Seiko Epson announced the completion of its new Innovation Center, an R&D facility for next-generation imaging products. Construction of the facility, which is located at the company's Hirooka Office in Japan, began in December 2004.
In 2000, Epson established a development facility for R&D related to devices such as semiconductors and LCDs at its Fujimi Plant, gathering on a single site divisions involved in R&D for advanced electronic devices and production processes. That facility has produced significant results in the research of flexible electronic devices and industrial applications of inkjet technology.
The newly completed Innovation Center will strengthen Epson's R&D structure for next-generation imaging products from a mid- to long-term perspective. The new facility will concentrate on a single site the R&D departments of the Imaging Products Operating Division, the Corporate R&D Division, and R&D support divisions. This will enable large numbers of engineers and developers from various parts of the organization to interact both on a formal and informal basis. Fusing technologies and organizational cultures in this way will generate synergies that will lead to the creation of innovative and revolutionary new products.
The Innovation Center is one of Japan's most environmentally conscious buildings featuring natural energy use, insulation and other measures to reduce the burden on the external environment, and highly efficient energy systems. Specific examples of mechanisms and fittings designed to maximize use of natural energy include solar panels, solar batteries, light ducts and light shelves that use sunlight, an atrium that uses natural ventilation and glass ducts, and a temperature controlled environment that uses geothermal heat and natural ventilation.
