Kodak re-emergence to transform commercial imaging, packaging
The brand best known as the guardian of memories is creating new milestones as it re-emerges leaner, stronger - and poised to transform its redefined markets.
The brand best known as the guardian of memories is creating new milestones as it re-emerges leaner, stronger - and poised to transform its redefined markets.
Eastman Kodak has shifted from a business-to-consumer to a business-to-business technology company focused on imaging for business. Equipped with more than a century of innovations, it is using disruptive technologies and efficient solutions to transform industries, including product goods packaging and functional and digital printing.
"Kodak's renewed vision is to use these technologies in helping business models evolve," says Lois Lebegue, managing director for Asia-Pacific region. "These apply whether to a newspaper attracting more readers with variable content, a publisher making books on demand or a manufacturer using functional packaging with built-in security features."
The company's hybrid printing, for instance, mixes fixed content with variable materials, such as quick response codes that direct readers to interactive websites. Another innovation is its smart packaging, applicable to industries such as cosmetics where the packaging may feature a touch sensor to help customers test skin compatibility. One of Kodak's best breakthroughs, however, is counterfeit-proof labels that protect goods, from pharmaceuticals to milk, through accurate tracking and verification.
The biggest market expected to benefit from these advancements is Asia, where Kodak is moving the majority of its design, development and manufacturing activities. Kodak believes the region has the highest market potential due to its rising population and literacy, which translate to growing consumption, quality consciousness and investments.
China's vast population and counterfeit goods issues are among the challenges that Kodak looks forward to addressing in co-operation with local companies and governments. Kodak's Chinese clients include the region's largest publishing house, Phoenix Publishing & Media Group, and top online trading site Taobao Marketplace.
"Kodak may be less visible to consumers, but it will be essential in the back end, where we now aim to become the guardian of businesses' integrity and security," Lebegue says.
www.kodak.com.cn
