Photocopier

The Crofter · Post by **The Crofter** » Thu 17 Apr, 2008 7:13 pm

I have decided to offer photocopying services in the gallery. Just been googling for information and realise that this is a big market with many machines on offer. Does anyone else have a photocopier if so can you recommend any specific models.

A4, mono, duplex, 15ppm, ront loading (space issues).

So fairly low spec.

The Crofter · Post by **The Crofter** » Thu 17 Apr, 2008 8:09 pm

Ok, instead of "ront loading" let's try "front loading..."

Roboframer · Post by **Roboframer** » Thu 17 Apr, 2008 8:21 pm

We lease one, it's a Toshiba e-s 160 - digital (digital ones - if doing more than one copy go 'scan, print print print print' etc - non-digital go 'scan print scan prin scan print' etc - so cost more to run) but are about to upgrade (end of lease) to a Ricoh Aficio 2000 A3

We lease from a company called Apogee corporation and the costs (for the new one) are as follows.

RRP £4180
Discounted Purchase price £2100
Lease rental over 60 months £45.50 pm
4095 copies per month @ 0.9p per copy £36.86 pm

Total cost per month £82.36 +VAT

We charge 5p per A4 copy, so don't make a killing - we decided not to have the pay at the machine option - we'd forever be getting pestered for change, so we have a counter behind the, er counter, which we continually forget to reset and the other week I tried charging some poor old bugger that had done two copies, for our newsletter - done in batches of 100 so the machine does not get too hot.

Downside of paying at the counter is that some idiots don't want to pay for their mistakes "Oh but I put my copy in upside down 1st time, so it was just a blank piece of paper that came out, why should I have to pay for that"

(IT'S FIVE PENCE FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE - anyway - you did indeed make a copy of something - the copier lid - now cough up tightwad)

osgood · Post by **osgood** » Thu 17 Apr, 2008 8:40 pm

How many pages would you need to sell to cover costs?

Roboframer · Post by **Roboframer** » Thu 17 Apr, 2008 8:49 pm

Well the figures are above, add the VAT @17.5% plus a few quid for power - it will depend on what you pay for paper too. Viking Direct, cheap as chips, but that info is not here, at home so I can't give an accurate answer - Mrs R's dept anyway - sums and all that.

Toner is supplied FOC.

We just about break even and that includes our newsletter at 12000 copies (on 6000 sheets) every other month, but that's fine, we'd not complain about a small loss - gets bodies through the door - it's paid for itself over and over in unrelated sales.

Roboframer · Post by **Roboframer** » Thu 17 Apr, 2008 9:03 pm

Don't take Apogee as a recommendation - just been speaking to Pat - she's on our Parish Council who have a better machine and are paying less.

She's looking in to it so watch this space. Apparently (according to the Apogee rep) government bodies get special rates. Well, he would say that, wouldn't he.

Post by **prospero** » Fri 18 Apr, 2008 1:25 am

Pat.

If you do decide to lease and have a maintainance agreement in the deal, make sure the company is quite long established. If the company goes out of business you will lose the maintainance deal but the finance will be arrranged though a separate company, so you will still have to keep paying even if the machine is totally u.s.

Finance companies never go bust.

osgood · Post by **osgood** » Fri 18 Apr, 2008 2:32 am

Roboframer wrote: We just about break even and that includes our newsletter at 12000 copies (on 6000 sheets) every other month,

So that at least 3000 sheets a month - 750 sheets a week - 125 sheets a day.....that's an awful lot of photocopies if there are no newsletters to print!

I think I'll give it a miss!

WelshFramer · Post by **WelshFramer** » Fri 18 Apr, 2008 9:17 am

Ebay is a good source for reconditioned photocopiers.

If you can get a good bargain then it might not matter so much if it has to be replaced after a few years.

If you do buy a machine then consider the running costs. We used to have a small photocopier. Last time we needed a new toner cartridge we found it would cost £100. Looked on eBay and found a bigger, better machine with more features for £99 including a spare toner cartridge.

It's a reconditioned machine - does reduction and magnification - and it's been fine except for misfeeds. A small bottle of Platenclene fixed that.

Here's a nice one:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/22-CANON-CLC-700- ... dZViewItem

CanvasChris · Post by **CanvasChris** » Fri 18 Apr, 2008 10:05 am

Try this for size.... http://www.copiersforsale.co.uk

But before you decide to buy, do a bit of ringing round or research on ebay for the price of consumables... toner, drums, fusers..etc.

These all have a life and unless you know how to reset them they'll need replacing.

If you want my personal advice... try Konica ... I could help you there on the service advice...

The Crofter · Post by **The Crofter** » Fri 18 Apr, 2008 1:58 pm

Brilliant, thanks for all the advice. Looks like ebay for my first stop.

avantime · Post by **avantime** » Sat 19 Apr, 2008 10:24 am

Photocopiers! Mmmmm - I sold them for a while.

Some tips -

1. Don't pay too much per copy - should be able to get it down to about 0.5p per copy these days - maybe less if salesman's targets are looming at the end of the month / quarter.

2. When you get a price then get a lease price per thousand pounds per quarter. Should be c.£65 per thousand from memory. So a copier at cash price of £2100 costs 2.1x£65 per quarter = £45.50 per month. Buy checking the price per thousand pounds you can ensure the price is "loaded" for the lease!! This method works for buying cars too!

3. Connect it to your computer if you can. Many copiers now have printer ports. This means that to print out from your computer costs 0.5p and not 7p per sheet if you use you laser printer or even more if you are using an inkjet. By suggesting that a company with c.2000 employees connected their computers to their copiers they saved >£50000 per year! Ok you won't save that much but a couple of pints every so often!!

4. The photocopier company will sell old copiers off cheap as they come to the end of the lease. They are only worth a few pounds - they will have been properly maintained and there are deals to be done!

Roboframer · Post by **Roboframer** » Sat 19 Apr, 2008 10:31 pm

Great advice Avanime - thanks.

Our last two photocopiers could be installed as printers on a PC/Laptop and we never used the facility - not that we have a computer down the shop!

When we do get one down there and install the copier on it, it'll mean customers can come in with discs or memory stick things as well as hard copies.