Roland is best known in the printing industry for its integrated print/cut technology that delivers one seamless workflow for both the printing and contour cutting required to produce complex sign and vehicle graphics.
The new digital factory will become a primary manufacturing site for product assembly, testing and inspection for the company’s line of inkjet printers and printer/cutters, vinyl cutters, engravers, photo impact printers and 3D scanning and milling machines.
The new 9803 sq m facility is 40 percent larger than the company’s current factory, will accommodate up to 200 employees, and will significantly increase the company’s production capacity.
Roland DG Corporation president, Masahiro Tomioka says: “We are always striving to improve our manufacturing processes, which in turn improves our responsiveness to the market and to our customers. It is this commitment to advancing our own technology, streamlining our production capabilities and achieving new levels of product quality that differentiates us as a company. This new digital factory will serve us well into the future.”
Using advanced information technology developed in-house, Roland’s digital factory features an innovative production system that enables a single employee to individually assemble complex products. Since adopting this system for all Roland products in July 2002, manufacturing time has been reduced and product design improved.
“Today’s business climate demands efficient, on-demand manufacturing capabilities,” Tomioka says. “Roland DG was able to meet the increasing demands from a variety of geographic and business markets thanks to innovative production techniques such as Roland DG’s scalable cell production using proprietary technology which we call ‘Digital Yatai.’”
Founded in 1981 as an affiliate of Roland Music, Roland DG Corporation introduced its first A-size pen plotter in 1982 and has since evolved into a $350 million organisation with offices worldwide.
Its US headquarters are in Irvine, California, which serves as the U.S.-based marketing, distribution and sales arm of Roland DG Corporation of Hamamatsu, Japan. Roland DG Corporation is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
According to 2005 worldwide market share studies, Roland enjoys a commanding lead in sales among manufacturers of wide format inkjet printers in the durable graphics industry and its growth is reflected in the company’s financial results, which achieved record revenues and profits in 2005. Company officials attribute these achievements to both a strong technology base and a customer-driven focus.
Roland inkjets have won numerous industry awards including multiple Andre Schellenberg Awards, and repeated victories at the DIMA Digital Printer Shootout and DPI Product of the Year competitions. Other honors include the Seybold Hot Pick award, PEI Cool2 Award, 3D Design Magazine’s Editor’s Choice Award, Digital Output Readers’ Choice Awards, and Graphic Design’s “Fall Forty.”
