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Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. Announces Construction of Third Simitri(R) Polymerized Toner Plant
Addition of Third Plant Strengthens Konica Minolta’s Position as the World’s
Leading Producer of Polymerized TonerRAMSEY, N.J., Sept. 05 — In response to the increased demand
for Simitri(R) Polymerized Toner, Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A.,
Inc.’s (KMBS) parent company Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
(Konica Minolta) has announced the construction of a third polymerized toner
production plant. Konica Minolta, the world’s leading producer of polymerized
toner, is making a new investment in its production subsidiary, Konica Minolta
Supplies Manufacturing Co., Ltd., for the toner plant’s construction. The
plant will be built in Tatsunomachi, Kamiina-gun, Nagano, Japan. Construction
of the third plant will start in September 2005, with completion scheduled for
September 2006. The new plant’s mass production of toner will commence in
December 2006.
With the addition of the new plant, Konica Minolta’s position as an
industry-leading toner manufacturer will be further strengthened. The new
plant will have an annual production capacity of about 7,000 tons, increasing
Konica Minolta’s annual production of polymerized toner from 8,000 tons
(combined production capacities of the first and second plants, as of November
2005) to about 15,000 tons. The new third plant will be a production base for
Simitri Color Polymerized Toner to meet the demands of the fast-growing color
printing market, as well as for black Simitri Polymerized Toner.
“The construction of the third Simitri Polymerized Toner plant is another
step in our strategy to become #1 in color, #1 in customer satisfaction, and
the overall value leader in the industry. The new plant will allow us to
continue to meet the market demand and enable Konica Minolta to become the
total cost of ownership leader in the marketplace, bringing great value to our
end customers and strategic partners,” said Shoei Yamana, executive director
and general manager, MFP sales and marketing worldwide, Konica Minolta
Business Technologies, Inc.
“Konica Minolta’s award-winning bizhub and bizhub PRO product lines
utilize Simitri Polymerized Toner, providing us with an advantage over
competitive products that use conventional pulverized toner. With our
continuing emphasis on the development of new color bizhub and bizhub PRO
products, such as the bizhub C450 and the bizhub PRO C500, and the need to
meet the demands of the growing color printer/MFP market, a further increase
in the production of polymerized toner is required. Accordingly, Konica
Minolta has resolved to open a third plant to meet this urgent need to expand
production capacity,” said Jun Haraguchi, president and CEO, Konica Minolta
Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc.A Next-Generation Technology
Konica Minolta’s Simitri Polymerized Toner is a high-end product
manufactured using Konica Minolta’s proprietary method, and incorporates four
of Konica Minolta’s state-of-the-art core technologies — imaging, optical and
material technologies, as well as nano-fabrication.
Konica Minolta’s Simitri Polymerized Toner is characterized by fine,
uniformly sized particles produced using a different method than conventional
pulverized toner. Konica Minolta’s black Simitri Polymerized Toner is
suitable for its monochrome and color MFPs due to its image density, which has
a higher level of resin particles. Compared to conventional toner, Simitri
Polymerized Toner provides a drastic improvement in image quality (high
resolution, and excellent gradation and sharpness), a higher toner yield, and
a cost reduction at the production level.
Konica Minolta employs a unique method to produce Simitri Polymerized
Toner. Resin particles of 100 nanometers (1/10,000 of a millimeter) are
synthesized through the emulsion polymerization method, and then the particles
are chemically, finely, and slowly coagulated and fused with a coloring agent.
Characteristically, this method allows for the production of small toner
particles — three to seven microns — of uniform size and shape, unlike the
suspension polymerization and rapid coagulation polymerization methods used by
the competition. The particles formed by Konica Minolta’s polymerization
method excel in colorant and wax dispersion, and can produce high quality
images comparable to offset-printed images.An Environmentally Friendly Toner
In addition, Simitri Polymerized Toner, with its low fusing temperature,
is very environmentally friendly, delivering high energy-saving and emission-
reducing effects. During the Simitri Polymerized Toner production process,
the emission of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and sulfur oxide is reduced by
approximately 40% compared to the production of conventional pulverized toner.The History of Konica Minolta’s Production of Simitri Polymerized Toner
In December 2000, Konica Minolta started production of “polymerized
toner,” a new product incorporating the company’s state-of-the-art
technologies, at its first plant in Kofu City.
To meet increasing demand, Konica Minolta started construction of a second
plant, also in Kofu City, in April 2002. The second plant was completed in
May 2003. An additional investment has been made in the second plant to
enhance its production capacity. The new production system for the second
plant will be ready for operation in November 2005.New Third Plant (Tentative Name: Tatsuno Plant)
About Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc.
Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc., offers a broad range of
multifunctional digital imaging solutions inspired by its bizhub(TM) brand of
powerful solutions that serve as the central resource for document scanning,
in-house printing, copying, faxing and electronic archiving and distribution.
From high-quality color and monochrome bizhub systems for workgroups and small
offices, to advanced high-volume bizhub PRO(TM) production printing systems
for large corporations and print-for-pay services, Konica Minolta is leading
the industry toward integrated, networked hardware/software solutions that are
more simple, reliable, and cost-effective. Complementing its bizhub
solutions, Konica Minolta also offers desktop laser printers, microform
digital imaging systems, wide-format printers and scanning systems for
specialized applications
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