Update: Memjet Corporate Video [MemjetPrinting YouTube Channel, Jan 16, 2012]

LG’s new Machjet color printer based on Memjet technology is 60 ppm fast vs a traditional laser printer of only 18 ppm speed [LG video ad for the Korean market, June 21, 2011]

Memjet Honored with Prestigious Intertech Technology Award [July 27, 2011]

Memjet, the global leader in color printing technologies that provide remarkable speeds and affordability, today received the 2011 InterTech Technology Award from the Printing Industries of America, recognized as a symbol of technological innovation and excellence. This is the first InterTech Technology Award for Memjet and its blazing fast printing technologies.

“According to our panel of judges, Memjet’s disruptive technologies will prove to be a significant game changer within the printing industry,” said Dr. Mark Bohan, vice president, technology and research at Printing Industries of America. “Memjet’s printing technologies have the potential to shift the economics of the inkjet industry and ultimately reduce costs for consumers.”

Through its partners, Memjet is bringing its technologies to office, industrial, commercial and consumer markets to help change the way people print. Memjet-powered office printers, for example, print in beautiful color at incredibly fast speeds of 60 pages per minute (the fastest desktop printer speed in the world), while consuming considerably less energy than competing products. Around the world, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) use Memjet technologies to power printers and printing solutions far beyond what traditional markets have come to know and expect. Memjet provides technologies and components to OEMs and partners in the office, labels, wide format and photo retailmarkets. The company’s technologies are protected by more than 3,000 global patents, with another 2,000 pending.

“This has been a pivotal year for Memjet as we commercialize globally with leading OEM partners including LG, Lenovo, Lomond, Kpowerscience Co. Ltd., OWN-X and Astro Machine Corporation, among others,” said Len Lauer, president and CEO of Memjet. “We’re extremely honored to be recognized by Printing Industries of Americafor our innovation and contributions as we continue to bring change to the industry through the creation of an entirely new category of printing—that of very fast affordable color.”

See Memjet technologies in action here.

Market Impact

Memjet advancements are dramatically changing and opening up new opportunities for large and small print companies that want to adopt scalable, cost-efficient and more flexible business models. For the first time, it’s easier and possible for more players to enter new markets of the commercial-print industry value chain, such as book publishing, newspapers, direct mail, transaction, photo books, packaging, and more. Memjet printheads are configured for a host of print applications at a never-before-seen combination of speed, low-capital costs, and high-quality color. Memjet inks are specially formulated, so the printhead can release up to 700 million drops per second. Its controller chip provides a powerful development platform for OEMs. All Memjet controller chips include Memjet’s high-speed print pipeline that runs on dedicated hardware and is optimized to achieve Memjet’s industry-leading speeds.

Memjet customer Jack Ellis, president of Post Haste Mailing, has run a mail addressing business for nearly 30 years in Annapolis, Maryland and adds: “Memjet has been the best product in the mailing industry since inkjet’s inception over 15 years ago.”

For more information on Memjet’s award winning technologies, please visit www.memjet.com.

About Intertech Technology Awards

Since 1978 the InterTech™ Technology Awards sponsored by Printing Industries of America have honored the development of technologies predicted to have a major impact on the graphic arts and related industries. More than 80% of technologies that receive an award experience continued commercial success in the marketplace.

About Memjet

Memjet is the global leader in color printing technologies that provide remarkable speeds and affordability. The company supplies technologies and components to OEM partners across the printing industry. Memjet maintains its corporate office in San Diego, and has offices in Dublin, Sydney, Taipei, Singapore and Boise, Idaho. The company is privately held. For more information, please visit www.memjet.com or follow us on Twitter @memjet.

About Printing Industries of America

Printing Industries of America is the world’s largest graphic arts trade association representing an industry with approximately one million employees. It serves the interests of more than 10,000 member companies. Printing Industries of America, along with its affiliates, delivers products and services that enhance the growth, efficiency, and profitability of its members and the industry through advocacy, education, research, and technical information.

Associated Press article picked up by tens of thousands:
Inkjet, laser, Memjet? Fast color printers on tap [Jan 7, 2011]

Memjet Printhead Singapore Pte Limited [March, 2008]

Company Charter

Memjet Printheads is a technology company setup to manage the manufacturing and commercialization of Memjet printheads in conjunction with our partners at Silverbrook Research and Memjet Commercial Companies. We are responsible for the sourcing, prcurement, planning, manufacture, quality control, product and process improvement of Memjet™ printheads. Memjet Printhead Singapore Pte Ltd is based in Singapore.

The Memjet Printheads organization is a growing new company with the exciting task of commercializing the game-changing Memjet™ printing technologies. We are seeking individuals who thrive on innovation and collaboration while bringing experience and a proven ability to deliver results in an entrepreneurial environment.

Please refer to our jobs page.

Memjet Printhead [memjet.com, June 14, 2009]

Memjet arrives: why isn’t all printing this fast? [July 22, 2011]

The printer we saw yesterday was hooked up to the kiosk printing system that Jessops has in its stores, although it will have the Memjets in a few select stores that offer premium printing to start with (it’s also introducing wide format photo printers that can print extra-large images on a roll into the stores and we’ll see those first).

Jessops is hoping that offering photo books with silver halide or glossy photo paper; printing onto canvas or acrylic; being able to print snaps directly from your phone or from Facebook; iPhone, IPad, Android and Windows Phone apps for laying out your photo book or – our favourite – a folded set of prints in the size and shape of an iPhone that you can carry in your handbag, might get us printing out the hundreds of photos we take. Certainly not having to stand there twiddling your thumbs for ten minutes to get A4 photo prints will help – and it’s nice to see that Memjet turns out to be a real product and not vaporware.

AND WHAT THE FUTURE COULD EASILY BRING:
as an old example Memjet Mobile Phone Printer Prototype [Jan 15, 2009]

Interview with Kim Beswick of Memjet (SilverBrook Research) [April 2, 2007]
[with Memjet since June 2006 after a 13 years stint with HP as a marketing manager]

When should we expect to see the Memjet technology available for purchase by American consumers?

Early 2008.

How many American manufacturers should we expect to be selling the photo and A4 printers?

We currently have a handful of customers in different stages of discussion. We will likely have three to four customers introducing home and office products initially in 2008. These numbers, of course, could change. The Memjet Photo Retail company is working on customers for the kiosk market and Memjet Labels is working on customers for the label, ticket, and tag markets. All the home and office customers have distribution capabilities in the U.S. We are being very private about the nature of our customers at their request. We want them to have the opportunity to announce their products in the timeframe that they see fit.

…

What was the goal Silverbrook Research related to inkjet printers when they began work a decade ago?

The initial goal was to create a small, inexpensive, high-quality photo-printing engine that could be integrated into a digital camera. That is still part of the vision although the home and office, label and photo-retail markets have taken priority over the smaller format print engine.

…

Your latest patent involves putting printers in cell phones. How long before that technology is prototyped and licensed out?

We can prototype this technology now and Silverbrook actually has a working phone model in their lab today. Small-format devices for phones, cameras, PDAs and the like will likely follow our current introductions by about two years (or 2010).

An Interview with Kim Beswick of Memjet [March 19, 2010]

… Ms. Kim Beswick, VP of Marketing for Memjet Home and Office graciously agreed to give us a few minutes of her time for an interview. Below are the questions I asked and the responses from Ms. Beswick. The quotes provided are from an interview given to the website Databazaar in 2007.

…

Q. In April 2007 you stated that “We believe within five years we will have the capability to do color office documents at 120-150 ppm and full-page photos at 60-75ppm.” Is that still the current goal? And when Mr. Lauer says that he believes the print head will do 60ppm, is he simply being cautious?
A. The focus was slightly different in 2007 than it is today but I think the two performance statements are still basically true. Currently, we are able to print at 60ppm for typical office documents and 30ppm for high quality color documents and photos. So yes, we are already basically where [Len] Lauer said we were. But we’re also improving all the time. Looking into the future 120-150ppm speeds are definitely possible. We may be a year off from our initial statements but the technology will evolve and expand over time from where we are today.

Q.You also stated that Memjet planned to have “Small-format devices for phones, cameras, PDAs and the like will likely follow our current introductions by about two years (or 2010)”. And what about printers in cell phones? Are you still on track with that? Do the advances made with Wi-Fi technology and iPhone applications for printing give you any pause?
A. Our research and development team is focused on bigger market opportunities at the moment. We have a broad set of ideas and potential over time – the key is deciding which ones to focus on. We do know about Polaroid and the PoGo system, which was a major advance in an integrated camera printing solution. We believe that phones are a major computing platform that will at times also need to connect to a printer and print. While we have the potential over time to shrink our format and potentially integrate into smaller format devices, however iPhone and other phone apps that connect those devices to regular sized printers are likely the bigger near term opportunity. These solutions will be good for the industry at large and will be good for Memjet as well.

OWN-X Kft/SpeedStar 3000 [July 21, 2011, for Label Expro Europe 2011, Sept 28 – Oct 1, 2011]

OWN-X LLC. Budapest is the OEM manufacturer of the table top SpeedStar 3000 digital label printer driven by Memjet technology. Beside the SpeedStar 3000, OWN-X will also display two new Memjet technology base products, the WebStar 1000 which is a high speed roll to roll label printer aiming the flexo market and the WideStar 2000 for packaging products in sheet format. The OWN-X printers are sold globally by authorised resellers, most of them will be at OWN-X booth (9F15).

SpeedStar 3000 Digital Label Printer Introduction Video [May 26, 2010]

SpeedStar 3000 Presentation [July 29, 2011]

SpeedStar 3000 in Action I [May 24, 2011]

SpeedStar 3000 in Action II [July 1, 2011]

SpeedStar 3000 use [dealer info, excerpted on July 30, 2011]

For all applications [which] need fast variable color label print in small volume.

Retail Banners Posters Shelf labels Price tickets	Food production Fresh food labels Lunch labels Frozen food labels Seafood labels	Fruits, Vegetables Box labels
Government DOD logistic labels Library RFID labels	GHS – Global hazard Safety labels Sanitary products Colors, paints Chemistry Oil, Gas products	Logistic SSCC labels Transportation labels
Health care Pharmaceutical labels Medical devices Blood banks	Anniversary Wedding Birthdays Baptist event	Wine, Beer, Water, Juices Wine labels Wine box labels
Domestic appliances Energy labels Product promotional labels	Fashion, Bags Swing tags Box promotional labels	Hotels Soap Shampoos
Agriculture Plants Seeds Animal feed	Shoes Box labels	Cosmetics Perfumes Shampoos
Cars Tire labels Price stickers Promotional banners Bumper stickers Energy labels	Electronics Unit packaging Price level tags	RFID Libraries Health care Security

SpeedStar 3000 ink price [dealer info, excerpted on July 30, 2011]

Some label samples and ink costs in EUR cents per label

Label size: 8″x4″ /203x104mm Ink price per label: 0,98	Label size: 8″x4″ /203x104mm Ink price per label: 2,34
Label size 8″x4″/203x104mm Ink price per label 2,51	Label size: 8″x4″ /203x104mm Ink price per label: 1,15
Label size: 8″x4″ /203x104mm Ink price per label: 1,57	Label size: 8″x4″ /203x104mm Ink price per label: 2,13
Label size: 8″x4″ /203x104mm Ink price per label: 2,16	Label size: 6″x4″ /152x104mm Ink price per label: 2,15
Label size: 6″x4″ /152x104mm Ink price per label: 2,86	Label size: 6″x4″ /152x104mm Ink price per label: 2,35
Label size: 6″x4″ /152x104mm Ink price per label: 2,25

LG Machjet color printing for office use: 60 pages per minute [LG video ad for the Korean market, June 21, 2011]:

Other (actually funny) videos on the same theme:
– Machjet Coffee [LG video ad for the Korean market, June 21, 2011]
– Machjet Talk [LG video ad for the Korean market, June 21, 2011]

LG Launches World’s Fastest A4 Color Desktop Printer Powered by Memjet Prints High-Quality Color Documents at Astounding Speeds [LGE press release, June 21, 2011]

Prints High-Quality Color Documents at Astounding Speeds

LG Electronics (LG) and Memjet, a global provider of high-speed color printing technologies, today jointly introduced Memjet’s breakthrough office printing technology into the Korean market. The Machjet LPP6010N, the world’s fastest A4 color desktop printer, will be available this month through authorized LG resellers and channel partners.

Until now, printing technology has been limited to laser and traditional inkjet systems. The Machjet represents an entirely new category of printing technology that makes possible high-quality color printing at never-before seen speeds and quality. Memjet’s ground-breaking, high-density page-wide printheads and components enable printers to operate twice as fast but at only half the cost to run versus traditional color office printers, on average.

“LG prides itself on launching truly innovative products and is pleased to bring the world’s fastest A4 color desktop printers powered by Memjet’s game-changing printing technology to the Korean market,” said Sihwan Park, vice president of LG Electronics’ monitors and printers business unit. “The Machjet delivers completely new levels of color performance and affordability and uses significantly less energy versus laser printers.”

