Tag: COVID-19

The FUJIFILM Endoscopy Service Center

Welcome to the FUJIFILM Endoscopy Service Center, where we are dedicated to providing the highest level of service and support for our customers. Our service strategy is focused on customer satisfaction, and we aim to achieve this by offering a comprehensive service and being close to local markets. With eight service centers located throughout Europe, including our headquarters in Willich, Germany, we are well positioned to provide timely and effective service to our customers. 

At the heart of our service offering are our highly qualified in-house technicians and field service experts. These professionals have extensive knowledge and experience in video-endoscopy technology and are equipped to handle any service needs that our customers may have. From routine maintenance and repairs to more complex technical support, our service team is committed to providing prompt and reliable service to keep our customers’ equipment running at peak performance.

One of the key benefits of our service model is our close proximity to our customers. With service centers located throughout Europe, we are able to quickly respond to our customers’ service requests and provide timely support. This not only minimizes equipment downtime but also helps our customers to optimize their operations and improve their productivity. Furthermore, with this strategy we are fully prepared for our further growth and are able to react quickly to situations when a service centre has to shut down – for example due to pandemic.

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Experience FUJIFILM live at the PHOTOPIA 2022 in Hamburg

October 16th marked the end of the second PHOTOPIA trade show in Hamburg and with it four exciting days where photography enthusiasts and customers could experience FUJIFILM’s products in a unique environment. More than 10,000 visitors were inspired by the setting, built from 350 shipping containers, took part in workshops or learned the art of photography from professionals like our X-Photographers.

The design of the large FUJIFILM booth in particular attracted many visitors, as much awaited them on, in and around the custom-designed shipping containers: in front of a custom-made tape art wall, INSTAX fans could capture the unique photo festival experience with our instant cameras and try out the INSTAX cameras and printers for themselves. A camera rental and cleaning service was also offered to visitors. On a stage directly integrated into the booth, basketball players, break dancers or skateboarders performed regularly, a perfect motif to try out the unique X-cameras for yourself.

The print results from the FUJIFILM onsite printers could also be admired hot off the press, as well as the Printlife exhibition in a container. Take a look at the video to get even more impressions of Photopia 2022!

All in all, it was a highly successful exhibition with many interesting encounters, informative exchanges and, most importantly, a lot of fun. We would like to thank everyone who made this great trade show possible and made it a special experience.

Welcome to the new Open Innovation Hub

At Fujifilm, we are continuously innovating and creating new technologies, products and services that inspire and excite people everywhere. Our goal is to empower the potential and expand the horizons of tomorrow’s businesses and lifestyles.

The Open Innovation Hub, opened in July 2022 at Fujifilm Europe’s headquarters in Ratingen, Germany, is a place where different stakeholders, like customers, prospects, universities, creators and opinion makers can interact with Fujifilm to co-create new value by combining state-of-the-art core technologies developed by Fujifilm that are based on its expertise on photosensitive materials and ongoing projects with your needs and ideas. Visitors get acquainted with Fujifilm’s history, business transformation and diversification and learn more about our core technologies that is used in a broad area of applications.

Under the CSR Plan “Sustainable Value Plan 2030 (SVP2030),” the Fujifilm Group aims to contribute globally to solving social issues through its business activities. The Open Innovation Hub is an open innovation base that aims to solve social issues and to “co-create new values,” while experiencing related technologies and visions under the four themes of Environment, Health, Daily Life and Work Style, which are positioned as priority areas in SVP2030. 

We utilize “open innovation” methods to boost our innovation activities. We co-create new solutions with partners, and are looking for opportunities to acquire technologies and businesses with our investment, either through M&A or small investments in start-ups. To foster these open innovation approaches, we provide our visitors with facilities for inspiration, discussions and brainstorming.

Get a preview of the #OIHexperience

The Open Innovation Hub is currently active globally with three collaborating bases: Tokyo (Japan), Silicon Valley (US), and Ratingen (Germany). While the underlying concept of each hub is the same, the exhibitions and activities are geared for each market environment and the specific character of each region.

Have we sparked your interest in visiting the Open Innovation Hub? Then you have the chance to book your visit via this website: www.fujifilminnovation.eu 

We are looking forward to welcoming you at the Open Innovation Hub! 

Learning from the Pandemic

Radiology – the ‘gatekeeper’ specialty to unlocking the potential of digital health

Can radiology become the most important medical specialty in the field of digital health?

This was one of the questions posed as part of Fujifilm’s Healthcare’s Digital European Tour, a series of virtual events designed to highlight the contribution radiology has been making during – and after – the pandemic.

The event saw clinicians from across Europe share their experience of Covid-19, and the vital role radiologist have and can play in the fight. 

And according to Professor Thomas Vogl, Director of the Institute for Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at Frankfurt University Hospital, radiology services will be vital to the future of healthcare. Citing the example of a network of hospitals across Germany sharing lung CT scans to help diagnose Covid, Prof Vogl believes the opportunities are enormous. He described how the potential of artificial intelligence when combined with innovations in radiology, could transform the way we approach diagnostics across a number of illness areas.

