Konica Minolta 2011 Annual Report Download - page 2

In terms of the economic climate during the past year, although lingering uncertainty remained in certain sectors,
the success of economic stimulus measures and monetary policies enacted by governments helped the European
and U.S. economies achieve a moderate recovery. Asian economies, meanwhile, saw consistent moves toward
economic expansion, with growth led by China and India.
In this market environment, we embarked on the second year of the Management Policy <09-10>, our two-year
plan for achieving strong growth. To this end, we positioned the year as a pivotal one for putting Konica Minolta on
track for growth. We launched new products and developed sales organizations in major business fields, expanded
our production capacity, and took other assertive steps as we adopted a more aggressive strategy.
In the Business Technologies Business, we launched a new brand, the bizhub PRESS series, in the growth field of
production print, marking our full-scale entry into the commercial printing market. Furthermore, we took steps to
enhance our sales capabilities, which included consolidating Group divisions involved in commercial and digital
printing, and signing a cross-distribution agreement with Kodak, based in the United States. Similarly, in the office
field, we vigorously advanced measures designed to gain orders from major global accounts and to promote
service business expansion on a global basis. In the Optics Business, area outside of strong-growing TAC films
were impacted by customer production adjustments. With that said, we used this adverse climate as an opportunity
to enact initiatives for improving profitability. Actions taken included improving production efficiency and shifting
production sites overseas. Where fostering new businesses is concerned, in the fall of 2010, we built a pilot plant
based on a roll-to-roll coating production method in Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) lighting, an area we
expect to become a pillar of future earnings. Elsewhere, we entrusted major lighting manufacturer Philips
Technologie GmbH, based in Germany with production via the evaporation method of OLED panels designed to
use blue phosphorescent materials developed independently by Konica Minolta. Sales of the panels are scheduled
to begin in the fall of 2011. In this way, we are moving preparations forward for achieving growth over the long term.
KONICA MINOLTA HOLDINGS, INC. 1 ANNUAL REPORT 2011