The Machjet leapfrogs over current printers with high-quality color outputs in 1600×800 dpi resolution at 60 pages per minute. Memjet’s proprietary Page Straight Array (PSA) Technology packs more than 70,000 ink nozzles on a single printhead — 17 times the nozzle density of traditional printheads — allowing the Machjet to deliver more than 700 million drops of ink per second on a page.

Len Lauer, president and CEO of Memjet, said: “Combining Memjet’s core technology benefits with LG’s brand, corporate capabilities and vast distribution network, LG is creating exciting new value for Korean customers looking to be more efficient and cost effective in their office printing.”

Printers that are “powered by Memjet” are also energy efficient and less expensive to operate. While competitive color laser printers use on average approximately 600W of electricity during normal operations, the Machjet consumes just 32W. Costs are further reduced via the Machjet’s Hyper Small Drop Technology. The Machjet takes advantage of smaller droplets to minimize the amount of ink required to render clean, crisp text and images at high speed. This technology results in faster-drying ink and reduces the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) by up to 70 percent when compared to competitive color laser printers.

Such innovation has given Memjet a significant intellectual property position in the industry with more than 3,000 approved global patents and another 2,000 pending.

LG rolls out world’s fastest color printer [June 21, 2011]

LG Electronics said on Tuesday it would roll out the world’s fastest A4 color desktop printer, able to print up to 60 pages per minute, this month.

In a press conference held in downtown Seoul, the global electronics giant said it joined hands with global player Memjet to release the product “Machjet LPP6010N” in the local market.

The event comes as LG Electronics is putting more weight on the printer project with the company repositioning this month its printer business unit to combine with its monitor business unit, moving it away from the marketing department.

LG previously folded its printer business about 15 years ago, only reopening the business portfolio in 2009 by partnering with other global firms, such as Lexmark and Hewlett-Packard, which are equipped with printing technologies.

“The maintenance fees are about 70 percent cheaper (compared to other printers) and it’s an environmentally-friendly product that uses the lowest level of electricity,” said Kwon Hee-won, executive vice president of LG Electronics’ home entertainment unit.

“I believe it’s an item that could bring revolution through providing differentiated values in the competitive printer industry.”

Printing a single color page costs 55 won for Machjet, while it costs 200 won for a regular laser color printer and the product is priced at 750,000 won, said LG officials.

Company officials also said developing a model to sell overseas needed more consideration, but second and third upgraded versions of Machjet ― including changes in design and the addition of other functions such as scanning and copying ― will be launched for local consumers.

LG Rejoins Printer Market With Memjet’s Technology [The Wall Street Journal – Korea Realtime, June 21, 2011]

LG Electronics Inc. on Tuesday became the latest and biggest company to embrace a new technology for making office printers – a kind of inkjet on steroids developed by small U.S. firm called Memjet.

With the product, LG is re-entering with its own brand a business that it left around 1998 because it couldn’t gain share in crowded market. LG has been a contract manufacturer of printers for Hewlett-Packard Co. and Lexmark International Inc. in recent yearsbut has stayed away from a branded line of its own.

The new product is aimed at the office market and its key trait is speed. The printer produces 60 color pages at 1,600-by-800 dpi (dots per inch) resolution in one minute.

“We believe we will be able to secure a differentiated place in the market,” Havis Kwon, the chief of LG’s consumer electronics unitsaid at a news conference in Seoul.

For now, LG will concentrate on the South Korean market, relying heavily on the distributors who sell its computer systems locally.

But that also fits with Memjet’s strategy. The closely held firm, based in San Diego, has been forging deals with manufacturers on a geographic basis. In China last month, Memjet partnered up with Lenovo Group Ltd. In India, it has lined up WeP Peripherals Ltd., in Taiwan Kpowerscience Co. and, in the U.S., Delphax TechnologiesInc.

Len Lauer, a former Qualcomm Inc. exec who became Memjet’s chief executive earlier this year [January 2010], said the company is adopting a strategy akin to Qualcomm or Intel Corp. in which it is the technology provider for manufacturers that already have strong brands and distribution channels. A “powered by Memjet” label will be affixed to the printers, similar to the “Intel Inside” sticker.

The company’s name comes from the acronym MEMS, or microelectromechanical system, which is at the heart of the “printhead” it developed. The printhead has about 70,000 nozzles that are formed on microchips and span the width of a page.

For now, the home market is not on the company’s radar, he says. “Our main differentiator is speed and homes don’t need speed,” Mr. Lauer says. “The office is dominated by lasers and there’s so much differentiation we provide against lasers.”

In addition to speed, Memjet-based printers claim savings in ink and power consumption.

Memjet Adds Another Partner – Korea’s LG Electronics [Lyra, June 24, 2011]

Memjet added another Asian-based partner this week with the launch of LG Electronics’ Machjet LPP6010N printer. The machine, which appears to be the same design as those already introduced by China’s Lenovo and others, is targeted at the South Korean market and is expected to begin shipping this month.

While Memjet and LG spokespeople were not able to provide us with pricing information, LG officials said in an article in the English-language Korean Herald, “Printing a single color page costs 55 won for Machjet, while it costs 200 won for a regular laser color printer, and the product is priced at 750,000 won.” According to recent currency exchange rates of just less than one-tenth of a U.S. cent per South Korean won ($.0009268 to be precise), the color CPP figure for the Machjet converts to roughly 5 U.S. cents, and the printer will sell for slightly less than $700 USD.

…

Memjet continues along its circuitous path to market, mixing in new-to-the-industry partners, along with some better known names (see partner summary below), as is the case here with Korea’s LG Electronics. From the latter’s successful experience in diverse markets such as mobile phones to household appliances, we believe that a worldwide (or at least North American) push by LG with its Machjet LPP6010N would be a distinct possibility in coming months or years, especially given the lack of North American-based partners for Memjet so far.

OTHER INFORMATION

Memjet CEO Lauer Talks Strategy as Debut Approaches for “Disruptive” Inkjet Technology [July 20, 2010]

Original Article:  Xconomy

(continued from previous page)It has the look and feel of a startup technology company. Yet Memjet was founded in the mid-1990s and has roughly 500 employees around the world, including 50 now working at its corporate headquarters—which is probably within range of a No. 3 iron shot of HP’s San Diego Imaging and Printing Group

And then there is Lauer himself, who resigned as one of the highest-ranking executives at Qualcomm, the San Diego wireless giant, to become CEO of a company that’s little-known—if it’s known at all—beyond the inkjet printing industry.

“Qualcomm is a really good company,” Lauer tells me. “I got along fine. I wasn’t looking to leave.” He makes it sound like it was an easy decision, once Memjet’s board agreed to establish the company’s headquarters in Rancho Bernardo, a San Diego suburb that also has Sony Electronics and Northrop Grumman’s unmanned systems business in the neighborhood.

“In my view, it’s a businessman’s dream,” Lauer says. “It’s technology that represents a high-value proposition to the customer. It’s really fast. And it’s less-expensive.” He calls Memjet’s technology “truly disruptive.”

After maintaining a low profile over the past eight months or so, Lauer says Memjet plans to step into the open and increase its visibility later this year. The company gave a preview of what to expect in May, with the debut of the SpeedStar 3000, an ultra-fast label printer produced by Own-X, a Memjet partner based in Budapest, Hungary. The device makes high-resolution product labels at a rate of 12 inches per second. Memjet doesn’t make the printers itself, but is building its strategy around the idea of selling print heads, ink, and other components to partners like Own-X. (A Web-based video demonstration of the technology can be found here [pointing to http://www.speedstar3000.com/].)

INSERT: SpeedStar 3000 Presentation [June 30, 2011]

Memjet intends to introduce its technology in the commercial label market this fall, beginning in Eastern Europe, according to Lauer. The company has similar agreements to supply its components with other manufacturing partners in other parts of Europe, Asia, and the United States.

“We’re not coming out with a Memjet-branded printer, we want to do in-branding,” says Lauer, who sees a big market for Memjet among the companies that print everything from Heinz ketchup bottles to UPS shipping labels—even the coupons printed on the reverse side of cash register receipts. He even envisions a Memjet-powered kiosk in hotel lobbies, with the capability of letting guests choose among 50 or 60 international newspapers—and printing out a current edition in just one or two minutes.

Lauer also sees opportunities for Memjet’s technology in the photo printing centers at pharmacies and warehouse retailers like Costco, in poster-size, wide-format printing, computer assisted design (CAD), and blueprints. The Memjet CEO estimates the global market opportunity for its technology is worth $30 billion. It’s a market ripe for innovation, he says, because while the giant companies manufactured printers for many years, the industry “really hasn’t spent much on R&D.”

In this respect, Lauer sees similarities in Memjet’s strategy to Qualcomm, which initially made cell phones and wireless network infrastructure as a way to gain market acceptance of its core digital wireless technology. “We’re similar in that we’re going to sell to existing printer and imaging OEMs,” Lauer said, referring to the original equipment manufacturers that make products for sale under another company’s brand name.

“Our technology will print 10,000 envelopes per hour, and it’s in color, which stands out in the mass mailing industry,” Lauer says. “It’s just much, much faster and at lower price points.”

To protect Memjet’s “disruptive” technology, Lauer says the company has obtained about 3,000 patents, with another 2,000 patents pending. Memjet’s core technology was developed at Silverbrook Research, founded in Sidney, Australia, by Kia Silverbrook, a onetime Canon R&D director in Australia, who has spent decades expanding Memjet’s patent portfolio.

So how does the Memjet printer work differently than the classic inkjet? Unlike an inkjet printer head that moves sideways across the page, Memjet’s print head is fixed. It extends all the way across the page—it’s 8.66 inches wide—so it lays down an entire line of ink as the paper advances. Each Memjet printhead consists of 70,000 inkjet nozzles (in contrast to the 1,500 to 2,000 nozzles in a conventional inkjet print head) and prints in five colors at 1,600 by 1,600 dots per inch(DPI), Lauer says.

Each Memjet nozzle is less than 100 microns wide (roughly the width of human hair) and uses micro-electro-mechanical technology (the MEM in Memjet) to spew 1.2-picoliter droplets of ink at a rate of 900 million per second, Lauer says. The nozzles are made out of silicon in a semiconductor factory and operated by Memjet’s proprietary, “systems on a chip” print engine controller electronics, firmware, and software.

Funding for Memjet’s extensive intellectual property protections, global workforce, and other operations has come primarily from one investor, whom Lauer declined to identify. “Our main investor came in about five or six years ago,” he says. “It’s an individual with a lot of money, someone whose name I’m sure you’d recognize, who came in as a private equity investor,” which has been reported to be Argonaut Private Equityof Tulsa, OK.

Apart from operating far more efficiently than commercial batch printers, Lauer says the genius of Memjet’s technology lies in its capability to customize labels and other print jobs “so maybe a Heinz ketchup label could have regional customization” for the San Diego Chargers or Padres. As Lauer puts it, “We’re ready to go, and fairly excited about it.”

Argonaut Private Equity [Bloomberg Business Week, excerpted: July 30, 2011]

Argonaut Private Equity is a private equity and venture capital firm specializing in growth capital, middle market, early venture, mid venture, late venture, turnaround and buyout investments. The firm seeks to invest in the followings sectors: consumer electronics, energy, specialty materials, telecommunications, drug discovery and delivery, medical devices, aviation, healthcare services, technology, manufacturing, and financial services sectors. It prefers to invest between $1 million and $500 million over the life of its investment. Argonaut Private Equity was founded in 2002 and is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma with an additional office in India.

IIE Distinguished Speaker Series – 28 Jul

On July 28, SMU [Singapore Management University] Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship will organize IIE Distinguished Speaker Series. There are two speakers: Ashok Rao, CEO of Inlogy and Anil Khatod, Managing Director of Argonaut Private Equity. Both of them will talk  about different topics. Ashok Rao will talk about “Angel Investments for Ventures in Emerging Economies” and Anil Khatod will talk about “Sustainable Energy – Fueling Our Future”.

…

Anil Khatod, Member of TiE Global Board of Trustees and Managing Director of Argonaut Private Equity

Anil Khatod is the managing director of Argonaut Private Equity, a global venture and private equity firm with $5.5 billion assets under his management. Argonaut has significant investments in sustainable energy space including in solar, solar thermal, wind, biomass, natural gas, fuel cell, advance insulation materials and solid state lighting companies. Anil is also the founding partner of the firm’s investment practice in India, where he built a local team, developed investment strategy and has invested more than $600MM in infrastructure, cleantech, technology, retail, financial services and consumer goods companies. In addition to India, Anil also actively invests in technology, cleantech and medical devices sectors in the US and Israel. Anil currently serves on the boards of twelve companies including Memjet Technologies, OmniGuide, Bombay Stock Exchange, Siklu Networks, VenturEast, and CrownBio in the US, India, China, Ireland, Israel and Australia. Anil also serves on the global board of TiE and was formerly president of TiE Atlanta.

