company takes a three-pronged approach to supporting the environment. As part of this approach, HP designs its products with the environment in mind. For example, the main objective, Elisman says, is to reduce the number of parts in its laser jet cartridges. "We have reduced the parts by 32 percent over the past 10 years."
Additionally, HP manufactures its cartridges with a snap-on design, making the demanufacturing process much easier.
While these front-end processes make recycling easier, HP has increased its efforts on the "take back" side.
For any company looking to crack into the market, the take-back side is essential, and manufacturers of printers and ink jet and laser jet cartridges are devising methods to have the cartridges returned for repackaging.
As competition heats up for this material, more companies are offering some type of buyback program with incentives, such as offering suppliers of spent cartridges either a discount on their next ink purchase or some type of rebate.
THROUGH THE RINGER. Depending on the model, HP recycles up to 70 percent of the print cartridge by weight. Returned cartridges are shredded and materials are separated into plastics, metals and other components (ink, foam and composite parts.)
Plastics mid metals are further refined and used to make raw materials, auto parts and HP products. The remaining materials are disposed of in an environmentally responsible manner, says Elisman.
Elisman notes that the company strictly recycles the cartridges and does not remanufacture or refill the products. "We do not do any remanufacturing of cartridges. We can't get the quality that our customers demand," he states.
