Canon has halted operations at eight of its facilities in Japan

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Canon Inc.

Canon has halted operations at eight of its facilities in Japan, and reports that 15 employees were injured. Some of the most significant damage occurred at an ink-jet printer manufacturing plant in Fukushima, as well as at a plant where EF lens are produced. Canon did not indicate when operations will resume, noting “time will likely be needed before operations resume.” The company says it will consider making use of alternate sites that were not damaged by the earthquake in order to continue production.

The earthquake had the most significant impact on the following three Canon Inc. operation sites and five Canon Group companies, and damage “was significant” at Canon Inc.’s Utsunomiya Office and Fukushima Canon Inc. All operations have been suspended at these sites, with resumption of operations yet to be determined:

■Utsunomiya Office (Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture), where 15 employees sustained injuries;
■Canon Precision Inc. (Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture);
■Canon Optron, Inc. (Yuki, Ibaraki Prefecture);
■Canon Chemicals Inc., Iwama Plant (Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture);
■Fukushima Canon Inc. (Fukushima, Fukushima Prefecture);
■Canon Mold Co., Ltd. (Kasama, Ibaraki Prefecture).
The Japanese government is currently requesting that companies conserve electricity because of a shortage in the electric-power supply across the eastern part of Japan, due to damages sustained to power plants by the earthquake. Canon states that it’s calling on its employees to make every effort to conserve electricity in their homes. Meanwhile, operations resumed as usual for Canon plants in the western half of Honshu.

The company has also established an Earthquake Disaster Recovery Task Force, which will draft a recovery plan, and is making a donation of 300 million yen ($3.22 million U.S.) to the Japanese Red Cross Society and other humanitarian aid organizations, and says it will provide supplies as needed.

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3/15/117:53 PM

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Toyota keeping all domestic plants shut through Wed (Adds detail on Canon, Toyota plants)

TOKYO, March 15 (Reuters) - Canon Inc said it may not be able to resume production at three plants in Japan this week, highlighting the challenge faced by manufacturers to restart output halted following Friday's devastating earthquake and tsunami.

Major auto manufacturers and electronic device makers are keeping plants idle as they assess damage from the quake and try to re-establish supply lines and ensure workers can make it to their jobs amid rail and road disruptions.

Canon has halted production at facilities in Utsunomiya, Tochigi prefecture, and two plants in Ibaraki prefecture, all in northern Japan. The facilities fabricate office equipment and lenses used in audio-visual players.

"(A production restart) does not seem to be something we can expect within two or three days. We will first need to carry out a clean-up, and we are unsure how long that would require," said a Canon spokesman.

Among other major manufacturers, Toyota Motor said it was keeping all its plants shuttered through at least Wednesday. The world's largest automaker produces about 40 percent of its cars in Japan. (Reporting by Mariko Katsumura and Tim Kelly; Editing by Nathan Layne)

3/15/118:04 PM

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Canon Inc. has advised that 15 employees were injured at its Utsunomiya facility, which is said to have sustained significant damage. The Canon divisions at this location are responsible for production, research and development of a range of optical products, including EF lenses, as well as lenses for camcorders, broadcast cameras, business machines, LCD projectors, and other specialized lenses, plus mirror projection aligners and semiconductor equipment. Operations at this facility have been suspended, and the company notes that "time will likely be needed" before operations can resume in Utsunomiya .

In addition, the facility of a subsidiary company -- Fukushima Canon Inc. -- has also suffered significant damage. Thankfully there are no reported injuries at the facility, which produces inkjet printers, print heads, and ink tanks, but this facility is also expected to take some time to return to operation. Several other facilities were also closed today, and their operational status going forwards is still being determined. These include the Toride plant (office imaging products, etc.), and the Ami plant (LC and semiconductor exposure equipment), plus four other subsidiaries -- Canon Precision Inc. (micro motors, miscellaneous sensors, toner cartridges), Canon Optron Inc. (optical crystals, evaporation materials), Canon Chemicals Inc.'s Iwama Plant (toner cartridges), and Canon Mold Co. Ltd. (plastic molding). No injuries were reported at any of these facilities.

Separately, Canon has announced the establishment of an Earthquake Disaster Recovery Task Force, which is looking into measures to resume operations, including potentially shifting production to alternate locations, where it determines that a facility's operations may need to be suspended for over a month. Canon has also pledged 300 million yen (approximately US$3.7 million) to the Japanese Red Cross and other organizations, as well as offering to provide supplies as needed.

3/15/118:20 PM

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