Memjet Launches High-Speed Color On-Demand Printing Technologies for Labels and Packaging Market [Oct 29, 2011]

Memjet, the global leader in color printing technologies that provide remarkable speeds and affordability, will launch its color on-demand printing technology for the labels and packaging markets at PACK EXPO International 2010 (October 31-November 3, booth 3866). Memjet represents an entirely new category of technology that brings cost-effective, on-demand color printing to the manufacturing floor. “We believe that Memjet technology is disruptive and will have a dramatic impact on how color printing is used in packaging activities,” said Sean Marske, president of Memjet Labels.

“The technology gives you the freedom to print exactly what you want, when you want it, and where you want it, making near-line color label printing possible for ‘just-in-time’ and other manufacturing operations. This reduces waste and accelerates the workflow process. It also enables brand owners and manufacturers to move their label, tag, ticket, card and folding-carton printing out of a centralized print facility and directly onto their factory or warehouse floors,” Marske added.

This capability for high-quality, cost-effective, on-demand color speed makes possible a decentralized color-printing model, which can shorten the supply chain, reduce over-buying, and simplify labeling and versioning activities. A Memjet-powered printer can provide high-speed, variable-data, color printing for localized on-demand label runs and many other trans-promotional marketing activities. Printers that are powered by Memjet can produce a color label or impression in seconds, and a full roll or stack of labels or impressions in minutes.

“Powered by Memjet” Printers Available Now

Memjet provides the core technology that allows innovative Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) partners to deliver new value to their target markets with fast and affordable color printers. These printers are “powered by Memjet.” Memjet technology has already been incorporated into several commercially available labels, packaging and addressing products, including the following:

• Astro MachineCorp: M1 and M2

• MainStreamLLC: The 12 Pacc

• OWN-XIndustrial (Europe): SpeedStar 3000

• Rapid Machinery Company(Australia): Rapid X1 and Rapid X2

“Memjet is a promising technology, altogether new, unlike any other available technology,” said George Selak, president of Astro MachineCorporation, a Memjet OEM partner. “The printhead is nearly nine inches wide, as opposed to the typical small heads that have to be stitched together. The fast process color from a single printhead creates a compelling value proposition for our customers,” he added.

“The first color label printers on the market have been relegated to niches because they are slow and their running costs are high,” said Fred Noll, president of MainStreamLLC, another Memjet partner. “Memjet color printing technology allows us to serve a broad market because we can overcome these previous speed and running cost obstacles.”

Previews of Upcoming Print Engines

In addition to showing its labels and packaging technologies that are available today, Memjet will demonstrate upcoming color printing technologies and systems in booth 3866. Memjet Labels will demonstrate a color on-demand labels print-engine prototype that operates at 30 inches per second (ips). PACK EXPO will also be the first public demonstration of the Memjet wide format technologies. A 42-inch-wide print engine will print color, on-demand, on folding carton and corrugated packaging material. Memjet will be making a series of announcements for a variety of industries in 2011. Memjet’s breakthrough design delivers more than 700 million drops per second of color ink through more than 70,000 nozzles on a single, stationary printhead. The core technology consists of 8.77-inch printheads, custom ASICs, software and ink that OEMs incorporate into their printers. The Memjet technology is protected by 3,000 global patents; 2,000 more are pending.

Memjet to Debut Label and Packaging Print Technology [Nov 2, 2010]

[Original article: PCMag.com]

(continued from previous page)Memjet design delivers more than 700 million drops per second of color ink through more than 70,000 nozzles on a single, stationary printhead. The core technology consists of 8.77-inch printheads, custom ASICs, software and ink that OEMs incorporate into their printers. The Memjet technology is protected by 3,000 global patents, and 2,000 more are pending.

Memjet claims that the speed, quality, and cost-effectiveness of its technology makes possible a decentralized color-printing model, which can shorten the supply chain, reduce over-buying, and simplify labeling and versioning activities.

Memjet technology has already been incorporated into several commercially available labels, packaging and addressing products, including the following: Astro Machine Corp: M1 and M2; MainStream LLC: The 12 Pacc; OWN-X Industrial (Europe): SpeedStar 3000; and Rapid Machinery Company(Australia): Rapid X1 and Rapid X2.

In addition to showing its labels and packaging technologies that are available today, Memjet will demonstrate upcoming color printingtechnologies and systems. Memjet Labels will demonstrate a color on-demand labels print-engine prototype that operates at 30 inches per second (ips).

Pack Expo will also be the first public demonstration of the Memjet wide format technologies. A 42-inch-wideprint engine will print color, on-demand, on folding carton and corrugated packaging material.

Memjet says that it will be making a series of announcements for a variety of industries in 2011. Privately held Memjet supplies technologies and components to OEM partners across the printing industry. Its corporate office is in San Diego, and it has offices in Dublin, Sydney, Taipei, Singapore, and Boise as well.

San Diego Startup Ready to Hit the Print Button [Dec 13, 2010]

[Original Article: The San Diego Union-Tribune]

In a San Diego research building, Len Lauer examines a strip of colorful package labels printed at a blazing rate of one foot per second using a benchtop printer.

He’s looking at color quality, and the labels pass the eye test. But Lauer, chief executive of local startup Memjet, knows his company must pass much bigger tests as it brings its inkjet printing technology to market after 15 years of development.

Memjet makes 8.5-inch — or page wide — printheads and related technology that it says offer much faster print speeds and cost advantages over competitors in the nearly $250 billion worldwide digital printing market.

After a false start at commercialization about three years ago, the company now says its technology will be in printers that hit the market in January. Those first devices will target label and package producers— a behind-the-scenes, but large, printing market.

Later next year, however, Memjet expects that its printing technology will power office printers sold to businesses.

Wide-format printers using Memjet printheads to produce architectural drawings also are expected to be launched in 2011, the company said. And it thinks its technology will be used in photo kiosks at retailers and photofinishing mini-labs by the end of 2011.

“Our value is we can bring much faster print speeds at lower costs, and color,” said Lauer. “You might say, ‘What do you mean? Everybody has color.’ But in the commercial space, color is very expensive. So we bring in color at a very low cost.”

Inkjet and laser print technology has been around for decades. Big companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Canon, Epson and Lexmark dominate the industry. It hardly seems like fertile ground for an upstart company to make a stand.

But industry analysts are taking Memjet seriously for several reasons.

Over all those years of development, it has accumulated 3,000 patents worldwide related to its technology. It has an additional 2,000 patents pending.

It’s also a sizable operation, employing about 500 workers in Australia, as well as about 50 employees in San Diego. The local office is a few hundred yards from H-P’s inkjet product development campus in Rancho Bernardo. It also has an office in Boise, Idaho, — another H-P stronghold — and other cities worldwide.

Moreover, at least one mega-rich investor has made a bet big on Memjet. Argonaut, a private equity fund controlled by Tulsa energy billionaire George Kaiser, is the chief financial backer of the firm. Lauer won’t pinpoint how much Memjet has raised over the years, but he will say it’s “hundreds of millions of dollars.”

Finally, Memjet managed to lure Lauer away from San Diego-based Qualcomm, where he was chief operating officer, this year to lead Memjet as it pushed toward bringing its technology to market.

“It has gotten a lot of attention in the industry,” said Bob Leahey, an analyst with technology research firm InfoTrends. “It’s not fully commercialized at this point. We’ll know much more when some (label printers) get installed. But they have very high resolution. They have very low costs for a fairly substantial piece of equipment. So those two things are compelling.”

There has been some skepticism surrounding Memjet, in part because it came out in 2007 talking about revolutionizing the inkjet business but then missed deadlines for deliveringproducts.

“They have been sort of like Bigfoot in the industry for a number of years now,” said Gary Peterson, an analyst with Gap Intelligence, which tracks the printer industry. “They were first introduced to the market about March 2007. They were coming out with products the next year. Then it got bumped back a year. Then another year.”

Peterson said Memjet’s product line up has been a moving target as well. It once expected to have a home photo printer, but those plans have been shelved.

“Back in 2007, they approached everybody — Lexmark, H-P — and essentially said, ‘This is what we’re bringing to market. We know it’s a category killer. Either join us or perish.’ ”

Competitors didn’t jump to deploy Memjet’s printhead, which analysts think indicates they are confident in their own technologies and ability to compete.

Lauer said the delays in 2007 occurred because Memjet’s partners wanted more fully developed printing systems than Memjet anticipated. The company has now met those requirements for the label printer marketand expects to soon meet them for the other markets it is targeting.

Memjet’s business model is not to make printers. Instead, it wants to provide “print engines” — the printhead, ink, software and semiconductor chips — to partner companies. Those partner companies will design the printers, paper trays and so on, then sell the devices under their own brand names.

Lauer said the business model is similar to that of Qualcomm, which sells modem chips to wireless phone makers that allow cell phones to work. Memjet is getting its brand name out with a “Powered by Memjet” campaign, similar to the Intel Inside strategy. “We want people to recognize at the point of sale, ‘Oh Memjet. That must be fast,’” said Lauer.

The company’s core technology was developed by Kia Silverbrook, an Australian inventor who once was chief technology officer for Canon. He started working on the concept of a page-wide printhead in 1994.

“Laser and inkjet technology is 25 years old,” said Lauer. “And what happens is every year the industry just evolves. Every year it comes out with a little bit better price performance, a little bit better speed. But nothing revolutionary.”

Memjet thinks its technology is a big step forward.

“The holy grail for a long time has been to come up with an inkjet printhead that was wide enough where it didn’t have to be scanned back and forth,” said Charles LeCompte, an analyst with Lyra Research, an industry group.

With a page-wide printhead, a device could print very fast. Memjet says its technology will allow an office printer to spit out 60 pages a minute — or about four times the amount a typical monochrome lasermight produce.

Four companies have signed up to put Memjet’s technology in printers targeting the label market or envelope printing market — including MainStream LLC, Astro Machines, Rapid Machinery and Own-XIndustrial.

The company won’t reveal its potential partners in other markets, including office printers. But it expects to make some announcements during the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

Lauer thinks Memjet has advantages over a typical startup.

For one, it’s targeting big markets. Digital printing is a $249 billion worldwide industry. While printing overall is declining, digital printing is growing about 10 percent a year as older analog presses and chemical-based photo finishing systems are replaced.

“A lot of times when you’re a startup, you have to develop a market for your mousetrap,” he said. “In our case, the market already exists, and it’s a quarter of a trillion dollars.”

Analysts say labels are a good fit for Memjet, since speed matters and the low price for the initial equipment is attractive.

But other markets may be more difficult. Photo kiosks, for example, mean competing against H-P, Kodak and Fuji Film. The office printer business is stock full of competition.

“It’s not so much that they’re competing against an established beast like H-P, it’s that they are competing against four or five established beasts, including Lexmark, Canon and Epson,” said Peterson.

An unusual aspect of the company’s business is that the printhead is a consumable, meaning it must be replaced periodically depending on use. For the office market, Memjet is encouraging partners to implement an ink refill program so customers can reuse the ink cartridges. Memjet has developed designs for ink refill stations.

Office printers are by far the biggest market Memjet wants to attack. It aims to compete against monochrome laser with a device that sells for $500 to $600 but offers a better cost per page and faster speeds.

“It’s been a long haul for Memjet,” said LeCompte. “They came out more slowly than they expected. But I’d say their chances are good.”

MEMJET FACT SHEET [June 22, 2011] (emphasis is mine)

Memjet is the global leader in color printing technologies that provide remarkable speeds and affordability.

TECHNOLOGY:
Memjet develops color printing technologies (controller chips, printheads, ink and software) that enable super-fast, affordable quality color printing.

DIFFERENTIATORS:
Memjet has three major differentiators:

• Memjet provides a fast and affordable way to print in 1600 dots per inch (DPI) color at 60 pages per minute (ppm) or 12 inches per second (IPS).
• Memjet-powered printers are twice the speed and half the total cost of ownership, on average, compared to traditional color printers.
• The Memjet partner business model leverages the channel strength, market innovations and brand awareness of Memjet OEMs.

MARKET:
$250 billion digital printing market.

While the Memjet technology is appropriate for a wide variety of printing applications, currently the company is focused on four key markets:

• Labels
• Home & Office
• Wide Format
• Photo Retail

Memjet will participate in—and accelerate—these printing industry trends:

• Analog to ditigal
• Monochrome to color
• Pre-print to print on-demand
• Centralized to de-centralized
• Off-line to in-line

TECHNOLOGY:
Memjet’s core technology is controller chips, quality assurance chips, printheads, and ink and reference designs developed by Silverbrook Research of Sydney, Australia. Memjet technology is protected by 3,000 global patents, with 2,000 additional patents pending.

A single Memjet printhead contains more than 70,000 nozzles. It is designed to fire more than 700 million drops of ink per second, enough to print a full color page. Each printhead nozzle is approximately one-tenth the diameter of a human hair.

The Memjet printhead prints in true 1600×1600 DPI. Its five-color-channels per printhead can be configured with different color combinations and various media widths for different market needs. The Memjet printhead prints an entire page in one pass, eliminating the scanning motion of traditional inkjet printers.

