This week KYOCERA Document Solutions Europe is marking the 25th anniversary of the launch of its landmark environmentally sustainable ECOSYS laser printer.
KYOCERA revealed yesterday that it is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the launch of its first, environmentally friendly ECOSYS laser printer, which was unveiled in 1992. The original FS-1500 model featured a new toner system which, according to the OEM, “enabled an 85 per cent reduction in waste of consumables over the lifetime of the printer.”
At the time of the printer’s release, the “prevailing design trend” was for toner cartridges to consist of up to 60 key imaging components. These would then “be discarded when the toner expired”. KYOCERA’s ECOSYS toners feature a maximum of 5 components and the toner can be “exchanged independently of other components”, which reduces unnecessary replacement of parts and makes the printer both lower-cost and more sustainable.
Takahiro Sato, President of KYOCERA Document Solutions Europe B.V, said: “A quarter of a century ago, terms such as sustainability and environmental impact had yet to enter the corporate lexicon, yet now they dominate many boardroom discussions.
“Environmental sustainability has been an underlying principle of the KYOCERA Group’s philosophy since it’s foundation in 1959, and the development of the ECOSYS range anticipated a new era of ecological consciousness. KYOCERA’s ECOSYS products set the standard for eco-friendly printing when they were first launched and, 25 years later, we are still leading the way.”
KYOCERA has since released a number of other sustainable innovations, among them new eco-friendly toners which fuse “lower than conventional methods and can result in an energy saving of up to 50 per cent.”
The ECOSYS printers have long-life components that “are more durable than traditional parts” and their toners “are simpler, smaller and lighter than more complex alternatives” which lessens “overall transport requirements” and reduces “the total cost of ownership.”