New Printer Erases Paper For Reuse

Submitted by: The Two Sides Team December 19, 2012

Toshiba has unveiled a multifunction printer for the office environment that can erase paper for reuse up to four times.This story, written by Bart King, originally appeared on the Sustainable Brands website.

Toshiba is touting the environmental benefits of this first-of-its-kind printer, noting that if the same paper is used to its full extent (five times total), it constitutes a 57 percent reduction in the system’s total CO2 emissions.

The printer uses a special toner whose color is removed by passing the paper through high temperature. The machine also has ability to sort paper into reusable and un-reusable sheets at the same time as removing the toner color, and to digitize the documents prior to erasing. Normally, documents that have been used, for example, at a meeting, are either filed away or scrapped, but with this system, the contents of the documents can be converted into data and saved for future use.

The printer also contains parts made with bioplastics, though Toshiba did not state to what extent bioplastics are employed.

The printer will be available in Japan beginning in February 2013, followed by a worldwide roll out, Toshiba said.

See the full article on the Sustainable Brands website.

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