Pelikan's creative powerhouse: the Inkjet Technology Centre in Wetzikon (Switzerland)

Pelikan has been successfully developing ink cartridges and toners in its Swiss Technology Centre since 2007, and invited journalists on a very special press trip

Hanover, July 2009 – Pelikan has been successfully operating the Inkjet Technology Centre in Wetzikon near Zurich for two years. To mark this occasion, the long-established company invited a group of international journalists on a visit at the beginning of June. A total of 37 journalists from 10 different European countries took up the invitation to gain an insight into Pelikan's new developments in the hardcopy sector. The participants spent two stimulating days in Wetzikon under the management of Arno Alberty (Executive Vice President Europe) and Dr. Thorsten Lifka (Executive Vice President Group Production and R&D). The Pelikan company pursues a clear goal in the hardcopy sector: the quick and successful development of compatible inks and toners for printers from a wide variety of original manufacturers. For consumers, this primarily means that they can purchase high quality printer cartridges at a much lower price than from an original manufacturer. Because original ink is expensive: a consumer would pay the equivalent of around 2600 Euros for a litre of ink in a shop. As much as a bottle of 1947 Dom Perignon, for instance.

High quality printer cartridges are essential to ensure that photographs and graphics also appear in bold, glossy colours on paper. The catch with inkjet printers is the high follow-up costs for printer cartridges. The printer manufacturers' business model is simple: the printers are sold at attractive prices, and consumers hardly ever consider the follow-up costs when purchasing their bargain printer. The rude awakening comes when purchasing subsequent cartridges - a cartridge set comprising black and colour cartridges can often exceed the costs of purchasing the printer. By purchasing Pelikan cartridges, however, consumers can achieve a cost saving of up to 50%, as well as obtaining a 3-year warranty on Pelikan printer accessories.

The Inkjet Technology Centre in Wetzikon has developed more than 26 new compatible ink cartridges to date. This can be primarily attributed to the effective collaboration between the Centre's Technical and Microelectronics Departments. Good communication and concentrated know-how ensure effective development progress. The special challenge here is decrypting the communication between microchip and printer. This decryption has become increasingly difficult in the last few years, and it can therefore take several years to crack a chip. The latest example of Pelikan's development strength is the chip cartridge for the Canon Pixma series, which Pelikan brought onto the market last year after two years of development, as the world's first supplier.

In total around 50 of the total 2500 Pelikan staff are employed in Wetzikon. The work of these experts primarily consists in analyzing printer cartridges from well-known original manufacturers and developing alternative accessories on this basis. As a one-to-one copy of the cartridge would infringe patent rights, each cartridge must be redesigned. Preventive clarification of patent rights is undertaken by an in-house Patent Department, which ascertains and checks the latest patent rights during periodic investigations. For example, an Epson cartridge can be subject to 100 patents and applications, which is why constant monitoring of current procedures and new applications is essential.

But it's not only the technical and electronic development that presents challenges. The chemists at the Swiss Technology Centre are also constantly working at matching Pelikan ink to the original ink in respect of colour reproduction and wipe resistance, light fastness, flow characteristics, durability and many other properties. With more than 170 years' know-how in ink manufacture, the Chemical Development Department is optimally equipped to meet all challenges. Many further product developments can certainly be expected in future from Pelikan's creative powerhouse in Wetzikon.