donderdag, juni 16, 2005
Kodak stopt produktie professioneel zwart-wit fotopapier
Eastman Kodak Co. said Wednesday it will discontinue production of black-and-white film paper for the professional market by the end of the year as its transition continues to digital photography.
Kodak spokesman David Lanzillo said the paper, used by studio and professional photographers to make prints, is produced at facilities in Rochester and Brazil. The company will continue to make black-and-white film and chemicals for processing.
Lanzillo said he could not specify how many employees will be affected, but the decision is part of the previously announced reduction of 12,000 to 15,000 workers worldwide by 2007. That is expected to leave the photography giant with a global work force of about 50,000.
Demand for black-and-white paper is declining 25 percent annually as the imaging industry transitions from film to digital, Lanzillo said.
"It's a shame to see it go," said Bill Schiffner, editor of Imaging Business magazine in Melville, New York. "Digital has done a lot of good things for the industry but it's done some bad things too. It's making a lot of these processes obsolete."
The paper is manufactured at a plant in Brazil. Kodak declined to specify how many employees would be affected by the production shutdown, which is part of a three-year overhaul to eliminate 12,000 to 15,000 jobs by 2007 and shrink the company's work force to around 50,000.
John Eoff, owner of Photo-Lab Inc, said his 91-year-old shop in Schenectady, New York, still sells "a fair amount" of black-and-white paper to photography students and enthusiasts, while professional photographers have mostly gone to digital printing systems already.
Kodak in April reported a first-quarter loss of $142 million because of a steady slide in revenues from film and other chemical-based businesses and higher-than-expected costs to cover steep job cuts.
The company grew into an icon on the strength of its traditional film, paper and photofinishing businesses. It is now betting its future in digital terrain - from cameras, inkjet paper and online photofinishing to photo kiosks and minilabs, X-ray systems and commercial printers.
Bron: AP.
Kodak spokesman David Lanzillo said the paper, used by studio and professional photographers to make prints, is produced at facilities in Rochester and Brazil. The company will continue to make black-and-white film and chemicals for processing.
Lanzillo said he could not specify how many employees will be affected, but the decision is part of the previously announced reduction of 12,000 to 15,000 workers worldwide by 2007. That is expected to leave the photography giant with a global work force of about 50,000.
Demand for black-and-white paper is declining 25 percent annually as the imaging industry transitions from film to digital, Lanzillo said.
"It's a shame to see it go," said Bill Schiffner, editor of Imaging Business magazine in Melville, New York. "Digital has done a lot of good things for the industry but it's done some bad things too. It's making a lot of these processes obsolete."
The paper is manufactured at a plant in Brazil. Kodak declined to specify how many employees would be affected by the production shutdown, which is part of a three-year overhaul to eliminate 12,000 to 15,000 jobs by 2007 and shrink the company's work force to around 50,000.
John Eoff, owner of Photo-Lab Inc, said his 91-year-old shop in Schenectady, New York, still sells "a fair amount" of black-and-white paper to photography students and enthusiasts, while professional photographers have mostly gone to digital printing systems already.
Kodak in April reported a first-quarter loss of $142 million because of a steady slide in revenues from film and other chemical-based businesses and higher-than-expected costs to cover steep job cuts.
The company grew into an icon on the strength of its traditional film, paper and photofinishing businesses. It is now betting its future in digital terrain - from cameras, inkjet paper and online photofinishing to photo kiosks and minilabs, X-ray systems and commercial printers.
Bron: AP.
# posted by Jan-Edward : 13:25
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