Africa Print visited the Fujifilm Innovation Centre Africa at an event hosted on 15 May. The centre, which is a one-stop demonstration area for new solutions, has undergone a number of improvements and includes a wider selection of Fujifilm products.
According to Fujifilm South Africa’s Managing Director, Takeo Hata, the Fujifilm Innovation Centre Africa reflects the company’s ‘Never Stop’ culture of innovation: ‘With 80 years of experience in providing top of the range solutions in several industries, Fujifilm has firmly established itself as a world innovation leader. Seeing what’s on offer at the Innovation Centre provides clients with a broader idea of what the company is truly capable of,’ he noted. ‘Fujifilm will use the Innovation Centre to not only work together with our partners to further enhance our innovative solutions, but also to provide exceptional support and training.’
The Japanese Ambassador to South Africa Norio Maruyama spoke of Society 5.0. ‘While Industry 4.0 is about the evolution of digital technology, Society 5.0 is about making good use of that technology to address and find solutions to social challenges, and digitally evolving society itself for the better.’ Maruyama believes the innovation centre facilitates this vision of Society 5.0, providing solutions that not only enable job creation and skills development but also combat medical diseases. He emphasised how pleased he is for Japan to help South Africa, and enhance their synergies.
A ceremonial ribbon cutting was undertaken before a tour around the premises began. The following sections were highlighted:
Graphic Systems and Solutions
Herbert Uren (Graphic Systems) outlined each of the company’s innovations, including the environmentally friendly and water washable Flenex plates used in packaging, as well as Illumina LED curing technology used in label printing. A number of printed samples were on display, such as POS items, images printed in white and clear ink, as well as ones passed through three-layer printing.
When it comes to printing and packaging, Fujifilm is pushing towards greener solutionsto provide sustainable practices on the continent. This is reflected in its UV GREENGUARD certified UV inkjet inks used in LED Wide Format Solutions. Furthermore, Fujifilm’s range of Superia CTP Offset Plates focuses on reducing chemical usage as well as resource savings, including lower energy and water consumption for commercial, newspaper and packaging printers.
On display at the Innovation Centre is the Acuity LED 1600 II Hybrid Printer, the Acuity 15 Flatbed Printer and a Summa F1612 Digital Finishing unit. Fujifilm remains committed to working together with partners to continue to create innovative printing and packaging solutions.
Photographic Solutions
Visitors to the Fujifilm Innovation Centre Africa will now find improved sections where they are able to test and play with the company’s popular X Series mirrorless cameras and INSTAX instant cameras. With the top-of-the-range X-T3, FUJIFILM has demonstrated what can be done with mirrorless cameras. Not only are photographers impressed with the straight-from-camera image quality, but videographers praise it for its onboard 4K/60P 10bit internal SD card recording capabilities. It joins on display the TIPA World Award-winning X-T30 midrange camera, and the affordable X-T100 entry-level unit. Leading the pack when it comes to megapixels is the highly coveted GFX 50S, a medium format mirrorless that has a 51.4-megapixel sensor, producing produces exceptional tones and colour reproduction.
The INSTAX range of instant cameras have proved to be as popular in South Africa as it is in the rest of the world, achieving record sales of more than ten million units a year. Recently launched, the INSTAX SQ20 can record a movie, with users then able to select the exact image to print from the stills. The photo is printed directly from the camera in less than two minutes. Popular models such as the SQ6 Taylor Swift Edition and mini 9 are also on display, as is a range of albums and other accessories to help with showcasing INSTAX photos. Further Fujifilm products featured include QuickSnap one time use film cameras, My Photo photobooks, as well as photographic printing machines and general photographic accessories.
Another first for Fujifilm South Africa is a replica of the Wonder Photo Shop concept store hosted inside the Innovation Centre Africa. These photo print stores are established to ‘Enrich people’s lives with Photos’ and are already available in almost 90 stores in 25+ countries. Wonder Photo Shop stores allow customers to experience the joy of photography and printing in a creative, inspiring and cozy atmosphere.
Medical Systems and Solutions
Although South Africans might think of Fujifilm as a photographic and printing company, it has a strong lineage in the field of medical systems, digital and computer radiography systems and X-Ray film. Making its way to the Fujifilm Innovation Centre is the innovative Amulet Innovality, Fujifilm’s top of the range digital mammography X-Ray unit with 3D capability (Tomosyntheses) that helps in early stage detection of breast cancer. It will join the inventive FDR Smart X-Ray machine that assists with, amongst others, the screening of tuberculosis patients.
Through its artificial intelligence driven REiLi screening system, Fujifilm has made major strides in the acceleration of complex diagnosis, with this software tool being used to support radiologists’ clinical decision-making. In South Africa, this already had a huge impact in the screening of lung disease, increasing the number of patients that can be diagnosed on a daily basis. With a strategic focus on improving the quality of healthcare in South Africa and the rest of Africa, Fujifilm also supports many initiatives driving improved preventative care, ranging from Occupational Health Screening on site at mines, to cost effective screening through public/private partnerships at rural clinics.
The Fujifilm Innovation Centre Africa is open to Fujifilm business partners and interested parties during working hours, from Mondays to Fridays. Contact Fujifilm for appointments.
FUJIFILM (+27 11) 430 5400 http://www.fujifilm.co.za