BUSINESS MODEL:
Memjet supplies printing components to its OEM partners, which incorporate the technology into their branded products. These OEM partner printers can be identified through a “powered by Memjet” logo mark.

ANNOUNCED PARTNERSHIPS:
Memjet is working with OEMs and innovative start-ups, many of which have asked to remain confidential at this time.

The following companies have been announced.

• LG (Korea)	• Astro Machine Corp. (North America)
• Lenovo (China)	• OWN-X KFT (Europe)
• MEDION (Europe)	• Rapid Label Systems (Australia)
• Lomond (Russia)	• Kpower Science Co. Ltd. (Taiwan)
• WeP Peripherals Ltd. (India)

[1. Rena Shows Memjet Based Prototype for Direct Mail [May 5, 2010]: “AMS Will be launching the new AMS M1 Colour Page Printer at IPEX May 2010. Stand D861 Hall 18. The AMS M1 Printer incorporates new Memjet Inkjet Technology. … AMS is the exclusive distributor in the UK & Ireland for Astro Machine Corporation products.”

2. Neopost USA Addressing Group Partners with Astro Machine Corporation [Oct 1, 2010]: “ The Neopost USA Addressing Group announces the introduction of the RENA Mach 5 Color Mail Printer. RENA is a Neopost USA brand known for leadership in direct mail technology. This new inkjet printer is designed to print envelopes, postcards, mailers & more in true digital full process color. The new RENA Mach 5 offers breakthrough performance powered by Memjet® technology. … Engineered in partnership with Astro Machine Corp., the RENA Mach 5 Color Mail Printer is now available for purchase with the first production models shipping in December 2010. Pricing is positioned below comparable toner-based print systems. It is available via the Neopost USA and RENA Systems national network of equipment dealers. … Neopost USA is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Neopost S.A., the fastest-growing worldwide provider of mailing and shipping solutions. With its two flagship brands of Neopost and Hasler, it partners with customers to help them achieve higher levels of efficiency, control and value in their mailing operations. … RENA & RENA Systems are Neopost USA brands. The RENA Brand is managed by the Neopost USA Addressing group based in Oaks, PA.

3. CeBIT: Medion zeigt 60-Seiten-Drucker mit Tintentechnologie von Memjet [March 4, 2011]
Translation: CeBIT: Medion shows 60-page print in ink technology Memjet [April 6]: “The Medion E89400 prints up to 60 color pages per minute and will cost around 600 euros (picture: ZDNet). … He is 600 euros will be available this year for around middle. Currently Medion checked with the distributor Tech Data opportunities, product dealers to sell the. … The technology was presented by Memjet already at CES in Las Vegas. Medion has taken over the marketing for the European space and displays it for the first time in Europe. … 2012 can be calculated using the same technology with a smaller model. For 2013, a variant is planned with duplex printing. A wireless version is not currently on the roadmap. … 2012 can be calculated using the same technology with a smaller model. For 2013, a variant is planned with duplex printing. A wireless version is not currently on the roadmap.”

4. Memjet Partners with Lomond to Bring World’s Fastest Office Color Printer to Russia [April 14, 2011]: “Memjet, the global leader in color printing technologies that provide remarkable speeds and affordability, and Lomond, a provider of consumables for office and large-format digital printing, today announced a partnership to deliver Memjet-powered printers to the Russian market. The first printer to be introduced from the new Lomond product line is the EvoJet Office. … allows us to offer the world’s fastest desktop color printer to Lomond customers for office use across Russia and more than 10 additional countries in the Eastern European market,” said Lomond CEO Alexander Bulaev. … LOMOND Trading Ltd. is an international company headquartered in Douglas, Isle of Man.”]

The end-user base for Memjet-powered printers will continue to expand rapidly in 2011 with OEM partner launches across the first four areas of our industry focus: labels, office, photo kiosks and mini labs, and wide format.

SIZE:
500 full-time professionals, the majority of whom are focused on Research & Development.

OFFICES:
Corporate office located in San Diego, and offices in Dublin, Sydney, Taipei, Singapore and Boise, Idaho

FOUNDED:
2002

FUNDING:
Privately funded. The principal investor is Argonaut Private Equity.

LEADERSHIP:
The executive team is comprised of technology veterans with deep experience across a variety
of leading companies in high-tech, as well as the print industry.
• Len Lauer, president and chief executive officer (formerly COO of Qualcomm, and president and COO of Sprint)
• Mark Legg, chief financial officer
• Bill McGlynn, president, Home & Office Business Unit
• Sean Marske, president, Labels Business Unit
• Dave Clark, president, Photo Retail Business Unit
• Mike Puyot, president, Wide Format Business Unit

MEMJET TECHNOLOGY BRIEF [Dec 23, 2010] (emphasis is mine)

Memjet is a new generation of color printing technologies that provide remarkable speeds and affordability.

Memjet technologies today power OEM partner printers that produce commercial labels and other commercial color print materials at up to 12 inches per second (IPS). Memjet technologies enable color document printing at 60 PPM (A4 paper).

Memjet supplies technologies and components to OEM partners across the printing industry the same way leading-edge chip makers supply OEM partners across the cellphone, smartphone and personal computing industries. Memjet holds 3,000 global patents for color printing technologies, with 2,000 more pending.
Memjet technologies make possible an amazingly fast and efficient digital color print system that combines a controller chip, software, ink and revolutionary printheads.

PAGE-WIDE PRINTHEADS
Memjet technologies put more than 70,000 ink nozzles on a single high-density printhead—17 times that of traditional printheads. This design allows Memjet printheads to deliver true 1600×1600 dots per inches (DPI) at 1 PPS / 12 IPS.

A Memjet page-width printhead is less than nine inches wide (222 mm). It is designed to fire more than 700 million drops of ink per second, enough to print a full-color, A4 page in one second. Its five-color ink channels can be configured with different combinations for different market needs.

Color printing speed and high quality are achieved simultaneously because the printhead’s high-density nozzles, firing with incredible speed, achieve full coverage and quality with one pass of the paper, labels or other media.

PRINTHEAD AT-A-GLANCE
• High-density, page-wide printhead with 8.77 inch (222.8 mm) printable width
• Prints 6 inches (152mm) per second or 12 inches (305mm) per second
• Single pass 1,600 dots per inch (DPI)
• 11 integrated circuits (ICs)
• 70,400 nozzles (6,400 per IC chip)

CUSTOM ASICS
Memjet’s custom controllers provide a powerful development platform for OEM brands. All Memjet controllers include Memjet’s high-speed print pipeline which runs on dedicated hardware and is optimized to achieve Memjet’s 60 PPM / 12 IPS speed continuously. Whether leveraging the fully functional single-function capabilities, adding and customizing modules or porting existing firmware architectures, Memjet’s controllers are designed to optimize performance, streamline development processes and reduce overall controller board costs by maximizing controller-chip-based functionality.

CONTROLLER OVERVIEW
• 32 bit RISC controller
• 648 MHz CPU
• 2.6+ million logic gates and fast, flexible memory options
• Integrated Memjet 60 PPM / 12 IPS pipeline
• Integrated networking and USB support
• Extensive user interface and motor control elements
• Software development kit and tools available to OEMs

SOFTWARE
Memjet’s software modules include end-user applications such as printer drivers, installers, usage-tracking and error-reporting modules as well as other manufacturing, service and management modules. All applications are written in ANSI C/C++ and provide a well-defined set of common operating system interfaces and OS-independent code for OEM brands to leverage and customize.

INK
Memjet inks are proprietary, water-based, four-color (CMYK) ink formulations, customized to work in conjunction with Memjet printheads. While water-based inks are common in the office and home printing market, Memjet inks are unique to meet the demands of high-speed drop ejection and single-pass printing, and to ensure reliable, high-quality color printing for the life of the printhead.

AVAILABILITY
Memjet’s technologies are commercialized today and available through several OEM partners in the labels and labels packaging space. The end-user base for Memjet-powered printers will continue to expand rapidly in 2011 with OEM partner launches across the first four areas of industry focus: labels, office, photo kiosks and mini labs, and wide format.

Labels [Business]

HIGH SPEED REVOLUTIONIZES PRODUCTIVITY.

Memjet technology means you can now print blistering-fast color runs of labels and packaging onsite and on-demand, while cutting run costs nearly in half. This revolutionary technology means that your high-demand logistics and manufacturing operations customers get what they need, when they need it, for less money. Need variable run capacity? Memjet breakthrough technology gives your customermultiple printers at once, and change data on the fly, while increasing speed and maintaining complete quality control.

Memjet makes history of pre-printed labels inventory. Now there’s no waste or overruns. Memjet technology puts control into the hands of brand managers to provide the most relevant messages to their markets and customers. Which means your customers can print what they want, when they want it. No one in the labels and packaging industry can match Memjet’s low costs, high speeds and color on-demand.

Memjet Labels OEM Benchtop Print Engine [Oct 28, 2010]
Watch this video to see just how fast Memjet label printing technology runs labels.

Memjet OEM benchtop print engine creating color barcode labels at high speed and on demand.

Memjet Labels OEM Forms Benchtop Print Engine [Nov 1, 2010]

[Other videos:
– Memjet Labels OEM Production Class Print Engine – Pre-Production [Jan 3, 2011]
– Memjet Labels OEM Production Class Print Engine – Printhead Changeout [Jan 3, 2011]
– Memjet Labels OEM Production Class Print Engine – Variable Imaging [Jan 3, 2011]]

Wide-format [business]

WATCH OUR FAST, LARGE FORMAT TECHNOLOGY AT WORK.

Everything about wide format printing is turned on its head. Memjet Waterfall Printhead Technology™ brings big color in a wide way with speeds that will amaze you. What else would you expect from a print engine with more than 350,000 nozzles dropping more than 3 billion drops of ink per second?

This revolutionary technology delivers vivid architectural and engineering documents, maps, indoor signage, P-O-P displays, packaging, folding carton, corrugated boxes, newspapers and more. And all on-demand, with the ability to go variable, customized and personalized with no lengthy waits. Finally, short print runs are at your fingertips in seconds. Raise productivity to all-time highs with a low total cost of ownership that will increase your profits, too. Revolutionize your business with the most remarkable color speed—8 times faster than current technologies. That’s big.

Memjet Wide Format OEM Print Engine – technical graphics [Oct 29, 2010]
Watch the incredibly fast (real-time) Memjet wide format printing technology at work.

Memjet Wide Format OEM print engine at work producing color technical graphics at high speed.

Memjet Wide Format OEM Print Engine – production graphics [Oct 29, 2010]

Memjet Wide Format OEM print engine at work with production graphics in color and at high speed.

[Other videos:
– Memjet Wide Format OEM Print Engine, Label Printing [Oct 29, 2010]
– Memjet Wide Format OEM Print Engine, Color on Corrugated [Oct 28, 2010]
– Memjet Wide Format OEM Print Engine, Folding Carton Printing [Oct 28, 2010]
– Memjet Color Printing Technologies at Work [Oct 29, 2010]]

Home & Office [Business]

Faster charts. Faster documents. Faster business.

What do Memjet color office printers mean to your business customers? They mean incredibly fast color productivity, cost efficiency and high impact documents for less money. In fact, Memjet-featured office color printers print pages faster than traditional monochrome printers and more affordably than color laser. Suddenly, color printing at the office makes sense every day, for every document, for every employee.

BUSINESS MOVES FAST. YOUR PRINTING SHOULD, TOO.

Memjet-powered office printers can print 60 color pages per minute—twice as fast as color laser options. They’re also half the cost, on average, to operate. Which means you no longer have to sacrifice great color for cost or speed. Now you can have both. For your presentations. For your reports. For every daily correspondence. In literally seconds.

Memjet Office Printer – Production Reference [Oct 29, 2010]

Memjet vs. HP Laser Jet [Oct 29, 2010]

[Other videos:
– Canon MX7600 VS Memjet [Oct 29, 2010]:
Features Memjet A4/Letter prototype printer vs. a Canon MX7600 color inkjet printer.
– Brother MFC-7840W VS Memjet [Oct 29, 2010]:
Features the Memjet A4/Letter prototype printer vs. the Brother MFC-7849W monochrome laser printer.]

Photo Retail [Business]

Small is the new big. Brilliant Images. Faster than ever.

Lightening-fast, self-serve photo kiosks? High-speed, mini-photo labs behind counters in retail stores? Your photo development customers want to deliver photos fast and affordably without sacrificing quality or taking up lots of floor space. And now they can.

Our next-generation printing technology delivers sharp, rich photo prints faster than anything on the market, up to 8 times faster and for less money—without chemicals or a photo processing and printing machine the size of a subcompact automobile. Memjet-powered photo printers pack tons of photo profits into a very small space, and for as little as one-tenth the cost of traditional photo retail installations.

Memjet printing technology creates beautiful full color photography at speeds that will amaze your customers and photo enthusiasts everywhere. What else would you expect from a print engine with more than 70,000 nozzles dropping more than 700 million drops of ink per second?

Memjet Photo Retail OEM Print Engine [Jan 3, 2011]

Memjet, photo retail, print engine, photo printing.

