The Sharp Corporation is widely regarded as a leader in innovative technology for business and personal applications. Although this company has an ever expanding line of integrative copiers, printers, and faxes, it also utilizes networking and programming tactics to increase the applicability of the products. This adaptability for growth is just one of the traits that can be traced back to the beginnings of the corporation nearly a century ago.
From One Man to a Global Company
The Sharp company was technically founded in 1912, when Tokuji Hayakawa devised a snap closure for belts that required no holes for fastening. Two years later, Hayakawa went on to patent a faucet with adjustable flow, and this became the beginning of a corporation that was founded in the use of creativity to solve practical problems.
By 1920, the Sharp Corporation would not only gain its name, but would also make the first strides into modernization, technical application, and business solutions. The Ever-Sharp Mechanical Pencil was developed and marketed during this time with great success, and also established the corporation as an innovator for modern living.
During this period of time, Hayakawa also decided to expand the scope of what the Sharp Corporation manufactured, and initial factories and metal works were established in Japan. Over the next 50 years, forays into electronics such as televisions and microprocessors expanded, as did the focus on business equipment, including copiers and printers. In the 1960’s the Sharp Corporation began to branch out from the home base of Japan, with subsidiaries in New York, as well as across Europe.
Products That Others Will Imitate
With the expansion across the globe, the Sharp Corporation was also in the process of developing more effective and efficient technologies that also incorporated the principles of creativity and sustainability, which have been tenets since the inception of the company. The use of solar cells in calculators and other electronics became a landmark event, and illustrated how practical solutions can come from creative thought.
In the late 1970s to early 80s, new developments in microprocessors began the shift to smart technology and better integration. Although Sharp was already world known for excellence in LCD monitors and electronics, the ability to program more efficiently would also provide the foundation for integrative networks of equipment in business settings.
The natural expansion of copiers and printers that use this programming and networking became an integral part of company growth. Presently, Sharp is greatly credited for its contributions to workspace productivity and to business solutions that operate intuitively to the way that people work.
Current copiers and printers that the Sharp Corporation offers include such features as:
- Remote access and systems maintenance
- Automatic reorder for ink and toner
- Workstation to printer networking
- Touch screen controls
- ID card access for workflow control
- High capacity and high quality printing
- Integration with other Sharp technology
- USB printing, transfer, and previews
Many of these models are scalable for a variety of business needs, which can make them an ideal investment for newer companies or businesses that are in the process of expansion. With strong customer support and technical assistance, these copiers and printers provide an amazing amount of versatility in a single machine. This can not only improve productivity through performance, but also through streamlining processes and reducing employee frustration with equipment downtime.
The Sharp Aquos Board
Although the late 1980s already saw the Sharp Corporation as a leader in LCD technologies and televisions, the first of the Aquos series was not introduced to the market until 2001. As a television set, the Aquos series represented the pinnacle of visual impact, with high resolution and true to life colors that were not viewable anywhere else. Interestingly, this was also the same year that Sharp released the first truly lightweight notebook computer, and this concurrence would later result in the Sharp Aquos Board.
The turn of this century experienced several driving forces that would set the tenor for the technology to come. This would include:
- Integration
- Touch screen capacity
- Interaction
- High speed networking
The Sharp Aquos Board provides all of these benefits and in a business setting, it also reduces redundancy. Based on the same technology that is used for touch screen tablets, the Aquos Board replaces a regular white board in the office. However, along with utilizing the display for interactive presentations, the screen will also capture information that is drawn on the board, and can transmit this to a networked Sharp copier and printer in the same facility.
As a result, transcription of meeting notes is instantaneous and information can be easily disseminated from a single location. Since the Aquos Board is also an interactive display, it further allows for documents to be remotely uploaded from another workstation, and can also give users control over edits and interfacing with the network.
Aiming for the Sky
As computer technologies and networking have advanced, the Sharp Corporation has continued to find better applications that can facilitate office needs. The Cloud Portal Office from Sharp is another way for businesses to establish better efficiency and security, while still promoting the necessary accessibility. The Cloud Portal Office works with other devices in the network, including copiers and printers for the actual presentation of documents, and with the Sharp Aquos Board for storing and accessing information.
As a remote storage space, the Cloud Portal Office can not only reduce costs for data archives, but can also ensure that there is greater control over how the information is being accessed. This promotes off-site work and the ability to make modifications from remote locations. However, in keeping with principles that Hayakawa set with his first invention, the intent to promote creativity, collaboration, and connection is also present.
This has translated into a century of growth and productivity that has benefited business endeavors and personal pursuits. As a result, Hayakawa’s desire to make products that others will want to imitate has certainly come true, although the Sharp Corporation as an original value added innovator is a hard ideal to replicate.