|
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Diversification into Copying Machines, etc. Also Advances |
|
| From the period of Japan's high growth in the 1960s and together with the growth of sectors such as cameras, watches and clocks, diversification advanced in the precision instruments industry to other areas such as office equipment and precision measuring equipment. One of the pioneers in diversification was Ricoh (then Riken Optical Co., Ltd.). In 1955, the company launched the manufacture and sale of a small table-top copying machine. It then successively launched a diazo copier (blueline copier) which uses photographic paper, and then an EF copier. In 1971, Ricoh entered the office computer market, and then made entry into the facsimile market in 1973. Meanwhile, in 1962 Fuji Photo Film established Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. as a joint venture with Rank Xerox Ltd. of the UK and entered the photocopier market. In the 1960s, copying machines were predominantly diazo copiers or EF copiers, and Xerox had a monopoly in plain-paper copiers (PPCs). However, Canon developed an original developing method for electrophotographic copying machines, and advanced into PPC photocopier field in 1968. In 1971, Konishiroku Photo Ind. Co., Ltd. (Konica Minolta today), also advanced into PPCs which are the mainstream type of copier that is in use today. The momentum for diversification continued to remain strong in the industry and spread into areas such as printers, steppers and medical equipment. |
In the case of Canon, which has seen advanced diversification, the proportion of its sales in FY1990 according to product type was 18.9 percent for cameras, whereas other optical equipment accounted for 5.6 percent, and office equipment had grown to account for 75.5 percent of total sales.
Precision instrument manufacturers have transfromed themselves into integrated manufacturers with a focus on image and footage recording and telecommunications, rather than simply being a camera maker, . They have achieved this by integrating three different technologies: namely opitics, high-precision processing and assembly, and electronics. |
|
 |
|
|
| Disposable Cameras Become Mainstream in the 1990s |
|
The appreciation of the value of the yen in 1985 triggered a phase of major change in the precision instruments industry. Not only were film cameras and timepieces a matured market that had ended its period of high growth, the strong yen put the squeeze on profitability. Although they shifted production overseas, it was not much help.
In the 1990s after the collapse of the economic bubble in Japan, the appearance of the disposable camera caused the camera market to shift away from luxury models like single-lens reflex cameras and mid-range cameras such as compact cameras. Disposable cameras became the mainstream. A new camera standard named APS (Advanced Photo System) appeared in 1996. The main advantages were simplicity (including a film canister for easy drop-in film loading) and a very compact and lightweight design. However, the new system did not live up to expectations in terms of popularity.
Meanwhile the production volume of timepieces also fell due to the maturation of the market and the strong yen. In the early 1990s, there was a trend for consumers to return to analog timepieces from digital, or to own several watches that they could wear according to the time, place or occasion. The domestic market recovered at one point, but then later headed back towards decline. Camera and timepiece manufacturers both intensified their diversification efforts into office automation and information equipment. While Canon's non-camera business, such as copiers and laser beam printers, grew and racked up profits, the gap between those who succeeded in diversification and those who failed became larger. Today, the three majors are Canon, Fuji Photo Film and Ricoh, with strength centering on Canon. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
