Nikon 2006 Annual Report Download - page 4

Set medium term goals in light of
record high sales and income
Net sales for the year ended March 31, 2006 advanced
14.5% year-on-year to ¥730,944 million. Operating
income was ¥66,587 million, which represented a
118.0% gain compared with the previous year. As a
result, net income grew 19.9% to ¥28,945 million. All of
these results marked new record highs for Nikon.
These achievements are viewed merely as a stepping
stone, however, towards even higher performance, as
refl ected in the objectives of our three-year medium
term management plan. Based on this plan, consolidated
targets for the year ending March 2009 include net sales
of ¥900 billion, operating income of ¥90 billion and a
debt-equity ratio of less than 30%. Details of the plan
are given later.
Nikon has identifi ed two main challenges to over-
come in order to accomplish these goals: (1) secure a
leadership position and remain at the vanguard of the
market by leveraging our technical advantages; and (2)
create a highly profi table corporate structure by bolster-
ing manufacturing competitiveness, the quintessence of
a manufacturer.
Establish market-leading
technology
Nikon enjoys a strong presence in each of its core mar-
kets. In the fi eld of IC steppers and scanners, we are
establishing a sound position in the market for cutting
edge ArF immersion scanners. During the period, we
began shipment of the NSR-S609B ArF immersion lithog-
raphy scanner, which is the world’s fi rst system to achieve
a lens having an NA value above 1.0. Following this, we
plan to launch the NSR-S610C with an NA value of 1.30
in the fourth quarter of 2006 (CY), which will show to
the world Nikon’s superiority in immersion technology.
In the fi eld of LCD exposure systems, LCD panels
continue to get larger at a pace exceeding expecta-
tions, providing us with the opportunity to exploit the
advantages of our unique multi-lens projection optical
system in 7th and 8th generation LCD panel production
equipment. Going forward, we forecast our share in the
market for large LCD exposure systems will continue to
grow along with expansion in the size of LCD panels.
In digital SLR cameras, customers have great con-
fi dence in our product line that extends from profes-
sional-use to entry-level models. Our compact digital
cameras not only incorporate Nikon’s original technolo-
gies to enhance user-friendliness such as functions
that ensure optimized pictures, but also technologies
accumulated in digital SLR cameras. We will continue to
deliver to market models with the unique Nikon identity.
In the Instruments business, one of the most promis-
ing areas for development is in the bioscience fi eld, and
more specifi cally, in the market for microscopes for the
observation of live cells. Nikon believes that observing
live cells will become integral to the development of new
medicines in the coming years. In the year ending March
2007, we plan to release the BioStation series of cell cul-
ture observation systems, which enable the cultivation
Translating the advanced technological expertise amassed
within Nikon Group into real profits is a primary aim of
Nikon management. In the year ended March 2006, we
took the first step towards achieving this key objective and
presented the blueprint for future growth along the way.
TO OUR SHAREHOLDERS AND
INVESTORS
02