Olympus 2004 Annual Report Download - page 11

Co rp. W e are also moving to split o ff related o verseas affili-
ates.
W hy? O lympus introduced the current co mpany system in
2 0 0 1 to achieve a g reater efficiency in manag ement fo r a
swifter respo nse to custo mer needs. Thro ugh business restruc-
turing fro m a custo mer perspective, we were able to improve
co rpo rate value o n various fro nts. Ho wever, O lympus must
make drastic changes to clearly affirm its co mpetitive po sition
in glo bal markets. By integrating these businesses glo bally,
we are beg inning to see the way to this objective in creating
a framewo rk for speedy decisio n-making in acco rdance with
the special characteristics o f each business. These split-o ffs
are the only o ption available to O lympus for maximizing cor-
po rate value.
Strengthening O ur Brand
>Since becoming president in June 2 0 0 1 , I have emphasized
the importance of a solid branding strategy. A brand signi-
fies o ur commitment to custo mers, and expresses the qualities
o f all our emplo yees. W ith a strong brand name, emplo yees
strive to provide value wo rthy of that brand. By pro viding
value, the co mpetitiveness o f our pro ducts and services
increases, and o ur performance improves as a result. As our
performance improves, so should o ur brand name. Thro ugh
the creation o f a po sitively reinforcing cycle such as this,
branding is the key to maximizing co rpo rate value.
To enhance its brand name, O lympus has invested ¥2 0 bil-
lio n over the past five years, since April 2 0 0 2 . The effect of
this investment is clearly co nfirmed in third-party evaluatio ns.
An analysis using the CB Valuator, which was develo ped by
Professo r Kunio Ito at Hito tsubashi University and N iho n
Keizai Shimbun, Inc., estimates that O lympus’ brand value
has increased fro m ¥78.4 billion in March 2 0 0 1 to ¥2 2 8 .2
billio n in March 2 0 0 3 . W e aim to increase the value o f our
brand to ¥60 0 billion by fiscal 2 0 0 7 .
O lympus is making every effo rt to further innovate as a
co mpany that is trusted by all its stakeho lders including
shareho lders, emplo yees, custo mers, and suppliers. W e ask
for yo ur co ntinued understanding and suppo rt.
July, 2004
Tsuyoshi Kikukawa
President
O LYMPUS 2 0 0 4 9
co nsumables. In the United States, approximately 2 0 % o f o ur
sales o f gastro -intestinal endo sco pes have shifted to CPP.
O lympus is redoubling efforts wo rldwide to strengthen its
solutions marketing.
Balanced Earning G rowth
>The future o f O lympus depends on balanced growth in all
four o f its business segments: the Imaging Systems G roup,
Medical Systems G ro up, Life Science G ro up, and Industrial
Systems G ro up.
Created o n April 1 , 2 0 0 3 , the Life Science Gro up’s busi-
ness do mains are biolo g ical micro sco pes, diagno stic systems
and g eno me medicine. W ith an extensive histo ry in optical
equipment, O lympus’ micro scope business is o n the cutting
edg e of technolo gy, such as with the use of laser light to scan
living cells for 3 -D observations. O lympus’ diag nostic systems
business is expanding market share by leveraging its ability
to supply bo th equipment and reagents. This solutions busi-
ness serves as a role mo del fo r where we want to take the
digital camera business.
The scale o f o perations in the g eno me medicine business is
still underdevelo ped, but it has the potential to beco me a
co re business in the future. O ur DNA co mputer fo r g ene
analysis, the first successfully develo ped in the wo rld, is a
key techno lo g y essential to cutting-edge medicine, and we
expect there is incredible potential demand in this area. As
the g eno me medecine business develops, we expect to see
significant synergies with bio lo g ical micro sco pes and diag-
nostic systems as it makes a to tal contributio n to the life sci-
ences field.
The Industrial Systems G ro up is easily swayed by capital
investment cycles in LCD and semico nducto rs, and has imped-
ed o ur performance recently. To endo w it with stro ng resilience
ag ainst market trends, O lympus aims to shift to a lo w-cost
structure and pro mote selection and concentration of busi-
nesses.
Establishing a Competitive Position
by Spliting O ff Businesses
>O n O cto ber 1 , 2 0 0 4 , O lympus plans to split off the Imaging
Systems G ro up into the O lympus Imag ing Corp. and the
Medical Systems G ro up into the O lympus Medical Systems
オリンパス AR04 04.8.4 14:04 ページ 9