Konica Minolta 2001 Annual Report Download - page 7

Konica Corporation/ Annual Report 200 1
5
Solid Growth Expected in the
Business Machines Segment
and for the Office Document
Company
We anticipate significant growth in the
business machines segment, and for the
Office Doc ument Company in partic ular.
With many c ompanies now providing
offic e document services, competition in
this field has intensified. Accordingly,
many of the Company’s shareholders
must have questions about our
optimistic expectations for the Offic e
Document Company. I believe the
following points will provide a clear
answer to these questions.
First, it is a fact that high-speed
copiers are the focus of keen attention.
As digitization continues to increase,
the business structure of the Office
Document Company will remain the
same— that is, profits will continue
to come from sales of consumables.
Eventually, however, high-speed
copiers will generate greatly increasing
sales. Also, note that some major
technological advances are necessary
to develop high-speed copiers that can
operate around the c lock and sustain
productivity of at least 7 5 c opies per
minute ( as with the Konic a Sitios
7 0 7 5 ) . Konica’s high-speed copiers
already enjoy high regard in this
area, with levels of reliability and
durability that give us a strong
competitive edge.
Backed by the performance of
our high-speed copiers, we are
considering introducing print-on-
demand ( POD) to the near-print
industry. Although we have possessed
the functional ability to handle POD,
certain technic al problems with the
image continued to hamper
development, such as detailed control
of the print position. These problems
have now been resolved, and we
expect to launch the product at a
price of several million yen. There is a
large market for near-print POD that
requires high-volume copying, and we
believe this will contribute significantly
to expanding sales. For example,
developing a c ontroller that can
interfac e with the IBM AS/4 0 0 for
computer network systems would
greatly improve networking
capabilities.
Second, consider the subject of
cost reduction in digital copiers. To
obtain clear success at a time of
intensifying pric e competition, Konica
has focused on c omprehensive cost
reduc tions. We expanded our
manufacturing base in China, then
continued finding other innovative
ways to drive down costs.
Third, I would like to mention
sales of polymerization toner, whose
development is unique to Konica.
Following the establishment of our
business alliance with Minolta in
December 20 0 0 , we jointly formed
the Konica Minolta Supplies
Manufacturing Co., Ltd. The new
company brought to market a
practical polymerization toner,
which debuted as a c onsumable that
delivers superior pic ture quality at a
competitive price.
By making best use of our
competitive strengths in the years
ahead, we have our sights set on
boosting sales from ¥ 1 7 4 .1 billion in
March 2 0 0 1 to ¥2 7 7 .0 billion by
March 2 0 0 5 .
To Our Shareholders
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