Océ’s products are typically built for long, intensive operation. One way this is achieved is by using parts with a longer life than the average life cycle of the equipment at the customer’s site. After the return of a leased machine [after 3-5 years] these parts and modules are recovered and reconditioned for a new life as spare parts or parts for a new product. Designers at Océ develop products with the total life cycle in mind. A lot of effort is put into designing non-type-specific parts and modules that can be used in different printing systems. These “commodity” items fit into a constant stream of parts and modules that can easily be exchanged, and by reducing the number of different parts they also simplify logistics.
The Océ Prémia Class remanufactured product line provides an attractive and sustainable alternative to new equipment. Customers are also becoming increasingly interested in Océ’s policy and facilities for reusing end-of-life products. The Océ Prémia Class Certificate, introduced in 2011, describes the remanufacturing process and guarantees that the products perform as newly built printing systems.
Océ's targets:
Short-term (2011-2013)
By 2012, the amount of waste landfilled from the production sites will be reduced to 2% of these sites’ total waste.
Status 2011: 1.9% (2010: 2.2%) Target achieved ahead of schedule.
By 2013, Océ will add at least two products to the Prémia Class remanufacturing program (NEW).
Status 2011: By the end of 2011, the Prémia Class product line included 6 products. With the Prémia Class remanufacturing program, Océ extends the market accessibility to high quality re-used equipments.
Medium-term (2014-2016)
By 2014, the recovered value of remanufactured parts supplied by Océ’s centralized remanufacturing facilities will be doubled over 2010 (NEW)
Status 2011: By the end of 2011, the recovered value showed an increase of 75% over 2010.
Remanufacturing
Parts from machines that return from customers are recovered in our remanufacturing facilities in Itasca [USA], Venlo [Netherlands] and Prague [Czech Republic], and locally in our operating companies. Océ’s asset recovery facilities, the first of which opened in 1990 in Venlo, create a constant stream of parts and units suitable for re-use as service parts and in new machines. Some parts of very high volume machines are regularly exchanged for reconditioned parts, after which the exchanged parts are refurbished.
Depending on demand, complete machines can also be refurbished and resold. Remanufactured machines are popular in environments with basic but intensive use, for example libraries and universities. With this in mind, many remanufactured copiers are given extra functionality for use as book copiers.
In the supply center in Poing [Germany] where very high volume machines are produced, limited numbers of used machines are refurbished, updated and remarketed. The machines, 5 to 8 years old, are stripped, cleaned and completely rebuilt with extra functionality. When they leave the factory, they are almost as good as new, with higher speed, state-of-the-art software and improved print quality.
Use of materials
Printers and copiers are made primarily from metals and plastics, while chemicals and solvents are used for the production of photoconductors, toners, silicone products, process drums, imaging supplies and inks.
By partnering with professional and experienced waste processing specialists, Océ ensures that materials that cannot be reused by Océ get a new life in a different form elsewhere. For example, as a standard procedure in our remanufacturing and disassembly processes all used batteries are separated and offered for recycling.
Only a small fraction of all waste eventually ends up as landfill. For the production sites the percentage of waste landfilled in 2011 amounted 2.0%.
Packaging
The main purpose of our packaging is to deliver our products safely to customers. We strive to minimize the impact of packaging and packaging waste on the environment. The vast majority of our packaging materials are recyclable, and a significant amount includes recycled content. All inks and glues used in Océ cardboard packaging are water based and water soluble and all cardboard boxes can be reused and recycled. Océ printers are transported on wooden pallets, which will be taken back to Océ, refurbished and reused.
Our R&D devoted a lot of time and energy to developing plastic toner bottles which are not a burden on the environment and do not contain waste toner. The bottles are made of HDPE, high-density polyethylene, a plastic that is collected in municipal recycling programs. Océ also leads the way in reducing paper used in packaging. Many of our papers are now shipped in 2.500 sheets boxes instead of having every 500 sheets paperwrapped. We do also fit unboxed rolls of paper on a single pallet. This greatly reduces waste for our customers. In addition, we can now pack approximately 15% more rolls of media on a shipping pallet to reduce the number of pallets and shipments required.