Hungarian inkjet printer debuts in Australia [May 9, 2011]

Budapest, Hungary-headquartered Own-X Kft has appointed Queensland, Australian-based Label Print Systems as a distributor of its SpeedStar 3000 mono and color inkjet printer.

Launched into the Australian market last week, the ultra-fast (18 meters/59ft every 60 seconds at 1600 dpi) roll-fed machine, powered by Memjet technology, received an enthusiastic reception from local converters.

Label Print Systems’ marketing manager Lindsay Nutley is quoted as saying that inkjet printers have long been considered too expensive per label to compete with thermal technology while the SpeedStar meets industrial label printing demands with low imaging costs. The advent of the SpeedStar 3000 will make it viable for people to enter the short run label market, he said.

SpeedStar 3000 Promotion in China/Asia [from a Chinese distributor: Techway Technology (HK) Ltd., now offering SpeedStar 3000]

AMS unveils two new Memjet units [PrintWeek version UK, May 11, 2011]

Addressing and Mailing Solutions (AMS) has debuted two print engines at Northprint 2011, both featuring Memjet technology.

Both the M1 Colour Page Printer and the Speedstar 3000 Colour Label Printer are on AMS’s stand (A112).

The Speedstar 3000 is a Hungarian-built machine, manufactured by Budapest-based OWN-X.

It runs at 300mm/second at 1,600dpi in mono and is capable of full 1,600dpi colour print at 150mm/second. Print width on the £8,450 machine runs from 50mm to 222mm and it can handle substrates from 0.13mm to 0.33mm thick.

AMS managing director Kevin McPheat said: “Compared to other machines I have seen around here, I would say it is around 50 times faster, you are paying for speed.

“A good example is a sandwich packaging manufacturer, you have 600 sets of sandwiches, each one with a different weight, different ingredients, even different customers. There is no need to worry about getting labels in. Put one of these machines in your factory and the labels can be produced in-house.”

The machine also has an onboard computer monitor that informs the user about the amount of ink that has been used so that they can work out the cost of a job.

The M1 Colour Page Printer is also powered by an Memjet print engine designed by Chicago-based Astro.

It has been designed for short-run, variable-data print and McPheat said it has a number of potential uses.

He said: “It’s ideal for short-run envelopes – addresses and graphics can all be personalised – but it can also produce other products, such as low-cost greetings cards.”

The £12,950 machine runs up to 3,600 A4 sheets or 9,000 envelopes per hour at 1,600 dpi. It can handle paper from 0.1mm to 0.5mm.

McPheat added that the machine’s maintenance and inkheads were not currently on click charges, but it was something that AMS is looking at.

Product Information For The AstroJet M1 [May 25, 2011]

AstroJet M1 in Action [Sept 23, 2011]

AstroJet M2 in Action [Nov 23, 2010, commercially available from Dec’10]

OWN-X INFORMATION (in Hungarian)

Új technológiájú nyomtatók Magyarországról [2010. november 23.]

Tintasugaras nyomtatás álló nyomtatófejjel

…

Nyomtatócsalád – négy különböző célra

Maga a Memjet technológia önmagában természetesen nem képes nyomtatásra. Ahhoz, hogy valóban használható gépek szülessenek, további fejlesztésekre, kiegészítő egységekre volt szükség. E fejlesztések részben az Egyesült Államokban, részben Magyarországon, az Own-X Kft.-nél folytak. A magyarországi Own-X Kft. mintegy két és fél éve kapcsolódott be a fejlesztésekbe. A közös munka olyan jól sikerült, hogy az Own-X – ifj. Kozmann György vezetésével – kizárólagos gyártási jogot kapott a Memjet technológiára egész Európában, továbbá kizárólagosan értékesítheti a technológiát Észak-Amerikában. Időközben Amerikában megalakult a Memjet cégcsoport, amely négy ágazatból áll.

A Memjet Home and Office-hoz az otthoni és irodai felhasználásra szánt gépcsoport, a Memjet Labels-hez a címkenyomtatók, a Memhet Photo-hoz a fotónyomtatók, a Memjet Wide Format-hoz pedig a nagy méretű rajzok nyomgatására is képes plotterek tartoznak. Ezen cégek közül az Own-X a Memjet Labels-szel és a Memjet Wide Format-tal áll szerződéses jogviszonyban, tehát ezen cégek gépeit fogják Magyarországon a Memjet technológiával gyártani. A technológia alapja mind a négy nyomtatócsaládnál ugyanaz. Lényegében azonos a nyomtatófej, a festékanyag és a papírmozgatás elve.

Az alaphoz azonban természetesen rengeteg, a nyomtatás típusától függő eltérő „apróság” jön hozzá. Ha például a széles formátumú nyomtatókat tekintjük, akkor számos elektronikai újdonságra volt szükség a nyomtatási idő drasztikus csökkentéséhez. (Amit egy ma piacon lévő plotter 30 perc alatt nyomtat ki, azt a Memjet technológiára épülő széles nyomtatóval mintegy 30 másodperc alatt lehet a papíron megjeleníteni.)

Beépített számítógép, stand alone nyomtatás

Az Own-X címkenyomtatója, a SpeedStar lényegében négy fő részből áll. A nyomtatómotort jelenleg a Memjet szállítja Szingapúrból, de lehetséges, hogy a későbbiekben a motor összeszerelése Magyarországon történik majd. A nyomtatófej kész egységként érkezik a Memjettől. A nyomtató azon további két egysége, amely lényegében működőképessé teszi a Memjet technológiát, száz százalékosan magyar találmány– tájékoztat ifj. Kozmann György.

A hazai csapat – a veszprémi Pannon Egyetem közreműködésével – körülbelül egy év alatt gyakorlatilag összehangolta a már kész elemek működését. A nyomtatómotor és a nyomtatófej köré olyan elektronikai környezetet, valamint szoftverrendszert fejlesztett és épített, amely működteti a szóban forgó egységeket. Rendkívül komoly feladat volt például a nyomtatómotor és a letekercselő közötti hajszálpontos együttműködés megteremtése, ugyanis folyamatosan meghatározott, 4 Newton erőnek kell hatnia az anyagra nyomtatás közben, hogy a papír kellő egyenességet, kellő simaságot érjen el a nyomtatófej alatt. Hosszas kísérletezések után kiderült, hogy nincs a piacon az igényeket kielégítő, megfelelő gyorsaságú letekercselő.

A feladatot végül csak úgy sikerült megoldani, hogy a magyar szakemberek saját letekercselőt fejlesztettek. A SpeedStar címkenyomtató specialitása, hogy beágyazott (embedded) számítógépet is tartalmaz. A nyomtató működtetéséhez így nincs szükség külön számítógépre, továbbá a gép az internetre is kapcsolódhat. Ez – ifj. Kozmann György elmondása szerint – unikális megoldásnak számít a címkenyomtatók piacán. A címkék – a beágyozott számítógép, illetve az arra telepített célszoftverek segítségével – magán a nyomtatón előállíthatók, szerkeszthetők. A SpeedStar úgynevezett stand alone nyomtatásra képes egység, tehát önmagában is használható. A címkenyomtató jelenlegi legszélesebb formátuma az A4.

…

A SpeedStar végfelhasználói árait már kikalkulálták: Európában 7900 eurót, Észak-Amerikában mintegy 6000 dollárt kell fizetni egy gépért. Egy Memjet-nyomat ára körülbelül ugyanannyi, mint a termotechnológiánál, sőt egyes területeken akár kedvezőbb is lehet a korábbiaknál. További szempont lehet, hogy míg a termotechnológiával kizárólat fekete-fehér nyomatokat lehet előállítani, addig a gazdaságosan üzemeltethető (kevesebb festéket felhasználó) Memjet színes nyomtatásra is képes.

Gyártás Esztergomban

Az Own-X Kft. az Innomed Medical Orvostechnikai Fejlesztő és Gyártó Zrt.-vel állapodott meg a nyomtatók gyártásáról. A gépek az Innomed esztergomi gyártósoráról kerülnek le. A nullszériás darabokat követően a sorozatgyártás október közepén elkezdődött. A nyomtatók november első hetétől kaphatók Európában és Észak-Amerikában.

Az értékesítés kizárólag viszonteladói hálózaton keresztül történik. A szervizszolgáltatást szintén a viszonteladók nyújtják, a szakembereket az Own-X képezte ki. Kizárólag olyan cégeknek adtak exkluzív értékesítési és szervizjogot, amelyek már régóta jelen vannak a nyomtatópiacon, illetve megfelelő szervizháttérrel rendelkeznek – hangsúlyozta ifj. Kozmann György. Csak így biztosítható, hogy az esetleges hibákat 24 órán belül kijavítsák, bárhol működjön is a nyomtató.

Egyedülálló nyomtatót fejlesztettek [2011. február 12.]

„Speedstar 3000” nevet viseli a világon egyedülálló, intelligens nyomtató, melyet az OWN-X Kft. hozott forgalomba, s amelyhez az elektronikus egységeket és az intelligenciát biztosító szoftver fejlesztését a Pannon Egyetem Műszaki Informatikai Karának munkatársai végezték. A termék széleskörű ausztrál-amerikai-magyar tudományos és technológiai együttműködés eredményeként valósulhatott meg. A szoftver létrehozása a magyar partner feladata volt, melyhez az OWN-X Kft. vezetői, dr. Jules Farkas és Kozmann György Zoltán Veszprémben találták meg a szakembereket, akik a fejlesztéseket elvégezték.

A „Speedstar 3000” nyomtató bemutatójára február 11-éndélelőtt került sor a Pannon Egyetem Műszaki Informatikai Karának épületében.

dr. Jules Farkas

Dr. Friedler Ferenc, a Pannon Egyetem Műszaki Informatikai Karának dékánja számolt be arról, hogy a fejlesztés két történet találkozásának köszönhető.

– Az első történet 1956. november 17-én indult, amikor egy 12 éves kisfiú felszállt a vonatra, és elhagyta az országot. Ez a fiú nem volt más, mint Jules Farkas. A másik történet az, amikor találkozott karunkkal – mondta.

– Visszatértem Magyarországra, hogy csináljak valamit, új technológiát kell behozni az országba. Ehhez nagy tudás kell, mert ez a nyomtató a technológia csúcsát jelenti, így kellett az egyetemi szakértelem. Itt egy év alatt olyan nagy dolog történt, ami a világ első nagyon gyors nyomtatóját eredményezte a címkenyomtatásban – fogalmazott dr. Jules Farkas, az OWN-X Kft. elnöke.

A Műszaki Informatikai Kar az intelligens nyomtató teljes fejlesztési folyamatát végigkísérte az innovációtól a gyártásig. A gyártást kereskedelmi mennyiségben a karral tudományosan is együttműködő Innomed Zrt. végzi. Az intelligens, azaz a gyorsan változó igényekhez alkalmazkodni képes nyomtató tervezését és végső ipari termékké alakítását jórészt a Műszaki Informatikai Kar Villamosmérnöki és Információs Rendszerek Tanszék munkatársai végezték dr. Juhász Zoltán egyetemi docens vezetésével.

Az egyetem kidolgozta a vezérlő elektronikát, és az igényekhez alakították a mechanikát. Az új nyomtatót gyorsan befogadta és elismerte a piac, amit kifejez a rendelések száma, hiszen 3000 az éves eladott darabszám, nem csak Európában.

Judd Quimby és Sean Marske

Sean Marske Memjet Label LLC, San Diego elnöke elmondta, büszke arra, hogy a Pannon Egyetemmel együtt dolgozhat. Beszámolt róla, hogy a nyomtatófej 70.000 fúvókából áll. A nyomtatófej a színes nyomtatás minden minőségi, sebességi és ár paramétere szempontjából a világon egyedülálló megoldást jelent. Ezt a tehnikát a Memjet Label LLC 10 évig fejlesztette.

– Izgalmas volt látni, mi történik az egyetemen egy év alatt, hiszen szép eredményeket értünk el. Olyan termék ez, amely az egész világon forgalomba hozható, első ilyen nyomtató a címkenyomtatók között – számolt be róla Judd Quimby, Memjet Label LLC, Senir Vice President.

Ifj. Kozmann György, az OWN-X Kft. general menedzsere elmondta: “a nyomtató “arany termék” lesz, amihez olyan “arany csapat” kell, amilyet a Pannon Egyetem mögénk állított. Dr. Juhász Zoltán, a Pannon Egyetem Műszaki Informatikai Karának projektvezetője mutatta be a nyomtató működését, valamint ismertette a műszaki paramétereket.

Dr. Juhász Zoltán

A termék nyomtatástechnológiai és informatikai adottságai miatt jelent áttörést a nyomtatópiacon, hiszen szolgáltatási színvonala minden eddiginél magasabb, amit technológiai fejlettségével ér el. Változó tartalommal képes nagy felbontású színes képeket nyomtatni széles méterhatárok között, minden eddiginél olcsóbban. Ezen feladatok együttes megvalósítására eddig egyetlen gép sem volt képes.

E-Cégközlöny 2011/10. szám (174690. oldal) [2011. március 10.]

