Strong sales and smaller losses in its first quarter have left Indigo confident that it will break even and move into sustainable profitability by the end of the year.


"While never satisfied reporting a loss, we were able to report a lower loss than expected," said chairman and chief executive Benny Landa.


Revenues were up 18% to 30m ($42.6m), with a loss of 2.4m (down 15%).


Equipment sales were up 20% to 16.8m with strong demand for the UltraStream 2000, both from new users and existing sites upgrading.


Shipping the UltraStream is still a priority, although development of the Publisher webfed machine and the Photo e-Print is on target, with beta sites expected by the year end.


A 20% increase in the number of pages printed contributed to a 17% increase in revenue from consumables and service, offset by their lower costs.


"UltraStream customers print two- to three-times higher volumes than our existing base, which will translate into higher consumables revenue," said Landa.


The effect of this increase is expected to show up in the firms results in the next two to three quarters, according to chief financial officer Alon Bar-Shany.


"It takes an UltraStream customer six months to ramp up to full production. Were starting to see that now from machines installed in the last two quarters of last year," he said.


The UK, the firms biggest market in Europe, is spearheading development of customer relationship marketing, which began with the appointment of customer business development manager Nancy Janes (PrintWeek, 12 April).


"We have to provide a lot more than products, consumables and service," said Bar-Shany. "Its not a direct link but we hope to see the effect on our bottom line by the end of the year."


Story by Barney Cox