Armor Office Printing and Speed Infotech, two printing industry stalwarts focusing on remanufactured products, have announced that they are joining forces.
According to Armor, this strategic alliance “represents a real boost for the circular economy as both companies are committed to the collection, production and marketing of remanufactured cartridges.”
Armor and Speed Infotech are establishing this partnership in order to reinforce their presence in the European inkjet cartridge production and collection market for retail customers. Together they post annual revenues of around €80 million ($93.8 million) in the Office Printing market.
As part of the agreement, Speed Infotech is providing access to its ink cartridge production capacity according to Armor’s patent compliance and quality requirements whilst Armor is contributing its entity that manages the collection of empty cartridges, namely Recoll, based in the Netherlands. The French manufacturer will continue to develop its ink formulation and ink production activities and continue to serve all its customers in Europe, with the benefits of an enhanced supply chain and a more extensive product range thanks to the alliance.
Hubert de Boisredon, CEO of Armor, states: “This alliance demonstrates the commitment of two industrial partners in the circular economy, actively striving to preserve the planet’s resources by recycling print cartridges.”
Having incorporated circular economy methods into its business practices, Armor says it has made the strategic decision to enter into this partnership, which will enhance its strength in the European remanufactured inkjet cartridge market. Over 6 million laser and inkjet cartridges are collected and recycled each year by Armor.
Armor is a partner of the IEC (Circular Economy Institute), a founder member of both France Cartouche Réemploi and ETIRA (European Toner and Inkjet Remanufacturers Association), and a board member for France of the UN Global Compact.
Armor continues to gain market share in Europe (+10 percent in 2017), despite the highly competitive environment. The printing consumables specialist explains that it is currently expanding its OWA brand and services designed for business customers in the European market. This, states Armor, “is ensured by its collection and production services for remanufactured laser cartridges and on the high-quality inks for business inkjet and large format cartridges produced at its plant in Poland, supported by its R&D centre in Germany.”
