Jörk Schüßler, European marketing manager for Citizen Systems Europe, explains how thermal printers have met and in some cases exceeded the capability of laser printers to offer simple, reliable, economical printing in the logistics sector
Although laser printers are widely used throughout the logistics sector they are not without their problems: cost of ownership, unreliability, paper jams, ozone generation and paper dust being just a few, according to Schüßler.
Nonetheless, laser printers do provide a simple solution for printing A4 invoices, route plans and delivery notes. Schüßler says however that there is an alternative in the form of low cost, low maintenance thermal printers. These are capable of output up to six inches wide – making them suitable for A5 documents – with software being capable of downsizing existing materials to fit. Although A5 might require a slight change in operating procedures, the format is more than adequate for most applications, with the added benefit that thermal printing technology offers a number of important advantages over laser.
Laser printers work in the same way as photocopiers, charging particles of the paper to attract ions from the ink and bonding the two with heat and pressure. Laser printers can deliver high-quality text and graphics onto paper, with the resolution to produce barcodes that can be read with an infrared scanner. However, thermal printers are said to offer some advantages over laser printers. This is because there is no messy toner to handle during reloading with thermal printers, while the lesser number of components (essentially a heating element in the print head and a motor that moves the paper) is said to improve energy efficiency over laser printing and reduce the need for maintenance. Desktop thermal printers are also a lot smaller and can conveniently fit into small spaces, while the addition of wireless connectivity, LAN capability and Bluetooth technologies have all brought greater mobility to thermal solutions.
Schüßler says the reduction in maintenance, energy consumption and waste achieved by thermal printing means a lower total lifetime cost compared with laser printers and so often the choice is between direct thermal printers (with no ribbon) and thermal transfer printers (with a ribbon).
In logistics, the capability for wholesale suppliers to print consignment notes quickly and simply considerably increases the efficiency of warehouse processes. And where a company operates its service 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, delivering millions of items every week, the effect of this enhanced efficiency can be dramatic. Using laser printers to print consignment notes is far from ideal as they are time consuming to use and maintain, putting unnecessary pressure on our warehouse operatives. The printers can also be unwieldy and heavy. Above all, laser printers are typically extremely costly to run, frequently requiring the replacement and installation of expensive toner cartridges.
By consulting a leading manufacturer of label printers with an expertise in designing for the logistics market, you can ensure the right printer specification. Useful advice and support is also provided by value-added resellers who are able to evaluate the available technologies and provide the most suitable system to enable your labelling to be carried out with the optimum levels of reliability and efficiency.
From the now archaic daisy wheel and golfball printers, through dot matrix, ink jet and laser, to today’s advanced thermal printers, the face of the printing industry has changed radically over the last quarter of a century.
Citizen Systems Europe is a specialist in printer design, building machines with features that offer hassle-free, high quality output with minimal maintenance. Citizen Systems Europe operates from locations throughout Europe covering the EMEA region. It offers a wide range of printers for industrial, retail, healthcare and mobile applications specialising in label, barcode, portable and point-of-sale printers. In each case, the company’s products are sold and supported by a network of specialised partners.
Citizen System Europe
020 8893 1900
