Konica Minolta 2012 Annual Report Download - page 17

European automobile manufacturer headquartered in Germany, and the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the management and maintenance of
offi ce equipment at their offi ces. The Company also acquired IT service providers to
strengthen its IT service capability, which is key to expanding service businesses in the
future and achieving sustainable growth. In Europe, the Company acquired Sweden-
based Koneo AB in April 2011. In the United States, California-based subsidiary All
Covered Inc., which became a member of the Group in December 2010, acquired nine
companies including Illinois-based Techcare LLC. The effective date for the acquisition of
two of these companies was April 1, 2012. With these initiatives, the Company expanded
its IT service network in North America and European markets. In addition, the Company
launched two new color MFPs, bizhub C754 and C654, as the highest-end products in
the bizhub series in January 2012 to enhance its product competitiveness in this fi eld.
In the production print fi eld, sales volume of color equipment for production printing
systems for the fi scal year ended March 31, 2012 increased signifi cantly year on year in
all regions – Japan, the United States, Europe, and other regions including Asia. This
performance refl ected strong sales of three new color digital printing systems, the bizhub
PRESS C8000, C7000 and C6000, which were launched in autumn 2010 and are used
in in-house printing and digital commercial printing. Sales of monochrome MFPs also
increased year on year, especially in overseas markets. Consequently, overall sales in this
fi eld remained robust throughout the fi scal year ended March 31, 2012.
As a result, Business Technologies Business segment sales to outside customers
increased 1.5% year on year to ¥547.5 billion. Excluding a decrease of ¥24.4 billion in
sales due to the effect of the strong yen on currency translation, segment sales would
have increased about 6.0% year on year. Segment profi t increased 5.4% year on year to
¥39.4 billion. During the fi scal year ended March 31, 2012, large-scale natural disasters
such as the Great East Japan Earthquake and fl ooding in Thailand caused diffi culties in
procuring certain materials and components. The Company took steps to minimize the
effect on sales by strengthening cooperation among its development, procurement, and
production divisions. As a result, both segment sales and segment profi t increased year
on year despite the strong yen.
Optics Business
In the display materials fi eld, the Group introduced new cellulose triacetate fi lms for
increasing viewing angle (VA-TAC fi lm) from early 2012. Sales of VA-TAC fi lms remained
favorable in Korea and Taiwan during the fi scal year ended March 31, 2012 despite
widespread production adjustments in the liquid crystal display (LCD) industry from
summer 2011. In addition, adoption of thin plain TAC fi lms, a strong Group product,
increased steadily. As a result, overall TAC fi lm sales volume for the fi scal year ended
March 31, 2012 increased year on year.
In the memory devices fi eld, sales volume of glass substrates for hard disk drives (HDDs)
was level year on year, refl ecting production adjustments adopted by personal computer
manufacturers in the fi rst half of the fi scal year and the effects of damage certain HDD set
manufacturers suffered due to the fl ooding in Thailand in the second half. Sales volume of
pickup lenses for optical disks for the fi scal year ended March 31, 2012 decreased year on
year because the markets for both Blu-ray DiscsTM and DVDs failed to recover.
In the image input/output components fi eld, sales of lens units for digital and video
cameras had been rebounding but stalled because of stagnant orders from certain
customers that were affected by the fl ooding in Thailand. Sales volume only increased
slightly year on year as a result. Meanwhile, sales volume of optical units for cell phones
with cameras increased year on year, with increased use of Konica Minolta optical units
in the second half compensating for a weak fi rst half.
As a result, Optics Business segment sales to outside customers decreased 4.3%
year on year to ¥124.3 billion. Segment profi t increased 9.6% year on year to ¥14.0
billion because increased sales of main products and initiatives to reduce costs and
expenses compensated for the decrease in segment profi t from lower sales and prices
for certain products.
Healthcare Business
In the Healthcare Business, the Company launched two models of digital medical
input equipment, the AeroDR cassette digital X-ray detector and the REGIUS Σ desktop
16