After one of our customers wanted to rent a plotter for a couple of weeks and my boss found out the local plotter dealer wanted $2500 for the rental, we bought our own for $3600 to use as a rental. My question is, having never rented one, what is the best way to calculate the charge. A color copier can charge by the page. Since this is paper on a roll, should I charge by the foot, or by the % of ink used. Has anyone done plotter rentals before?
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The greatest enemy of knowledge isn't ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge. Stephen Hawking -
Hi! The best I think is to figure out what use will the plotter be in, is it drawings only - charge by the sq.ft. paper used (most wear on plotter hardware e.g. rollers, drive belt etc.), is it posters, images etc. charge by the usage of ml of ink (most usage of printheads and ink). If it's a HP Designjet (newer model) it's very easy to track from the webadmin.
If there's a mix I'd suggest to charge on basis of the ink usage if the customer supplies the paper himself. -
The machine will be used mostly to make maps. I have a feeling that we will learn pricing the hard way, through trial and error.The greatest enemy of knowledge isn't ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge. Stephen HawkingComment
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When you say the local Dealer wanted X amount for the rental...what was that number based on?
I would think just figuring a set amount Per Day would be the least confusing for every one involved, the machine whatever model you have is going to have a maximum amount it could possibly print if they were running it 24/7..count on that and Charge per day.Comment
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