BRYAN ADAMS WAS CHANNELLING NORITSU

Everything we do, we do it for you.

At least that’s how we can paraphrase the ideology of Kan’ichi Nishimoto, the founder of Noritsu back in 1951. His actual words were “Everything we do is to make people need us and to make them happy”.

Inventors usually see a need and aim to answer that need. Mr Nishimoto’s desire was for his customers to feel the emotions of their photos as soon as possible. This was back in the days when all films had to be sent away to a processing lab meaning the customer could wait up to a week to see the results of their photographic labours. Patience may be a virtue but it doesn’t bring your photographs to you quicker

TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE

In 1961, with the development of the RF-20E monochrome film processor, the company succeeded in automating the monochrome film development process for the first time in the world. But the innovations didn’t stop there. The real aim was to create a solution that brought the one thing that was missing from the photo processing industry at that time - speed.

The year was 1976. A year of great change and some major landmarks. The Apple Computer company was formed by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. Bruce (Caitlyn) Jenner won the Decathlon Gold Medal at the Montreal Olympics and who could forget Brotherhood of Man winning the Eurovision Song Contest with the all time classic Save Your Kisses For Me.

But in the world of photography, Noritsu were about to spark a revolution.

After many trials, the original Noritsu QSS-1 Automatic System (the original MiniLab) was launched. This consolidated the whole process from development to printing to just 45 minutes and the high street “Prints in an Hour” concept was born. Noritsu’s next development, the QSS-2 with computerised colour control, encouraged the company to launch into the USA in 1978.

ALL CHANGE AND THE MOVE TO PRECISION

The biggest challenges to all innovators are twofold: competitors wishing to copy your innovation and time. As time passes, technology becomes old, and the need for innovation becomes more critical.

Noritsu had completely revolutionised the photo development market, and the fast turnaround of film processing meant more prints were being placed in people's hands quicker than ever before. Consumers loved the fact that they could have their photos back in less than an hour, and the photo retail boom was in full effect.

But time waits for no company, and Noritsu knew that competitors would be moving in and looking for the next breakthrough. With Noritsu facing competition from other manufacturers of wet labs, their focus turned to a world without chemistry and collaboration with other leaders in the field of digital print. In 2002, using Epson Piezo technology, Noritsu launched the first Digital Dry Printer, the Noritsu dPD-411.

The 21st century brought more challenges to a market that was seeing lower rates of printing as the mobile phone market took hold, so Noritsu decided to split its business. This saw the establishment of Noritsu Precision, with a remit to build on its established dry lab technology.

DUPLI - OFFICIAL NORITSU DISTRIBUTOR

With a renewed focus on establishing Noritsu as the premium photographic dry lab on the market, Dupli was appointed the official distributor for Noritsu Labs in the UK and Iceland in 2023.

Our dedicated print showroom is home to their flagship printer, the Noritsu Green IV. Prints from this machine have been described as the closest thing to wet print quality you can see from a dry lab. So contact us to arrange a visit and see the quality for yourself.

Although Dry Labs are seen as the future of photographic printing, there are many advocates of traditional Wet Lab processing, and Dupli are able to satisfy this market to. Dupli are also able to supply Noritsu Wet Labs. Contact us for more details.