What is the Total Cost of Scanning
As you may have heard us claim, Spectrum is the most cost-effective scanner on the market. What does this mean? How can we claim this when some other scanners cost less? The answer: we determine cost-effectiveness by considering all the costs associated with buying a scanner, which goes beyond just the scanner's list price and factors in other up-front cost components as well as ongoing costs. By reading through this page, you'll not only learn how to gauge the true cost of a production scanner but you'll also realize why Spectrum really is the most cost-effective scanner on the market.
True Cost vs. "List Price"
Contrary to popular belief, List Price or MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price) is only the starting point for determining your true scanner cost. The actual cost will most likely be List Price less a discount from your reseller, and will also include the cost, sometimes hidden, associated of other items you'll need to get your scanner up and running.
Initial Scanner Purchase Price
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Calculations |
BBH Spectrum Example |
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List Price |
$18,995 to $47,245 (bitonal simplex to color duplex) |
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Reseller Discount |
Varies per reseller |
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PC Interface Board & Cable |
$0 - Adrenaline 650i and SCSI-3 cable are included |
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Image Enhancement |
$0 - Hardware VRS 3.5 included |
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Imprinter/Endorser (if needed) |
Standard on 8125 models, $1,000 List Price on all others |
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Initial Scanner Hardware Cost |
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x |
Number of Scanners Needed |
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Total Initial Scanner Cost |
Many scanning users often have to justify the purchase of an imaging system by looking at all the costs over the life of the system. Most good quality scanners or better will last three to five years. Thus, to understand the true Total Cost of Scanning, you will also want to factor in ongoing scanner costs along with your initial scanner cost.
Ongoing Scanner Costs
All production quality scanners come with some form of warranty coverage lasting between 90 days and one year of onsite service. Additional coverage, such as upgrading a 90-day onsite warranty to one year and/or upgrading service response time to next business day, same day or even within four hours, are also available from a variety of service providers at an additional charge. In addition, users are able to replace their production scanner's rollers and lamps without needing to send the scanner back to the factory or needing a service call. Lastly, with proper cleaning with supplies provided by the scanner manufacturer, consumables need to be replaced less often, users will experience fewer jams and multifeeds, and less service calls will be needed. Thus, the following items are important in order to calculate the ongoing costs of scanning:
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Calculations |
BBH Spectrum Example | |
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Warranty Coverage |
Standard: one year, onsite (US) within one business day typical | |
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Roller Replacement Cost |
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Lamp Replacement Cost |
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Cleaning Supplies |
Preventative Maintenance Kits available for a List Price of $99 |
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Maintenance Cost |
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Calculating roller and lamp replacement costs can be difficult, particularly when comparing manufacturers. Here's how you can start:
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Calculations |
BBH Spectrum Example | |
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Life per Roller |
600,000 scans for Spectrum pick and separator rollers |
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Avg. Daily Scanning Volume |
For this example: 10,000 documents/scans per day |
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Roller Replacement Rate |
600,000 scans ÷ 10,000 docs per day = once every 60 days |
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# of Working Days per Year |
For this example: 260 days (52 weeks x 5 days per week) |
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Total Scanner Life in Days |
For this example: 1,820 total days |
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Roller Replacement Rate |
For this example: once every 60 days |
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Total # Roller Replacements |
For this example: 30 roller replacements over scanner life |
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Repl. Cost per Roller |
Varies per Consumable Parts Reseller |
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Roller Replacement Cost |
Less as part of the Spectrum All-In-One consumables kit |
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Total # Roller Replacements |
For this example: 30 roller replacements over scanner life |
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Total Roller Repl. Cost |
Less as part of the Spectrum All-In-One consumables kit |
* Only one tire per roller; also, each Spectrum scanner also utilizes 14 sets of transport rollers, which are not considered consumables because they can last between 5 to 10 million scans and rarely, if ever, need replacement.
A similar formula can be used for lamp replacement – just check on whether each lamp needs to be purchased and replaced separately or as part of an assembly.
Calculations BBH Spectrum Example Number of Hours per Shift For this ex.: 7 hours (8 - ½ hr. lunch, two 15 min. breaks) x Number of Shifts per Day For this example: 1 shift x # of Days per Working Year For this example: 260 days (52 weeks x 5 days per week) = # of Hours per Working Yr. For this example: 1,820 hours (7 hours/shift for 260 days) x Scanner Life 7 years per Spectrum scanner = # of Hours per Scanner Life For this example: 12,740 hours ÷ Life per Lamp 5,000 hours per Spectrum lamp = Total Lamp Repl. Rate For this example: 3 times (12,740 ÷ 5,000 = 3 rounded up) x # of Lamps per Scanner 4 lamps per Spectrum scanner = Total # of Lamps Needed For this example: 12 lamps (4 lamps replaced 3 times each) x Replacement Cost per Lamp Varies per Consumable Parts Reseller = Total Lamp Repl. Cost Less as part of the Spectrum All-In-One consumables kit
Spectrum All-In-One Consumables Kit
Each Spectrum All-In-One consumables kit contains all the rollers, lamps and cleaning supplies you'll need to keep your scanner up and running trouble free, for one year of scanning based on a volumes of up to 10,000 documents scanned per day. Specifically, each kit includes four pick rollers, two separator rollers, four lamps, a glass flat, and a complete set of cleaning supplies for a List Price of $1,000. If you scan more than 10,000 documents per day, you can purchase additional consumable kits or individual consumable parts from any of our authorized Consumable Parts Resellers
