Xerox Executes Growth Strategy with Five New Color Systems, $53 Million in Document Management Contracts
Press release from the issuing company
PHILADELPHIA--May 16, 2006-- Xerox Corporation today launched a cadre of digital color printers, presses and copiers and announced $53 million in new document management services contracts.
The announcements come at AIIM/On Demand, a major document imaging industry event where Xerox will brief customers, press and analysts on the escalating demand for color technology and business consulting services in enterprises of every size.
Xerox's color line, already the most extensive in the industry, has been expanded with five additional systems, including a new mid-level digital production color press and color printers, digital copiers and multifunction products aimed at offices small to large.
At the same time, Xerox detailed two major consulting services contracts: a $36 million, seven-year deal with the University of Calgary and a $17 million, four-year contract with InterContinental Hotels Group. The signings include enterprise-wide document management services combined with advanced office and high-end production print technology to streamline the flow of information and reduce costs.
"Xerox is intently focused on its customers, offering them the industry's broadest choice of hardware, software and services so they can indeed work smarter," said Angele Boyd, group vice president, IDC, a global information technology research group. "As a result, customers in diverse environments - from the office to the print shop - can turn to Xerox to help them be more productive."
At the briefing, hosted by Jim Firestone, president, Xerox North America, Xerox is discussing the ways customers can achieve high-performance results. Color is among the key accelerators of growth, according to Firestone, for both Xerox and its customers.
According to IDC, Xerox was No. 1 in unit shipments in the U.S. color hardcopy peripherals market of all color equipment printing more than 40 pages per minute -- with 42 percent market share in the fourth quarter of 2005(1). That's up 18 percentage points over the same quarter in the previous year, reflecting both the increasing demand for color and the strength of Xerox's line. And in the first quarter of 2006, Xerox reports that more than 7.1 billion color pages were printed on its office and production color systems.
"The breadth of Xerox's digital color portfolio surrounds the competition, with options in every speed range, and offers superior value for customers who want to harness the proven results that color can bring to their operations," Firestone said. "Add to that the increasing momentum of Xerox's consulting services business, and you have the industry's most powerful combination of people, process and technology."
Office to Production
Xerox brings new features and capabilities to a wider range of customers with five products for both offices and professional print providers. In the production printing realm, the Xerox DocuColor 5000 Digital Press is the first digital press for print providers that need more advanced features than are currently available for mid-range monthly print volumes. The DocuColor 5000 prints 50 pages per minute and will be available in North America and Europe beginning in June.
For office environments, Xerox is launching the WorkCentre 7655, WorkCentre 7665 and WorkCentre 7132 color multifunction products. The WorkCentre systems are the first digital color multifunction systems equipped with Xerox Standard Accounting software, which makes it easy for people to monitor, track and manage color prints, copies, faxes and scans. These products help corporate offices, schools, government agencies and other organizations better manage color printing costs.
The new Phaser 7760 tabloid color laser printer prints up to 35 ppm in color and has an industry-leading black-and-white speed of 45 ppm compared to other products in its class. It features new color management tools and enhanced image quality that allow design professionals to create vibrant, full-color documents such as newsletters, brochures and pre-press proofs.
Software and Business Development
Xerox announced a number of software offerings and business development tools that help customers simplify work processes and boost performance.
* Xerox and Electronics for Imaging introduced the EFI Splash RPX-i, new Mac-based software that makes it easier to control color and improve printing efficiency for the successful Xerox DocuColor 240/250 Digital Printer/Copier.
* New Xerox-developed software in the professional printing arena allows print providers to quickly gain copyright clearance and, in turn, produce printed and copied papers, textbooks and other documents without violating copyright laws.
* Xerox is expanding the professional printing industry's largest portfolio of business development tools, the ProfitAccelerator(TM) Digital Business Resources, with three additional kits.
In the office, Xerox unveiled a new version of Xerox FreeFlow SMARTsend software that includes TrueMatch, an advanced search capability with linguistic technology developed at Xerox's European research center in Grenoble, France. It works much like an Internet search engine that automates key word searches and filters relevant information. This capability enables workers to use a multifunction system to easily find an electronic copy of a paper document that has been scanned into a repository. The most recent versions of sales brochures and price sheets can now be more easily retrieved and printed on demand in retail stores, corporate offices and other environments.
Xerox also is reinforcing its support of industry standards through a partnership with Microsoft, creating advanced scanning and printing capabilities for Xerox office multifunction systems to support Microsoft's XML Paper Specification (XPS) technology. XPS is built into Windows Vista, the next generation of the Windows Operating System. This will enable documents to be printed with even richer graphics and more consistent quality.
Xerox's booth at On Demand, No. 2100 in Hall C, and its booth at AIIM, No. 407 in Hall A, will showcase an array of Xerox printers, multifunction systems, digital presses and a variety of software and services.