Canon Among "15 Most Innovative Companies of all Time"

Business Insider has selected Canon as one of the most innovative comapnies of all time. The magazine's Top 15 list judges companies on their historic patent applications and the number of patents actually granted to them. The list includes some of the most iconic names in the history of electrinics and design and Canon, the leading imaging solutions company, ranked 2nd, beating General Electric, Sony and Intel among a roster of other world-beating corporations. Here, we look at Canon's performance on the Business Insider Top 15 and eaxmine further the company's unparallelled history of innovation in imaging technology.

Business Insider's Top 15 Most Innovative Companies of All Time

Business Insider, one of the world's leading online business magazines, has just announced its 15 Most Innovative Companies of All Time. The survey which compares companies from across the globe based on the number of patents filed by as well as those granted to them, to reveal those companies which truly have innovation as a central priority.

Canon, the world-famous imaging company narrowly missed-out on the No1 spot, with IBM filing the most US patents of any company on the list. According to Business Insider, Canon though has filed an impressive 41,268 US patents in its history, with current patent applications also continuing apace - a total of 2,551 patents were granted to Canon in 2010 according to the US Patent and Trademark Office.

Buisness Insider highlighted some of Canon's most famous inventions from over the years, including the IVSB camera, the 10-key electronic calculator, the first automatic exposure SLR and the first ever personal photocopiers.

Bunji Yano from Canon USA commeneted on hearing news of Canon's success,

"For more than 70 years Canon has committed itself to developing new technologies that enhance the lives of our customers and create new opportunities to grow our business... We are honoured to be recognised by Business Insider as one of the most innovative companies of all time and will continue to invest in the key functions of research, development, service and support in the future."

Canon and Innovation

Business Insider revealed Canon's astonishing history of innovation with almost 42,000 patent applications in its history and in a year, Canon will typically file between two and three thousand patents. Undoubtedly, it is the innovational impetus at the heart of the company ethos which has led to such a strong record, an ethos which is reflected in the large levels of investment in research and development. In a typical year 8% of Canon's total annual sales value will be redirected into research and devlopment.

As far as photocopiers are concerned, Canon's investment in innovation has clarly borne fruit. Canon was behind the first all-in-one recyclable ink cartridges, the first automatic duplexing function and more recently, the first photocopiers to be built from bio-plastic Canon's R&D with materials developer Toray, means its leading photocopiers ranges today can be constructed from part plant-derived plastics and still meet the flexibility and heat tolerance thresholds necessary for high performance office equipment. The manufacturer's success in developing more environmentally-conscious materails was undoubtedly part of the reason the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the people behind the Energy Star certification programme, awarded Canon with the Energy Star Award for Excellence in Energy Efficient Product Design.

Falcon commends Canon on its success in the Business Insider "Top 15 Most Innovative Companies of All Time" List and welcomes any enquiries about Canon's award-winning photocopiers and document management solutions.

For the full version of this article, please visit the link below:

http://www.falcon.co.uk/news/general-news/canon-among-q15-most-innovative-companies-of-all-timeq.htmlAbout the Author

Jeremy Samson is an imaging technology expert writing extensively on the latest developments in the document managment industry.

Canon on Forbes 'Top Genuinely Green Companies' List

Forbes, the magazine which is best known for ranking the world's richest individuals and its most successful corporations has listed Canon, the well-known manufacturer of cameras, photocopiers and other electronics devices as one of the world's top ten most genuinely green companies. With a selection from a very wide spectrum of industries, Forbes singled-out Canon's environmental activities which are at the heart of what it does as a company. These include the Environmental Planning Center and the Environment Promotion Center in the US, which enable Canon to keep track of its environmental performance as well as Canon's publication of an annual sustainability report, published in both English and Japan.

The Background - Canon Already Widely Recognised for its Environmental Leadership

It was only last year that the UK's leading Sunday broadsheet, The Sunday Times, placed Canon as the tenth most environmentally-aware business in its UK-focused survey - The Sunday Times Best Green Comapnies List. One stand-out feature of Canon's UK operations were the outstanding levels of environmental awareness among Canon's Reigate staff, as well as the collective activities of employees when it came to reducing environmental impact by sharing transport to and from work for example.

Earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) in the US, who are best known for the Energy Star logo which they award to the top 50% of devices for energy efficiency performance, awarded Canon the 2011 Energy Star Award for Excellence in Energy Efficient Product Design. Canon's accomplishment was recognised at a special awards ceremony in Washington DC in April.

Forbes' Insights

As well as highlighting the already widespread recognition for its environmental efforts and the Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star Award for Excellence, Forbes pointed to Canon's policies at its US corporate headquarters in the US stating,

"The Japanese camera and electronics manufacturer, Canon, has implemented an Environment Planning Center and Environment Protection Center at its Corporate headquarters..."

Forbes commented that is these core institutions which provide the means for Canon to monitor its environmental performance and also pointed to the comprehensive annual sustainability report, published in both Japanese and English, which provides extensive disclosure on Canon's greenhouse gas and CO2 emissions.

Bunji Yano, Senior Director and General Manager at Corporate Communications, Canon USA commented,

"At Canon, our business is driven by the goal of fostering a sustainable environment while delivering world-class digital imaging technologies...This recognition further validates our commitment to the environment and preserving our plant as a whole."

Canon's Environmental Achievements for Office Devices

Even in a part of the electronics industry which is known for oustandingly high levels of energy efficiency when it comes to device running as well as environmentally-conscious design and build, Canon has consistently stood-out for energy-saving and sustainability innovations across all of its devices - from photocopiers and multifunction printers to scanners and desktop printers. For all office equipment, Canon's Life Cycle Assessment System aims to assess and to minimise carbon emissions at every stage of a photocopiers's development - from the processes involved even at a device's conception through to the carbon impact of delivery to the eventual Canon Business Solutions Partner. Some paticular highlights of Canon's efforts when it comes to energy/environmentally-conscious design and build - power consumption on imageRUNNER Advance photocopiers has been cut by 65% relative to equivalent devices even 5-10 years ago and Canon is now the first photocopier manufacturer to be sucessfully deploying 'bioplastic' parts in the construction of all imageRUNNER Advance photocopiers range.

On the centrality of the environment, Canon's Yunichi Yshtake has previously commented,

"Guided by our corporate philosophy of kyosei - 'all people, regardless of race, religion and culture, harmoniously living and working together into the future' Canon's commitment to the environment is reflected in our ongoing efforts to develop products that incorporate sustainable life-cycle planning and improved resource efficiency from the initial concept to post-consumer phases."

Falcon wishes to congratulate Canon on its inclusion in the Forbes Genuinely Green Companies List.

For the full version of this article, please visit:

http://www.falcon.co.uk/news/general-news/canon-on-forbes-top-genuinely-green-companies.htmlAbout the Author

Jeremy Samson is an imaging technology expert writing extensively on the latest developments in the document managment industry.