Buying Used
The selection of used equipment is not as robust as it once was.
Even though virtually all vendors still take back leased equipment at the end of most contracts, refurbishing equipment is expensive in terms of the man-hours required. What’s more, because older MFPs may require different parts than their replacement models, handling used equipment can mean maintaining a large inventory of different kinds of supplies, which is something few vendors are prepared to do.
For those reasons, the most typical kind of used copiers, printers or MFPs available are the production-level workhorse type devices you’d find in Segment 5 or Segment 6, because those devices tend to have longer life cycles based on much sturdier construction (for example, steel frames) than typical office printers or copiers.
It’s worth noting that manufacturers and vendors are becoming more interested in selling remanufactured equipment for environmental reasons (to avoid simply throwing away usable copiers, printers and MFPs) than for economic ones. These vendors may be able to place reconditioned used equipment in your office as part of your overall printing and copying solution. If you need a production-level copier or printer, chances are you’ll be able to save a lot of money by installing a reconditioned model, though savings will probably be much less for a slower MFP intended for a workgroup instead of a production environment.
While used equipment can be less expensive (particularly on the high end of the market, where price tags start in six figures), you should educate yourself on what you are sacrificing in functionality, and perhaps operating cost. Make sure your used equipment will be able to serve your needs for the entire life of your contract.