Prime Minister John Key called for more technological solutions in business, and gave a thumbs up to the state of the art innovation on display at the official opening of the Ricoh Technology Centre, at Wellington on Wednesday.
A crowd of over 150, including local dignitaries, celebrities, Ricoh clients and staff attended the event, which marked another milestone in Ricoh’s expansion into the digital printing market. In his speech, the Prime Minister emphasised the need to lift productivity and the significance of challenges that technology now places before business. He said, “Unless you are prepared to take up these challenges, ultimately you will be left behind.”
He also spoke about how the government is looking at lean technologies, sustainability and improving efficiency. In reference to Ricoh he said, “They are trying to deliver technology solutions that I think can make government and business more efficient."
Mike Pollok, managing director Ricoh New Zealand, also spoke about the challenges facing business and, in particular, the printing industry. He said, “The incoming government is facing challenges that no one in our generation has seen before. We need to understand that our market place is not just local, not just national but is international.”
Mr Nobuaki Majima, managing director of Ricoh Asia Pacific, gave a video address from Singapore. He congratulated the New Zealand team and highlighted the place of collaboration and innovation as key drivers to business success.
The opening in downtown Wellington follows the establishment of Ricoh Technology Centres in Shanghai and Sydney. The centre not only highlights the company’s latest machines, like its flagship Pro C900, it also features the convergent technology that the company sees influencing the face of printing and business. Pollok alluded to this, promising more to come, and said, “We want to create and maintain an environment that encourages collaboration. This technology can help businesses drive efficiencies, especially in the document management space.”
