Inkjet & Digital Printing
Fuji Xerox Honored With Prime Ministers Commendation of Cabinet Offices Barrier-Free, Universal Design Contributors Awards 2008
Wednesday 31. December 2008 - Receives High Acclaim for Support for Large-Font Textbook Production Spanning Nearly 20 Years
In recognition of its support for the production of large-font textbooks for children and students with reduced eyesight, Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. received the Cabinet Offices Prime Ministers Commendation of the Barrier-Free, Universal Design Contributors Awards 2008. Fuji Xerox President Tadahito Yamamoto accepted the award from Japans Prime Minister Taro Aso at the Prime Ministers office on December 3.
Fuji Xerox allows free use of color copy machines and provides places to create the large-font textbooks by hand for volunteers as well as for guardians of children and students with reduced eyesight. Volunteer activities by Fuji Xerox employees got their start in 1989 in some parts of Kanagawa prefecture, and from 1994 onwards, the company expanded the support to the nationwide network of its sales bases and sales affiliates as places to create the textbooks. Making effective use of its products including copy machines as well as the network of business locations, Fuji Xerox has continued to make the contributions for nearly 20 years. In fiscal 2007, Fuji Xerox offered 790,000 enlarged color copies free of charge to 82 volunteer groups at its 48 sales locations nationwide .
In being given this award, Fuji Xerox was highly-acclaimed for continually making social contributions over a long period, carrying forward activities on a nationwide scale that makes effective use of the strengths of its business, allowing a large number of volunteers involved in producing large-font textbooks to use the services offered by the company, and making significant contributions to facilitating greater availability of large-font textbooks.
To produce large-font textbooks, many volunteers must not only enlarge the text, but also make enlarged color copies of illustrations, photographs, maps and graphs, and cut-and-paste them onto the pages. Before Fuji Xerox became involved, it sometimes took several months to produce a single book, but its color copy machines have made the work much more efficient, contributing to reducing the production period. Furthermore, in order to cope with digitized creation of textbooks, Fuji Xerox is providing various forms of support, including workshops on applicable production methods.
The Barrier-Free, Universal Design Contributors Awards started in 2002 with the purpose of recognizing individuals or organizations for remarkable achievements that effectively and comprehensively promote physical as well as nonmaterial aspects of barrier-free, universal designs to enable everyone, including the elderly, disabled people, pregnant women, or people with small children, to safely and comfortably enjoy the activities society has to offer.