Canon 2015 Annual Report Download - page 29

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CANON ANNUAL REPORT 2015 27
STRATEGY BUSINESS SEGMENT CORPORATE STRUCTURE FINANCIAL SECTION CORPORATE DATA
Establishing a Globally Optimized
Production System
Canon aims to establish a globally optimized production system
that identifi es the most suitable locations for the production
of individual products based on a comprehensive assessment
of various considerations. These factors include cost, taxation,
logistics, the ease of parts procurement, and the workforce in
each country and region.
As one of its specifi c efforts in that regard, Canon will make
its Japanese production sites “mother plants” that produce
mainly high-end models, harnessing the full-suite of strengths
in Japan from R&D and procurement operations to production
engineering technologies and manufacturing facilities. As we
are bringing production back to Japan, the ratio of manufac-
turing in Japan will increase to 60% over the next three years
or so. At home, Canon will further improve productivity by
enhancing its production engineering technology through ini-
tiatives such as “man-machine cell” production systems that
integrate manual and automated processes; in-house produc-
tion, where Canon develops and produces its own parts and
materials as well as manufacturing equipment; and expansion
of the fi elds where automation technologies such as the Canon-
developed Super Machine Vision are employed. Such efforts will
accelerate the return of production to Japan.
Meanwhile, we are moving ahead with functional specialization
Semi-anechoic chamber: the new large-scale semi-anechoic cham-
ber is for measuring electromagnetic waves emitted by products.
(Tamagawa Offi ce, Japan)
In-house production: Canon-developed fi xing belts for copiers are
produced in Japan. (Toride Plant)
between Japan and Asia, allocating mass production of mid-
range and low-priced products to our Asian production sites in
China, Thailand, the Philippines and other countries.
In the Americas and Europe, Canon is making use of auto-
mated production systems to implement localized production
mainly of consumables such as toner cartridges, with the aim of
shortening distances to markets in order to deliver products in
a timely manner, while reducing transportation costs and inven-
tory in transit.
Environmental Friendly Manufacturing;
Enhanced Product Quality
Canon actively seeks to prioritize purchases of environmen-
tally conscious parts and materials as well as shift to transpor-
tation modes that have minimal environmental impact. We
also focus on manufacturing initiatives that are friendly to the
global environment.
The consolidation of the Quality Management Headquarters,
which had been split across fi ve sites, in the Tamagawa Offi ce as
a way to improve quality was completed in 2015. With this, we
have centralized the contact points dealing with consultations and
requests related to quality, and this is expected to increase the pro-
cessing speed of support for businesses. In conjunction with this,
we put into place an even stronger quality system by introducing
cutting-edge facilities and facilities to handle large products.