Jan. 01, 2021

Satoshi Mochida - Representative Director, President and CEO, Komori Corporation

As we greet 2021, we would like to take this opportunity to wish you a Happy New Year. We are deeply grateful for all the kindness and support we received from everyone over the past year, and wish you all health and success for the coming year.

In 2020 the world was affected by COVID-19, with the number of infections growing in most countries and deeply impacting the real economy. This included accelerated changes to the way society and industry is structured, with drastic changes in business environments for the printing industry. drupa 2021, which is considered the world's largest print expo, was cancelled as a physical event, forcing the printing industry to fundamentally reconsider product promotion, which, until now, has relied heavily on such expos. We believe it is important to earn trust and build deep partnerships with our customers through a multifaceted approach to proposing and supplying solutions that solve the issues they face.

The Komori Group will celebrate a major milestone in 2023 with its 100th anniversary. In order to meet the next 100 years with further innovation and to continue to create inspiring products and services that exceed expectations, we will pursue business expansion and a fuller range of solutions as described below.

In the offset printing press business we released a new lineup of sheetfed offset presses, the Lithrone GX/G advance series. The advance series focuses on profitability for customers, combining high productivity with some of the highest ROIs (Return On Investment) in the world. Additionally, we will promote Connected Automation, aiming to help usher in digital transformations and create true smart factories for the printing industry through application of our cloud solution, KP-Connect.

In the digital printing system business, the performance of the Impremia NS40 has been increased through field tests. We aim to put the machines into actual operation and begin official sales and mass production this year.

In the security printing press business, despite movements toward cashless transactions in recent years, production of currency continues to increase worldwide and we have been steadily acquiring orders, particularly in Asia. We will continue to engage strongly with product development and manufacturing, as we promote Currency On Demand.

In the PE (Printed Electronics) business, the crisis posed by COVID-19 has also brought with it opportunities, and we have seized on in the increased demand for electronic parts and substrate-related products to increase orders. We will continue to strengthen partnerships with universities, research institutes and partners in the PE business and work to expand business.

Additionally, in May of last year MBO Group, postpress manufacturing and sales company, has become a wholly owned subsidiary of Komori under a new company name of MBO Postpress Solutions GmbH. The company's lineup of highly accurate, highly productive postpress machines and products will now be sold as part of the Komori Group. MBO is part of the Postpress Alliance. Moving forward, we will open up new frontiers in Connected Automation by promoting coordination between various machines and Komori systems through the Postpress Alliance.

The Komori Group is committed to meeting the expectations placed upon it as an eco-friendly company. As part of these efforts, we have already established the company-wide Green-PJ project, and have actively worked to improve environments, inside and outside the company. Moving forward, we will focus even further on environmental activities, while also striving to increase diversity and reform working styles. In order to fully fulfill our duty of accountability to the public, as a listed company, and to continue to increase transparency, we will also focus on ESG management. This will allow us to contribute to a more sustainable society.

As a company that aims to inspire customer Kando, we at Komori are constantly listening to our customers and strive to develop and supply the innovative technologies and services that the world's printing companies will need in order to meet changes in the business environment. We are committed to doing all we can to inspire customers around the world. Thank you for your ongoing support and encouragement in the coming year.