We had a chat to Gary Chapman a short while ago about his Print Head Doctor business, he said that it is going extremely well and that he has a 100% success rate. I asked if that meant that he checks each head before cleaning so that he knows he will be successful.
Yep, he assured me that he is very honest and will advise if a head cannot be cleaned and of course only takes on those that can. So with a cost of only $400.00 per head cleaned, customers
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| Gary Chapman |
can be assured that heads that can be cleaned, will be cleaned and in the process save a heap of money on either purchasing new heads or sending the heads to the US for cleaning at exorbitant cost and time delays.
Gary also tries to do the work in a day (he tells us that one head clean can actually take 2-5 hours but he has spent as long as 8 to get the best possible result for the customer.
“Generally we try to complete the work the day we receive the head, depending on how many have been sent. Yesterday I completed 5 heads in 11 hours so the customer had minimal downtime.”
The reality of course is that a customer could be down for a week given 2 days in the post, 1 day for cleaning and another 2 days in return post.
Obviously Gary only works with printers whose machines/print heads are out of warranty.
He explained that it not as simple as people think and by that he means that he cannot simply put the head in the machine and press a button and wait for the process to end. He has one machine dedicated to UV heads and a second machine for all other types. Gary explained that there are many considerations to be considered when cleaning, pressure and cycles, different fluids for different types of heads.
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| The PHD13 machine |
It should also be realised that for many printers, a techie may be needed to remove the heads in the first place and then replace them once they have been cleaned, so it can be a pricy business but still extremely cost effective when compared to buying new heads or having them cleaned in the USA.
Gary sells the machines as well for those that want to do the cleaning in house, he mentioned a price of $7000.00 for the machine which includes the PHD13 machine, adapter plates, Sonic RF adapters and 2 litres of recovery fluids. An extensive knowledge of the processes would also be advisable, especially for those that still think it’s just a push button process.Gary has a web site that details the heads that can be cleaned. The site also gives much other valuable information – www.Printheaddoctor.com.au
Gary is based in Redcliffe, north of Brisbane.
The Print Head Doctor
www.printheaddoctor.com.au
