Say Cheese…

Amulti-functional device (MFD) is the in-thing in the Indian IT peripherals

space today. It has been one of the few products that has lit up the otherwise

lackluster IT hardware market in 2002. The reasons are simple–the product

appeals on the most important deciding factor in any corporate purchase decision–PRICE!

All corporations big or small need fax machines, scanners, copiers and printers

in varying degrees. MFDs offer all these utilities in just a single device and

at a fraction of the combined price of these individual products. This offers a

good proposition in the market when everyone is trying to cut costs in order to

stay competitive in a sluggish market. Another thing where MFD scores is with

regards to space, which is available at a premium in a large number of offices

and not to forget the utility the device offers in terms of convenience of

getting four different jobs that can be done with the same device.

Sindhwani: Senior analyst at IDC India

As per IDC (India) estimates, 43,185 units of multi function devices worth Rs

246.46 crore were sold in the Indian market during 2002. This represents a

growth of more than 115% in unit terms and more than 60% in value terms over

last year.

These devices make the process of document management, in paper and digital

formats a lot easier due to convergence in printing technologies. The concept of

convergence in Document Management has its precinct in creating, managing and

disseminating business information available in myriad formats.

The overall Multi Function devices market is divided into two main

categories, Inkjet and Laser. Inkjet MFDs are typically used for small workgroup

purposes that don’t need heavy duty jobs but require all or most of the

functions possible with an MFD like printing, copying, faxing and scanning. For

heavy duty printing and copying jobs the laser MFDs are an ideal choice.

Interestingly though the laser MFDs are also capable of scanning and faxing

applications they are sold mostly with printing and copying modules. Since these

devices are meant for a larger workgroup and for heavy-duty jobs, printing and

copying take precedence over the other applications. There are different

segments at which various Laser MFDs are targeted and the segments depend on the

printing and copying speeds.

Vendor review



HP is the leading brand in the inkjet MFDs market followed by Canon and

Samsung. The laser-based MFD market saw Xerox, Sharp and Toshiba accounting for

more than half the market. Canon’s performance in the laser MFD market has

been the best when compared with the vendor’s performance last year. It is one

of the few vendors along with Xerox that has been consistently selling higher

end digital multi-function products.

Outlook



The prospect for MFDs looks bright for the next three years. Market is

expected to record a compounded annual growth rate of 98.6% from 2003 to 2005.

Inkjet MFDs are being used for more and more applications thereby increasing the

overall imaging market. In the coming years, Inkjet MFDs are expected to be used

for more and more applications that would expand the overall digital imaging

pie. In addition to that, there is expected to be a significant shift from the

Inkjet printers and fax markets in favor of inkjet MFDs. The home segment is

expected to provide the biggest growth opportunity during the next three years

as the consumers become aware of the possible uses and applications possible

with the Inkjet MFDs. Laser MFDs are also expected to record significant growth

rates as the market shifts from analog copiers to the digital multifunction

copiers. The immediate thrust is expected to come from the government that will

shift its copier buying from analogs to the digital multi functions. The

government, being the single most important segment in the copier market, will

provide plenty of opportunities in this space.

As the concept of total document management gains prominence among the

corporate consumers, the market for flatbed laser multi functions will bgrow

exponentially, more so in the top end of the market.

AJAY SINDHWANI