01 09 886536
OWN-X Financial Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság (1220 Budapest, Péter Pál u 75.; [14049929-2-43])*
2. A cég elnevezése
OWN-X Financial Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság
Vált. vége: 2011.02.16.
Törölve (végzés kelte): 2011. február 23.
OWN-X Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság
Vált. kezdete: 2011.02.16.
Bejegyezve (végzés kelte): 2011. február 23.
6. A cég telephelye(i)
1149 Budapest, Szabó József utca 12.
Vált. kezdete: 2011.02.16.
Bejegyezve (végzés kelte): 2011. február 23.
8. A létesítő okirat
Módosítva: 2011. február 16. napján.
Végzés kelte: Fővárosi Bíróság 2011.02.23

E-Cégközlöny 2011/24. szám (438004. oldal) [2011. június 16.]

01 09 962752
OWN-X Fejlesztési és Technológiai Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság (1146 Budapest, Szabó József utca 12.;
[23377411-2-42])*
1. Általános adatok
2011. május 30.
Korlátolt felelősségű társaság
2. A cég elnevezése
OWN-X Fejlesztési és Technológiai Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság
3. A cég rövidített elnevezése(i)
OWN-X Fejlesztési Kft.
4. A cég idegennyelvű elnevezése(i), idegen nyelvű rövidített elnevezése(i)
OWN-X Innovation and Technology Ltd., OWN-X Innovation Ltd.
5. A cég székhelye
1146 Budapest, Szabó József utca 12.
8. A létesítő okirat kelte
2011.05.25
9. A cég tevékenysége
7112 Mérnöki tevékenység, műszaki tanácsadás
7219 Egyéb természettudományi, műszaki kutatás, fejlesztés
11. A cég jegyzett tőkéje
500000.- HUF, azaz ötszázezer HUF.
13. A képviseletre jogosult(ak) adatai
A képviselet módja: önálló.
E-mail: gyorgy.kozmann@own-x.hu
Adóazonosító jel: 8418573392
Kozmann György Zoltán vezető tisztségviselő (ügyvezető) (an.: Farkas Ildikó)
1220 Budapest, Péter Pál utca 75.
Jogv. kezdete: 2011.05.25.
20. A cég statisztikai számjele
23377411-7112-113-01
21. A cég adószáma
23377411-2-42
Adószám státusza: érvényes adószám
45. A cég elektronikus elérhetősége
A cég e-mail címe: gyorgy.kozmann@own-x.hu
49. A cég cégjegyzékszáma és a nyilvántartását vezető bíróság
01-09-962752 Vezetve a Fővárosi Bíróság mint Cégbíróságnál.
1(09). A tag(ok) adatai
Kozmann György Zoltán (an.: Farkas Ildikó)
1220 Budapest, Péter Pál utca 75.
Tags. kezdete: 2011.05.25.
Dr. Jules Farkas (an.: Gurszky Olga)
Külföldi lakó,illetve tartózkodási helye:
CH 8450 Andelfingen, Alfred Baur str. 9.
Tags. kezdete: 2011.05.25.
Végzés kelte: Fővárosi Bíróság 2011.05.30

E-Cégközlöny 2009/36. szám (136711. oldal) [2009. szeptember 3.]

01 09 886536
OWNX
Financial Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság (1220 Budapest,
Péter Pál u. 75.; [14049929243])
21. 14049929143.
Törölve: 2009. 08. 17.
14049929243.
Bejegyezve: 2009. 08. 17.
2009. 08. 17.

E-Cégközlöny 2011/24. szám (438004. oldal) [2010. március 4.]

01 09 886536
OWNX
Financial Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság (1220 Budapest,
Péter Pál u. 75.; [14049929243])
6. 1111 Budapest, Kruspér utca 68.
1. em. 19/A.
A változás időpontja (törlés): 2010. 01. 20.
Törölve: 2010. 01. 20.
8. 2010. 01. 20.
13. A képviselet módja: önálló.
Tisztsége: vezető tisztségviselő (ügyvezető).
Kozmann György Zoltán (an: Farkas Ildikó)
A jogviszony kezdete: 2007. 09. 10.
A változás időpontja (törlés): 2010. 01. 20.
Törölve: 2010. 01. 20.
A képviselet módja: önálló.
Tisztsége: vezető tisztségviselő (ügyvezető).
Dr. Jules Farkas (an: Gurszky Olga)
Adóazonosító jel: 756.7289.8978.04
Kézbesítési megbízott: Kozmann György Zoltán (an: Farkas
Ildikó)
A jogviszony kezdete: 2010. 01. 20.
A változás időpontja: 2010. 01. 20.
A képviselet módja: önálló.
Tisztsége: vezető tisztségviselő (ügyvezető).
Kozmann György Zoltán (an: Farkas Ildikó)
Adóazonosító jel: 8418573392
A jogviszony kezdete: 2007. 09. 10.
A változás időpontja: 2010. 01. 20.
Bejegyezve: 2010. 01. 20.
1(09). Dr. Jules Farkas (an: Gurszky Olga)
A tagság kezdete: 2010. 01. 20.
A változás időpontja: 2010. 01. 20.
Bejegyezve: 2010. 01. 20.
A fenti adat(ok) bejegyzése és közzététele a következő okirat(ok)
alapján történt: egyéb (formanyomtatvány); Ctv. 3. számú melléklet
II. pontjában meghatározott okiratok törvényességi szempontú
vizsgálatára vonatkozó jogi képviselői nyilatkozat. Az
okirat(ok) a cég cégjegyzékét vezető cégbíróságon megtekinthetők.
2010. 02. 16.

História – Tudósnaptár: Kozmann György [nagyapa?!]

Debrecen, 1905. máj. 11. – Budapest, 1980. júl. 22. Gépészmérnök, egyetemi tanár

1930-ban a budapesti műegyetemen szerzett gépészmérnöki oklevelet. A gazdasági válság idején 1932-1936-ig a Honvédelmi Minisztériumban műszaki rajzoló volt. 1936-1945-ig a diósgyőri gyárban a sajtoló műhely vezetője. 1945-1949 között a MÁVAG diósgyőri kohászati üzemeiben az öntödei osztály, majd a metallográfiai osztály laboratóriumának a vezetője. 1942-1949 között a miskolci Gépipari Középiskolában, 1948-tól az Állami Műszaki Főiskola diósgyőri vaskohászati tagozatán tanított. 1949-ben nevezték ki a BME Gépészmérnöki Karára. 1952-től nyugdíjba vonulásáig tanszékvezető a műszaki mechanika tanszéken. 1951-1960-ig a BME oktatási rektorhelyettese, jelentős szerepet játszott a felsőoktatási reform munkálataiban. Számos hazai és külföldi szakfolyóiratban publikálta a szilárdságtan, a műszaki lengéstan és a rugalmasságtan körébe vágó tanulmányait.

Dr. Kozmann György (DSc) [1941] [apa, 1941, Diósgyőr]

egyetemi tanár

Dr. Kozmann György (D.Sc.) egyetemi tanár, a Pannon Egyetem Egészségügyi Informatikai K+F Központ elnöke.
Okleveles villamosmérnök (BME, 1964), C.Sc. (1981), MTA doktora (2001). A Pannon Egyetemnek 1998 óta főállású oktatója. Részmunkaidőben az MTA MFA tudományos tanácsadója, a Biomérnöki Osztály tudományos osztályvezetője.

Az NJSzT Orvosbiológiai Szakosztály elnöke, az Információ és Menedzsment az Egészségügyben c. lap főszerkesztője. Két nemzetközi és öt magyar szakmai társaság illetve munkabizottság tagja, az OTKA ELE zsűri elnöke. Szakmai érdeklődési területei: egészségügyi információs rendszerek, bioelektromos jelenségek mérése és értelmezése, távdiagnosztika.

Kozmann György életrajza (2009) (70.12 kB)

Kozmann György publikációs lista (1966-2007) (119.88 kB)

Sikertörténetem/Innováció:

Dr. Kozmann György v, 08/02/2009 – 15:06 — zsofi

Okleveles villamosmérnök, az MTA doktora, a veszprémi Pannon Egyetem tanára, az Egészségügyi Informatikai K+F Központ elnöke, az MTA MFA tudományos tanácsadója, a megalapítása óta az IME főszerkesztője. Tisztségeit hosszú lenne végig felsorolni és díjainak száma is kellően hosszú listát eredményezne. A Magyar Köztársasági Érdemrend Lovagkeresztjét 2006-ban kapta meg. „Saját munkámból a legfontosabbnak azt tartom, hogy létrehozhattam a Pannon Egyetem Műszaki Informatikai Karán a bioelektromos jelenségek képalkotó eljárásaival foglalkozó kutatólaboratóriumot. Itt egy új képalkotó modalitás-család létrehozásáról van szó, amely többek között a szív és agyvizsgálatok új dimenzióit nyitja meg, lényegesen felülmúlva a hagyományos EKG vagy EEG teljesítőképességét. Ezen a területen aktuálisan a hirtelen szívhalálra való hajlam korai detektálásával, illetve az agyi plaszticitási jelenség vizsgálatával foglalkozunk egy interdiszciplináris kutatócsoporton belül.”

---

Ha a sikerre gondol, mi jut az eszébe?
A sikert, valamilyen tudatosan, esetleg a tudat alatt megfogalmazott lényeges, nem könnyen elérhető cél beteljesülése jelenti. A siker értékét a „tét” nagysága határozza meg.

Siker a munkában. Siker a magánéletben. Mennyire és hogyan egyeztethető össze?
A sikerről beszélve, többnyire a munkában elért eredményre gondolunk, megőrizve a magánélet lényeges örömeit, a külvilág irányában nem emlegetett erőt adó energiaforrásnak. Ide elsősorban a jól működő párkapcsolatot, a gyermekáldást szokás számítani. Magam is úgy látom, hogy a megfelelő háttér, harmónia hiánya az eredményes, elmélyült, hosszantartó munkának gátja.

„Mindenki a saját sikerének kovácsa”?
Egy kutató esetében a sikerhez vezető úton az első állomás a művelt tudományterület lényeges, megoldatlan és hasznosítható problémáinak felismerése. Ez a mozzanat szükségszerűen valamilyen alapkutatási feladat felismeréséhez kapcsolódik, ami már önmagában is alkotó típusú hozzáállást igényel. A kutatási cél megfogalmazásához állhatatos munka szükséges, meg kell ismerni a szakterület irodalmát, de legfőképpen eredeti gondolkozásra van szükség, hiszen a kutatás-fejlesztés élvonalában lévő kutató a lényeges kezdeti pillanatokban „egyedül van”, neki magának kell a leghasznosabb előrevivő lépéseket meghatározni. Ez általában igaz, néhány kivételes esettől eltekintve, mint amilyen, pl. az egyetemi keretek között történő „kutató (PhD) képzés”, amikor a felkészítés keretében a témavezető is segíti, irányítja a folyamatot. Az új gondolat helyességének igazolása, megvalósítása, a szakmai közösség meggyőzése, a sikerhez vezető út további fontos állomása. Ez többnyire nem egyszerű, hiszen tudományáganként különböző mértékben, de a munka elvégzéséhez többnyire eszközökre és munkatársakra is szükség van, ami természetesen megfelelő anyagi forrásokat is igényel. Ennek ellenére, azt hiszem a leglényegesebb azt látni, hogy „igazi siker” hátterében az újszerű felfogás húzódik meg. „Követő típusú” kutatás-fejlesztés eredménye ugyan hasznos lehet, de mivel nem képes az össz-tudás mennyiségét növelni, az ezen az alapon megvalósuló „innováció” nem képes valamely iparágon belül megváltoztatni az ország helyét a nemzetek sorában.

Mikor érezte először sikeresnek magát?
Dátumszerűen nehéz megmondani. Talán a pályám legelején, amikor az MTA Központi Fizikai Kutatóintézetébe kerülhettem és megéreztem, hogy ez ideális hely a természettudományok iránt érdeklődő kíváncsi emberek számára… Az én esetemben talán a legfontosabb mozzanat az volt, amikor a korábban „követő típusú” biomérnöki, elektrokardiológiai kutatás közben először megértettem, hogy a rendelkezésre álló mérnöki, fizikai és orvosi tudás szerencsés ötvözésével miként lehetne a hagyományos EKG vizsgálatok teljesítőképességét lényegesen megnövelni. Ma már tudom, hogy ez nem csupán egy vizsgálóeljárás teljesítményéről szól, de erősen és kedvezően befolyásolhatja az egészségügyi ellátás gazdaságosságát is, hozzájárulhat a XXI. századhoz méltó orvoslás kialakulásához. Bizonyossá vált előttem, hogy a gondolat nem csak lokálisan, egy-egy érdekes publikáció megírása szintjén, de magasabb szinten is fontos, lehetővé teheti sok ezer kritikus állapotú szívbeteg pontosabb diagnózisát, illetőleg lehetővé teheti például a hirtelen szívhalál rizikójának kellő időben történő felismerését. Mindkét probléma megoldása hasznos lehet a hazai betegellátás szempontjából és a hazai egészségügyi műszeripar szempontjából is, és ami egyáltalán nem mellékes, hogy megvalósítása a hazai technológiai háttér mellett is lehetséges. Ez elindított egy úton, ami egyre közelebb visz egy a felfogásom szerinti fontos végső cél eléréséhez. A siker része az is, hogy az MTA Műszaki Fizikai és Anyagtudományi Kutatóintézetében, majd az utóbbi 10 évben meghatározó módon a Pannon Egyetem Informatikai Karán kellően stimuláló környezetben PhD hallgatói és jelentős kutatói támogatással végezhetem a munkámat. A munka végzéséhez szükséges pályázati támogatást sikerült elnyerni, ami nem megy magától, de a szaporodó „részsikerek” növelik a pályázó hitelét és esélyét a jelentős támogatáshoz.

