Ricoh and ETRIA will collect products used in the market as components and produce new products near where they are consumed under the “Circular New” model. They announced plans to significantly reduce the use of virgin resources in the latest multifunction printers.
Circular New is an initiative that treats product planning, design, manufacturing, use, collection and reuse as a continuous circular process. Its distinguishing feature is the reuse of collected components as remanufactured components in the production of current models. Unlike conventional refurbishment and remanufacturing, it uses components and resources directly as raw materials for new products.
A production system focused on locating manufacturing near consumption areas is being established. In addition to the conventional production model centered on core plants, production will newly begin at the Gotemba plant in Japan and at plants in France. This is intended to create regional loops in which resources are collected, used and reproduced locally, reducing the use of virgin resources and improving supply chain stability.
The first products will be Ricoh’s A3 monochrome multifunction printers in the “RICOH IM 6010/4510/3510/2510” series, with shipments of products made in Japan and France expected to begin in the first half of 2027. Raw material use in Japan and France is expected to be approximately 21%, indicating a reduction compared with products made in Asia.
The Ricoh Group has set targets of reducing its virgin resource use rate to approximately 60% by 2030 and 12% by 2050. It has also announced plans to achieve a 30% market share for ETRIA engines in fiscal 2030, and is promoting Circular New as part of its growth strategy.