Ricoh opens Sydney CBD showroom
Ricoh goes on display in the heart of the city with its new Printing Innovation Centre (PIC).
Digital print specialists, Ricoh, opened a new multi-million dollar showcase in Sydney last week and, unlike other similar digital print display centres, this one is located right in the heart of the CBD.
The futuristic centre is being pitched as a cross between a product demo suite, a place where customers can meet and learn, and a software development hub for new print-related applications. It is one of just five such centres around the world and first to be opened in Australia.
“The opening of the first PIC in Australia sends a clear signal that Australia is capable of becoming a leader in increasing the level of business innovation," said Les Richardson, managing director, Ricoh Australia.
Pictured: Nobuaki Majima, managing director of Ricoh Asia Pacific, and Maria Vamvakinou MP.
The opening of the centre drew a good crowd of customers, partner suppliers, staff and media who were on hand to witness the ribbon-cutting ceremony performed by Nobuaki Majima, managing director of Ricoh Asia Pacific, and Maria Vamvakinou MP, chair of the House of Representatives industry, science and innovation committee.
The centre features a wide range of Ricoh printing equipment, from office solutions to the top-of-the-range Pro C900 and C900s colour printers which Ricoh is positioning as a crossover product between the higher end of the digital lite market and the lower end of the high volume production market.
The PIC itself has been designed as a futuristic environment with motion-activated sensor lighting, card-operated sliding doors and hi-tech video conferencing facilities. At the same time, in recognition of its historical roots, the main display areas – or portals - are named after major pioneers in printing, such as Gutenberg and Mergenthaler.
As well as operating as a display centre for Ricoh technology, both hardware and software, the PIC will also be used for customer training and will be available for customers to use for their own meetings in the CBD. In addition, it will also operate as a software development hub, creating applications that will be available to customers both locally and, potentially, throughout Ricoh’s global market.
To date, the company has invested $3 million in the local PIC and it estimates that it will spend an additional $3 million on the centre over the next three years.
“The Sydney PIC builds on a range of high value, high skills investment that Ricoh has made in Australia in recent years, including hardware and software technical support, training, design and development, and ‘Digital Laboratory’ product analysis, integration and testing,” said Nobuaki Majima.