Capacity Doubled! Ricoh Plans to Build a New Printhead Factory to Boost Its Industrial Inkjet Printing Business!
Recently, Ricoh announced plans to build a new factory at its Atsugi plant in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The goal is to further accelerate the company's inkjet printing business, strengthen its product supply capacity, and continuously meet the growing global demand for high-quality printheads. The new facility will be a four-story building with a total floor area of about 39,000 square meters. The project is planned to start in November 2026 and is expected to be completed in the first half of fiscal year 2028.
As the core manufacturing hub for Ricoh's inkjet printing business, once the new factory is completed and operational, the printhead capacity will gradually increase to more than double the current level. The factory will integrate Ricoh's technical expertise in ultra-precision manufacturing and quality engineering, combining automation, AI, and digital technologies to build the next-generation manufacturing platform, ensuring high-quality products, high production efficiency, and a stable supply chain.
From the perspective of the company, this new factory is Ricoh's strategic investment in the future of its inkjet printing business while also supporting the company in continuously responding to the ever-changing needs of global customers.
In industrial printing fields such as labels, packaging, and textile printing, market demand for diverse products, small batches, short lead times, and eco-friendly printing continues to grow. Traditional printing methods like offset and flexography are accelerating their shift to digital printing. At the same time, high-precision inkjet printing technology is steadily expanding into functional printing scenarios, covering areas such as battery manufacturing and automotive coating printing. Facing these emerging market opportunities, Ricoh will continue to strengthen the production and supply of its core inkjet component-the print head-to flexibly respond to long-term market changes.
For decades, Ricoh has relied on ultra-precision manufacturing and materials technology to independently develop and mass-produce high-performance inkjet print heads. Producing print heads requires micron-level processing accuracy, and the experience and craftsmanship of skilled technical staff are crucial for maintaining and continuously optimizing product quality. The company plans to combine employees' accumulated expertise and craftsmanship with AI and digital technologies to create a next-generation factory where technicians and AI work together. This is expected to further enhance manufacturing competitiveness and accelerate inkjet business growth. The related technologies and experience will also be shared within the Ricoh Group to preserve and advance ultra-precision manufacturing capabilities. Combining human and AI experience not only ensures the transfer of valuable manufacturing skills but also allows employees to focus on higher-value tasks while consistently producing high-quality products.
Building on this, the new factory under construction will integrate the production functions that are currently scattered across multiple buildings in the Ricoh Hōmoku campus, introduce automated production lines and digital equipment, and enable flexible production of various products, balancing high manufacturing efficiency with operational flexibility. By digitally connecting production equipment, quality management, and logistics, paired with an automated material transfer system, this integrated solution will optimize the flow of materials and information across the factory. This will allow Ricoh to quickly adapt to fluctuating market demands and reliably deliver high-quality products.
Looking ahead, the global industrial inkjet print head market is expected to continue expanding at a compound annual growth rate of approximately 8.9%, growing from around $1.16 billion in 2026 to nearly $1.95 billion by 2032. In addition, customers are placing higher demands on the quality consistency and long-term stability of print heads.
Ricoh's construction of this new factory goes beyond traditional scale-up approaches. By consolidating scattered production lines, connecting the digital chain, and implementing human-AI collaborative production, it transforms the advantage of human experience into reproducible, transferable digital capabilities, preparing the company in advance for the next surge in market demand. With this brand-new factory, Ricoh will further enhance the stable supply of high-quality print heads, support customer business growth, and continue expanding its inkjet printing business footprint.