Nikkei Electronics Asia -- October 2008
Reports
"We are the Clear Choice for Replacement Printers"

In the 1990s, Seiko Epson Corp of Japan released inkjet printers promising "photographic quality" output, and established itself firmly as a printer manufacturer. Minoru Usui, the "father" of the inkjet head that is the core of the product line, is now president of the firm. We spoke to him about where he is trying to guide the R&D arm, given his technical background.

What does Seiko Epson need today?

Profitability has recovered somewhat in fiscal 2008, but sales revenues are still declining. We need a new track for growth, and that means we have to supply consumers with a new product that will make them happy. I think that picking a president with an engineering background, like me, is a mark of that expectation. 

New products may utilize existing technology, or they may pioneer entirely new sectors. I want to begin with what is possible, of course, and refine existing technology to the utmost, increasing the number of product categories utilizing our technology.

Seiko Epson has consistently leveraged unique devices to develop product lines. In inkjet printers, for example, we have heads, and in projectors we have light valves, etc. These devices, however, are only applicable to limited product sectors. In printers that means low-cost home-use machines, and in projectors it means business applications.

When you consider the potential of our technology, it is clear that we should be able to expand the range of application categories. Recently, for example, we announced an office-use inkjet printer that could replace existing laser printers.

While expanding the range of application for existing technology, we are also developing new technologies for new categories.

Your printer business doesn't seem to be as dynamic as it was back in the 1990s.

Yes, it does seem to be a bit sluggish. The all-important point in changing this situation is to develop clear product concepts from the customer point of view. If there isn't any technology that can do that, then we have to take action to fill that gap. Without it, we'll never get on track toward new growth. 

Home printers have matured, but that isn't to say that there's nothing left to do in the home printer sector. Consumers aren't satisfied with products now. For example, we haven't come up with the right answers to problems like missing dots, or the fact that printers capable of handling thin A4 sheets have to be physically large.

We don't expect to resolve these problems any time soon, but we do have to clarify exactly why we can't. 

I was involved in the development of inkjet printers, and we had a very clear development goal: photographic quality printing. All we had to do was develop technology needed to attain that goal. Things have changed, though, and it is a lot harder to accurately identify what consumers need, and describe the goal. Once a development goal is defined, it is quite possible that the technical obstacles in the way will be formidable.

What are the key points to keep in mind in the research and development sector?

A research result may be outstanding in a society conference, or represent state-of-the-art work, but that doesn't mean anything to the consumer. R&D people have to understand that unless developed technology addresses consumer needs, it won't produce revenue.

Seiko Epson has always been a company that operates that way, in fact. Take our research into quartz, for example. We began developing a crystal oscillator to resolve the problems with mechanical watches offering low precision.

The development of the inkjet printer, which began with the aim of achieving photographic quality printing, is another example. It led to the development of the micropiezoelectric head, which beat competing technologies. Once you understand what the world needs, you look at how to best provide it, push ahead with development, and refine your technologies.

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