Kit tart Ön sikeresnek?
Az igazi siker számos mozzanatból épül fel. Említettem az új gondolatok fontosságát. Ezen túlmenően fontos említeni a kutatási és innovációs folyamat (divatos rövidítéssel: K+F+I) teljes egészének a sikerre vitelét. Ez, érzésem szerint a végső sikerhez egyre több együttműködő megtalálását igényli, szükségessé teszi a szakmai és a szélesebb közvélemény érdeklődésének felkeltését, támogatásának elnyerését is. Kicsit sántító hasonlattal egy lavina effektusra van szükség a folyamat megvalósításához. Egy kicsit „mindenessé” kell válni ahhoz, hogy mindez megvalósulhasson.  Személyes példám esetében úgy gondolom, hogy azzal, hogy megalapítása óta az IME (az egészségügyi vezetők szaklapja) főszerkesztője lehetek, segíti a kutatási eredmények teljes innovációs folyamatának megvalósítását. A mi országunkban erre kevés példa van…

Mi élete legnagyobb szakmai sikere?
Saját munkámból a legfontosabbnak azt tartom, hogy létrehozhattam a Pannon Egyetem Műszaki Informatikai Karán a bioelektromos jelenségek képalkotó eljárásaival foglalkozó kutatólaboratóriumot. Itt egy új képalkotó modalitás-család létrehozásáról van szó, amely többek között a szív és agyvizsgálatok új dimenzióit nyitja meg, lényegesen felülmúlva a hagyományos EKG vagy EEG teljesítőképességét. Ezen a területen aktuálisan a hirtelen szívhalálra való hajlam korai detektálásával, illetve az agyi plaszticitási jelenség vizsgálatával foglalkozunk egy interdiszciplináris kutatócsoporton belül.

Mik voltak a sikeressé válás állomásai?
Érdekes módon, Magyarországon a mérnöki, számítástechnikai, fizikai kutatási módszerek egészségügyi alkalmazásához kapcsolódó interdiszciplináris kutatások nehezen nyertek polgárjogot. Tulajdonképpen a mai napig nincs olyan akadémiai intézmény, egyetemi tanszék, amely nevében is vállalja ennek az érdekes és fontos területnek a gondozását. Magam, most már több mint 35 éve végzem megszakítás nélkül a kutatásaimat ezen a területen és minden bizonnyal az elsők között próbáltam a téma elismertetéséért dolgozni.

Mi élete legnagyobb szakmai kudarca/sikertelensége?
Szerencsére szakmai kudarcról nem beszélhetek, életpályám meglehetősen zavartalanul alakult.

Ki/kik vagy mi segítették Önt sikerének elérésében?
Az én esetemben Pál Lénárd akadémikus, aki a 70-es években a KFKI akkori főigazgatója volt, nyitotta meg a biomérnöki kutatás végzésének a lehetőségét, azzal, hogy az Intézeten belül az én vezetésemmel életre hívott egy új kutatócsoportot. A szakmai ismertség útján fontos állomás volt, hogy éveken keresztül dolgozhattam a University of Utah Cardiovascular Research and Training Center-ében, a világhírű Abildskov és Lux professzorok közelségében, akik maradandót alkottak a modern kardiológiai méréstechnika kidolgozásában, a kardiológiai alapjelenségek értelmezésében. Külön is kiemelném Bruno Taccardi professzorral kialakult szakmai barátságom szerepét. Ő volt az, aki a XX. század közepétől kezdve, a noninvazív elektrokardiológiai vizsgálatok elméleti és gyakorlati kérdéseinek sorát oldotta meg, és megváltoztatta a klasszikus EKG szemléletet. A magyarországi kutatások infrastrukturális és folyamatosan erősödő kutatói hátterét az elmúlt 10 évben a nagy NKFP, GVOP, Jedlik, stb. sikeres pályázataink sora teremtette meg, az MTA MFA-ban és a Pannon Egyetem Műszaki Informatikai Karán. Az MTA-MFA-ban kiemelném Gyulai József akadémikus szerepét, aki a maga sokoldalú egyéniségével akkor is védte és támogatta az anyagtudományhoz közvetlenül nem kapcsolódó biomérnöki kutatásokat, amikor még ezek fontossága nem kapta meg országos és EU szinten is a kiemelt figyelmet és elismerést. Az utolsó évtizedben az egészséges hazai kutatási struktúra kialakítása szempontjából kiemelkedő fontosságúnak tartom Friedler Ferenc dékán szerepét, hogy az interdiszciplináris szemléletű Műszaki Informatikai Kar keretében létrehozta az Egészségügyi Informatikai Kutató-fejlesztő Központot, amely szakmai területünkön az ország legfontosabb kutatóhelyévé vált, számos hazai és külföldi kutatói és ipari kapcsolattal. Fontos adalék, hogy Karunkon az országban elsőként indult meg az egészségügyi informatika oktatása graduális szinten, illetve ehhez kapcsolódóan létrehoztuk a PhD képzést is.

Mi a siker „receptje”, ha van olyan?
A siker receptjének eddig említett tételein túlmenően fontosnak tartom, hogy a kutató témájának kiválasztásakor ne csupán egy részkérdésre gondoljon, hanem már a korai fázisban megpróbálja elképzelni, hogy az általa vizsgált terület mivé nőheti ki magát. Fontosnak tartom tehát, hogy az ország alkotóképes kutatói olyan kérdésekkel foglalkozzanak, amelynek társadalmi és gazdasági méretben is jelentős kihatásai lehetnek. Az egészségügyhöz kapcsolódó témákat ilyennek érzem, de természetesen több más hasonló fontosságú kutatási terület is létezik. Az egészségügyhöz kapcsolódó példák esetében egyszerre gondolni érdemes az ellátás színvonalának növelésére, és ami legalább ilyen fontos, az egészségügyi ipar (gyógyszer, műszer) termékeinek eladhatóságára is. Úgy gondolom, hogy a jövőben jelentősebb kutatási támogatásra az ilyen típusú munkák számíthatnak.

[Dr.] Jules Farkas’ line:

[nagybácsi]

VIPColor hosts digital label seminar in Budapest [Aug 14, 2009] [The Federation of Screen and Digital Printers Associations]

The VP485e label printer was one of the main features of the recent digital label printing seminar organized in Budapest by Kovacs Gyorgy, vice president of FESPA [The Federation of Screen and Digital Printers Associations]. Over 80 attendees witnessed presentations showing how the unit could handle a variety of print jobs and substrates. The event was organized in combination with VIPColor Technologies and its re-seller in Hungary Own-X.

Following presentations highlighting different inkjet technologies and market applications, Adrian Down, CEO of VIPColor Technologies in the United States, addressed some of the advantages of the VP485e and reasons why there is interest in on demand, digital inkjet printing for customized, short run labels. This interest was endorsed by Eric Bonten of GraphicAll, VIPColor’s re-seller in the Netherlands. With over eight years experience in the field of full color digital label printing, Bonten covered some of the applications where the VP485e is used in Europe. Attendees also saw a range of private label samples produced by GraphicAll customers in markets including pet food, wine, cosmetics, food and beverage, paint and logistics.

‘The seminar was extremely successful,’ said Jules Farkas of VipColor. ‘We demonstrated three VP485e running different labels and as a result, we received orders for seven units during the event. The VP485e is able to provide photo quality, full color labels and uses HP inkjet technology with individual 28ml cyan, magenta and yellow ink cartridges, plus one 69ml black. This means many labels can be printed cost effectively.’

VIPColor Technologies announces European reseller manager [Nov 24, 2008]
[as of June 21, 2011 he is EMEA Director of VIPcolor while somewhere else he is indicated as Sales Director VIPcolor Europe]

VIPColor Technologies has appointed Dr Jules Farkas to the position of European reseller manager responsible for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Based in Vienna, Austria, Dr Farkas has a seven year association with VIPColor and has been working in industrial digital printing solutions and channel management globally for many years.

‘This is an exciting time for anyone using color labels as part of their business with the arrival of VIPColor’s VP485e on demand label printer and its launch,’ said Dr Farkas. ‘I am looking forward to working directly with the VIPColor channel partners to help drive new sales opportunities and grow the European market.’

Adrian Down, CEO at VIPColor, said, ‘We are delighted to have Dr Farkas heading our European reseller channel. With his breadth of industry knowledge, and understanding of global commerce, Dr Farkas is supremely qualified to develop new opportunities and motivate our reseller channel to new levels of success.’

Click here for more stories about VIPColor on L&L.com.

More from L&L on VIPColor and/or Jules Farkas [from Jan 27, 2004 to Oct 22, 2009 in Labels & Labeling]:

VIPColor Technologies launches inkjet label printer [Nov 25, 2008]

Jules Farkas, European reseller director, said: ‘Unlike many units currently available, the VP485 is designed with large separate ink tanks. Each separate ink color can be changed discretely and is operated in conjunction with long-life print heads. This greatly reduces the frequency of replacements as well as the waste and costs associated with today’s tri-color ink cartridges. In addition, this system prints five times faster than any currently on the market and redefines the desktop color label printer market with its speed and quality, expanding the range of applications that can be served with this type of equipment.’

The VP485 enables color labels to be produced in-house, exactly when and where they are needed with the exact content and quantity required. It is suited to the production of labels with variable color, images, text and barcode content and can generate customized product and package labels for events, special occasions or private branding. It is also suited to the regional use required for products sold within foreign markets and for gourmet food, beverage, sauces, food supplements, medical devices, hardware/DIY in-store, colored shoe box labels and apparel price tags.

With high resolution print quality and full bleed printing capability, the VP485 produces labels from rolls or fan folded material in lengths up to 1219mm (48”) depending on width with gap, black mark and continuous format. It is equipped with an adjustable label position sensor and with additional features such as the automatic media loading for user-friendly operation.

VIPColor launches medical verification platform [Oct 22, 2009]

California, USA-based VIPColor Technologies has created a pharmaceutical application that reduces medical errors through the use of color printing with its VIPColor 485e digital printer linked to dedicated software. The application permits the pharmacist to compare the actual medication against a color image of the product. The patient can also verify if the image on the label matches the medication in the container and any difference between the two can immediately be identified.

…

‘We have already supplied twenty VIPColor 485e printers for this application to hospitals in Taiwan,’ said Dr Jules Farkas of VIPColor Europe. ‘Major hospitals in the region are transitioning to color in order to print labels that can be compared against the medication. Hospitals and pharmacies can print on label blanks the same day that they are required avoiding the problems, costs and waste associated with traditional pre-printed labels. More importantly, this application is enabling them to reduce medication errors and save lives.’

The American Institute of Medicine states that medication errors account for at least 7,000 deaths in the United States alone each year. Around 20 percent of these errors are reportedly deemed due to administering incorrect medical products. In addition, the American Medical Association estimates that over 770,000 patients are injured because of medication errors every year.

AB Graphic appoints Chinese distributor [July 28, 2008]

In a move to strengthen its presence in the region, UK-based AB Graphic International has appointed Do.WellSwiss International its distributor in China. The company will be responsible for the sales and service of the Vectra range of turret rewinders and the Omega label inspection and converting lines.

Based in Guangzhou, Do.WellSwiss International manufactures presses and auxiliary equipment for label, flexible packaging and folding carton production and is an established supplier to the Chinese printing industry.

‘AB Graphic International is a market leader in label converting equipment for the narrow web printing industry with good reliable products,’ said Jules Farkas of Do.WellSwiss. ‘We have extensive experience in the sales and service of equipment in China and the Vectra and Omega lines are a good fit that will enable us to extend our product offering.’

GRE poised with digital alternative in Asia [Nov 8, 2006]

GRE Digital Solutions, a subsidiary of GRE Engineering Products AG of Switzerland, has announced the move of its Hong Kong Operations Center to new premises in Kowloon to further reinforce sales, distribution and servicing of its equipment in Asia.

…

Dr Jules Farkas, managing director, GRE Digital Solutions, said: ‘It is recognized that the Asian economies have become vibrant with long-term growth anticipated. Accordingly, we felt it was vital to have a strong presence centrally located in Hong Kong.  We have appointed Johnson Lai as general manager based on our belief he will bring the necessary commitment and vision to our digital solutions offerings.’

New technical centre start-up for narrow web printing and converting in China [April 20, 2005]

The Board of Hong Kong based Wutung Holding has announced plans to establish a Technical Centre for printing in South China and has appointed Dr. Jules Farkas to the post of Chairman of the Advisory Board.

Paul S.P. Yeung, chairman comments. ‘There is a need to improve operational quality and productivity in the Chinese narrow and mid-web converting industry, in flexography in particular, and in combination with gravure, screen and offset printing. The Technical Centre will provide theoretical and hands on training in all relevant label and package
printing processes and applications.  Dr Farkas brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience and as Chairman will be responsible for bringing together key European and USA companies to participate in the build-up and daily operation of the Technical Centre.’ States Dr Farkas. ‘It is an honour and a challenge to be nominated for this important position and a rare opportunity to be involved in the start-up of a new venture.  It is my goal to develop the UV flexo market in China and the new Technical Centre will serve to achieve this well. We will also address combination printing applications and selected companies with leading technology will be invited to contribute to the success of the centre.’

The new Technical Centre will also establish working relations with the DFTA-TZ at the University of Stuttgart to exchange knowledge and experience of flexography and sponsor members will be sought to start a Chinese Narrow Web Technical Association. Plans are also in place to develop the Advisory Board to oversee and lead the Technical Centre to a successful future.

Dr Farkas has over 30 years experience in the printing industry and has aquired an international reputation for his expertise in bringing new technologies to the fore. He introduced and pioneered the use of UV flexo technology in the late eighties and more recently has been involved in the development of digital printing, laser die cutting and RFID/EAS technology.

L&L sponsors Digital Label and Tag Printing Workshop [Jan 27, 2004]

… Converting Equipment for Digital Presses
Jules Farkas, MNF Consultants Inc. …

On Demand Colour [Sept 9, 2004, from VIPcolor’s Labels & Labeling Magazine – Issue 4 Volume 25]

‘On-demand colour’ systems showcased at Labelexpo Europe will open up new opportunities for label printers in sectors now dominated by black and white printing. Andy Thomas reports on a conference in Amsterdam which focused on opportunities in the secondary labelling sector.

Markets

Despite the slowdown of overall pressure sensitive growth in the mature markets of Europe and the US, there remains plenty of potential to add value within key end use sectors. Industrial labelling and product identification is a sector currently dominiated by black and white print systems, overwhelmningly desktop thermal transfer.

Of particular interest here is a new generation of colour Variable Information Printing (VIP) and Print-on-Demand (POD) systems which could revolutionise the secondary labelling market.

These developments were examined at the Digital Label & Tag workshop held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, organised by the Giga Information Group and sponsored by Labels & Labeling, Canon and Matan.

[Sean Marske was with VIPcolor till 2007, then taken over Memjet Labels, altough he was the founder of VIPcolor in 1998. ]

Kicking off, Sean Marske, president of VIPColor Technologies, looked at the potential for bringing colour into the supply chain. ‘Barcodes are not enough,’ said Marske. ‘Colour coding and picture coding when combined with traditional barcoding, create a comprehensive defence against costly mistakes through the supply chain.”

The emerging market for ‘Colour-on-demand’ sits between the black&white thermal transfer printer, and conventional flexo/offset press technology, where costs are inversely proportional to volume (ie the shorter the run, the higher the cost).

On-demand colour means putting labels into the supply chain when and where they are required and in the exact quantities. Good examples would include end users with multi-site production, multi-language markets, contract manufacturing and packaging, make-to-ship manufacturing and real-time order fulfillment.

On-demand colour helps product locating and reduces shipping errors, but also makes it easier to keep track of work-in-progress and quality control at the manufacturing end.

In the retail environment, the secondary lable moves from being a simple logistics information carrier, to a ‘brochure on the shelf’. Coloured graphics allow store assistants and customers to instantly identify a product.

Picture coding and brand graphics work best where there is a high mix of different products in relatively small amounts – think of electrical components, plumbing parts, telecom and computer components, automotive/machinery spare parts, sporting goods, office supplies and fashion accessories as examples.

Within the logistics chain, colour coding is a powerful tool to complement barcode systems. Colour coding can be used for sell-by date, product expiration date codes, to check destination, and for easier identification in a crowded warehouse.

Although scanning systems work well, companies still ship items to the wrong locations, and colour coded labels allow employees in the despatch bays to act as a last line of defence against errors. Colour can also be used to show which items get shipped first – for example by colour highlighting sell-by-dates.

Label converters have traditionally operated a Print and Distribute model, where a label moves from a blank roll, through conversion on a press to over-printing, transportation and into pre-printed inventory. This system works well fo rhigh run lengths, but has relatively long lead times and increases the costs of inventory management and wastage through product obsolescence or incorrect estimation or demand.

The opportunity is to complement this traditional model with Distribute and Print, where short runs of multi-coloured secondar labels are printed from blank sotck on-demand, reducing lead times, rationalising inventory and reducing waste. This can lead to a new business in managing the end user’s secondary labelling business from digital asset management to proofing, output and delivery. At the same time, it allows converters to offer package customisation, short run marketing and sales campaigns and even product prototyping.

Jules Farkas, president of MNF Consultants, is a longtime advocate of innovative print and converting techniques, so his paper looking on how label converters might integrate digital printing into their conventional operations was eagerly anticipated.

Farkas conceded that takeup of digital presses by label converters has been painfully slow despite the fact that label converters ‘need’ digital printing.

‘Not only are production runs getting shorter and product variations larger with quicker turnarounds, but there are requirements for conventional and variable information printing in one pass. Who will need color-on-demand? Fortune 1000 manufacturers, small and medium manufacturers and retailers and other service providers.’

As well as the logistics chain and product identification opportunities outlined by Sean Marske, Farkas said there would be significant emerging applications for ‘light prime’ labels where high-mix, low-volume producers desire a ‘professional’ look. Examples might include nutriceuticals (vitamins, health supplements etc), organic foods, produce, specialty healthy store products and boutique/hotel/B&B items such as soaps and shampoos.

Farkas also forsees a much more radical development: networked, distributed colour-on-demand label printing. ‘This means real-time control of label content, availability and authorised usage in local or multi-national operations. The advantages are reduced risk of outdated labels, reduced risk of product recalls due to  mislabelling, instant content or format changes in the supply chain, instant reaction to new promotional initiatives. Centrally managed yet remotely executed product localisation.’

…

About VIPColor

VIPColor Technologies is a leading-edge provider of innovative solutions for the production, management and utilization of package, product, promotion, logistic and location labels across industrial and retail supply chains. We enable onsite digital label printing for day-to-day operations. The company’s application focus is on networked, shop floor batch printing of sophisticated labels to meet mass customization and personalized packaging needs. Targeted at companies dissatisfied with the long lead-time and large print-run constraints dictated by current label delivery methods, VIPColor is dedicated to creating a new level of labeling value around packaging and identification activities.

As a member of the global Venture Corporation Ltd group of companies, VIPColor is part of a rapidly growing, billion-dollar organization offering world-class services in high-tech engineering and manufacturing. VIPColor has facilities in Newark, California (Silicon Valley) and Singapore. Products are marketed worldwide via Reseller and OEM channels.

About Venture (www.venture.com.sg):
from 2010 Full Year Results Announcement press release [Feb 23, 2011]

Venture Corporation Limited … registered sequential quarterly revenue improvement for FY 2010, culminating in full year revenue of S$2.7 billion. For FY 2009, the Group generated revenue of S$3.4 billion. The year-on-year revenue decline for FY 2010 was within expectation given the Group’s earlier guidance on its businessmix shifting towards technology services, products and solutions with greater design and engineering content.

The Group is pleased to report that full year profit attributable to shareholders of the Company (“net profit”) rose 30.9% year-on-year to S$188.1 million.

…

Venture (SGX: VENM.SI) was founded in 1984 as a global electronics services provider. Today, it is a leading global provider of technology services, products and solutions with established capabilities spanning marketing research, design and development, product and process engineering, design for manufacturability, supply chain management, as well as product refurbishment and technical support across a range of high-mix, high-value and complex products.

The Group has built know-how and intellectual property with domain expertise in printing and imaging; advanced storage systems and devices; handheld interactive scanning and computing products; RF communications and network; test and measurement equipment; medical devices; retail store solution suite of products and industrial products and installations.

Headquartered in Singapore, the Group comprises about 40 companies with global clusters of excellence in South-east Asia, North Asia, America and Europe and employs more than 14,000 people worldwide.

In its pursuit to create unparalleled enterprise excellence across design and engineering, manufacturing and distribution, Venture has forged numerous meaningful partnerships and alliances. As it assumes a key role in the enterprise chain, Venture will continue to tap the knowledge and best-in-class capabilities of global enterprises for breakthrough innovations.

Venture is a strategic partner of choice for successful global companies and ranks among the best in managing the value chain for leading electronics companies. It is committed to enhancing its competencies through further investments in technologies, market access capabilities and its people. It stands poised, to provide the leading edge and remain relevant in a constantly changing and evolving world.

Contract Manufacturing / Venture Corporation:

Venture Corporation Limited, established in 1984, is a public listed company with shares quoted on the Stock Exchange of Singapore.

The Venture Group comprises about 40 companies and employs more than 14,000 people worldwide.

Over the years Venture has made incremental investments and expanded its operations with manufacturing facilities and offices in strategic locations worldwide. These are organised as global clusters of excellence across South-East Asia, North Asia, America and Europe.

Venture is a strategic partner for successful global companies providing a fully integrated range of original design manufacturing (“ODM“), electronics manufacturing services (“EMS“) and e-fulfillment services (“EFS“). With complementary engineering capabilities, operational synergy, real-time infrastructure interfaces and faster time-to-market, Venture ranks among the best in managing the value chain for leading electronics companies.

Ngit Liong Wong, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Group President, Member of Investment Committee, Member of Remuneration Committee and Member of Nominating Committee, Venture Corp Ltd.

Age: 70

Mr. Ngit Liong Wong has been the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Venture Group of Companies since 1986. Mr. Wong serves as Group President and Chief Executive Officer of Venture Corporation Limited. Mr. Wong has been instrumental to the overall growth and development of Venture Corp. Ltd.’s businesses. Mr. Wong was instrumental in developing the business of Venture Group from the start-up phase.

Mr. Wong spent more than 12 years with Hewlett-Packard … Company (HP) holding various management positions at headquarters Palo Alto (USA), Santa Clara and Cupertino Divisions, HP Singapore and HP Malaysia.

He served as Managing Director of Venture Corporation Limited. Mr. Wong has been Chairman of the Board of Venture Corporation Limited since February 4, 2004. He serves as an Executive Director of Venture Corp. Ltd.

Mr. Wong served as Director of DBS Group Holdings Ltd. from May 3, 2004 to August 2009. He served as Director of DBS Bank Ltd., a subsidiary of Dbs Group Holdings Ltd since May 3, 2004.

Mr. Wong serves as Director of:
– Advanced Products Corporation Pte Ltd.,
– Royal Phillips Electronics Sector Cebelian Holdings Pte Ltd.,
– EAS Security Systems Pte Ltd.,
– Innovative Trek Technology Pte Ltd., International Enterprise Singapore,
– Multitech Systems Pte Ltd.,
– NLW Pte Ltd.,
– Pintarmas Sdn Bhd,
– PT Venture Electronics Indonesia,
– V-Design Services (M) Sdn Bhd,
– Technocom Systems Sdn Bhd,
– Univac Precision Engineering Pte Ltd.,
– Ventech Data Systems Pte Ltd.,
– Ventech Investment Ltd.,
– Venture Electronics (Europe) B.V,
– Venture Electronics International, Inc.,
– Venture Electronics Solutions Pte Ltd.,
– Venture Electronics Spain, S.L.,
– Venture Hungary Electronics Manufacturing Limited Liability Company,
– Singapore Economic Development Board,
– VIPColor Technologies Pte Ltd.,
– VIPColor Technologies USA, Inc., VM Services, Inc., and
– VS Electronics Pte Ltd.

He served as Member of the Supervisory Board at Koninklijke Philips Electronics Nv from April 21, 2005 to 2009. Mr. Wong served as an Independent Director of Singapore Exchange Ltd., since November 15, 1999. Mr. Wong served as a Director of SIA Engineering Co., Ltd., from March 1, 2000 to July 21, 2006. He was previously on the Boards of k1 Venture Limited, Keppel Capital Holdings Limited and Keppel Tat Lee Bank Limited. He serves as Chairman of the National University of Singapore (NUS) Board of Trustees.

He serves as Member of the Research Innovation and Enterprise Council under the Prime Minister’s Office.

Among the recognitions accorded him were the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and Master Entrepreneur Award in 2002, and Singapore Business Time/DHL Worldwide Express Businessman of the Year in 1998.

Mr. Wong holds a 1st Class (Hons) degree in Electrical Engineering, (Bachelor of Science) and Master of Science (EE) degree from the University of California at Berkeley where he was a Fulbright Scholar. Mr. Wong also holds an MBA degree with distinction from McGill University under the Canadian Commonwealth Fellowship.