The central role of radiology in the evolving use of diagnostics was a recurring theme of the whole event, which heard reports from speakers based across Europe. 

And while advances in technology can never replace physicians – a point made by Ing. Giovanni Delgrossi, Director of Information Systems ASST Vimercate in Italy – it can transform the speed and effectiveness of our physicians; and radiographers could be the ‘gatekeepers’ to unlocking this potential. 

It is a development that Ing. Delgrossi believes could help move healthcare from being reactive, (even passive) to being proactive – to finding and treating more health problems, more quickly. This belief is fed by his experiences during the pandemic. 

In Vemercate, they were able to use artificial intelligence to scan an average of 80-90 chest x-rays per day and separate the Covid positive from the Covid negative; helping them to identify over 900 Covid patients. However, the importance of radiology doesn’t simply fit within the confinement of the height of the pandemic. 
(Read the full case of Vimercate Hospital downloading Take Away 17 here: synapse.fujifilm.eu/fujifilm-takeaway/ )

The problems of care and diagnosis backlogs threatens health systems across Europe. In Italy for example, 521,000 (12%) fewer new diagnoses were made, and the number of patients starting a new treatment fell by 277,000 (10%). This is a picture that speakers from across Europe shared; In Germany, half of surgeries have been postponed; In France, new diagnoses of cancer were down 23%, and 2.2m operations were canceled; and in the UK, 1.7m people were waiting more than 18 weeks to start a new treatment. This combines to create a Europe-wide tidal wave of patients waiting to be diagnosed and treated. 

The role of innovative radiological solutions in helping to work through these backlogs was highlighted as being potentially crucial. Fiona Thow, formerly of NHS Improvement in England talked about how Fujifilm’s Xair, a portable x-ray unit, was transforming the way in which care could be delivered. She described how, by taking care out to community diagnostic hubs nearer the patients, they could identify and triage patients more quickly, and help keep patients away from acute centres, allowing them to focus on the patients that require acute care. 

And in France, radiologists are collaborating across Europe to share data on breast imaging to help identify how big a backlog they are likely to face so that they can continue to identify as many cases of breast cancer as early as possible, giving patients the best possible outcomes. 

While there is much to be concerned about – the impact of Covid is profound and will be long term – there is enormous pride that radiologists can, and are, playing such a key role in helping to deal with the pandemic’s effects. For us at Fujifilm, there is a tremendous affirmation in that; what we do really matters. That by never stopping innovating, and producing new technologies, we have helped our health services across Europe cope with the pandemic. And that by continuing to produce the technologies that we do, we are helping to equip not just our radiologists, but the entire multi-disciplinary care team – with the tools they need to minimise the impact of the pandemic on patients and maximise the effectiveness of their care.

If we can collectively achieve that, then perhaps we will be able to say that radiology really is the gatekeeper specialty to unlocking the potential of digital health.

Maurice’s first 100 days at Fujifilm…

The Corona crisis is a dangerous catastrophe that puts peoples’ health at risk and challenges their work and private life. Being young and hungry for personal and professional development also makes times like these a challenge. Please meet Maurice, a 20-year-old International Management university student. He is the new arrival that joined Fujifilm Europe’s Corporate Communication department exactly 100 days ago. Today, he will share his latest experiences with us.

Two years ago I moved to Dusseldorf with the dream to pursue my career as a competitive athlete while doing my studies. Combining studies, sport and a job was not easy. Therefore, I have always seen my jobs as a necessity in order to support my passion. Then, after the pandemic hit in March 2020, I was forced to quit my career as a competitive athlete and, all of a sudden, I was able to pay more attention to my work life. This changed my perspective from seeing my job as a necessity to actually enjoy the work I am doing.

In 2019, I started to work for a tech startup. Then after one and a half years, I was ready for a new challenge. Something that would suit my expectations more and also would involve a deeper international perspective. I was looking for quite a while, until I finally found a job description which caught my attention immediately…

Why Fujifilm Europe?

After a Covid conform application and interview phase, I had my first day at FUJIFILM Europe GmbH. You might ask yourself: “Why did he choose Fujifilm Europe?” First of all, I was not particularly looking for a position at Fujifilm, but during my research for a new job, I stumbled across the or such a global player.

Another reason is that I went to a film related High School and I liked the thought of combining my experiences within the film industry and my interest in marketing and communication. Additionally, as a multi-technology company, Fujifilm is operating in various areas which was also interesting for me because this makes the work more versatile. Last but not least, I live in Dusseldorf and since Fujifilm Europe’s headquarters are located in this amazing city, I basically live next door. 

Starting my new job

Honestly, I did not know what was waiting for me and what I should expect from my new position as Social Media Operator. Starting a new job during a pandemic was – and still is – not easy, but it was not as complicated as I had imagined either. Instead, it was nice to be in the comfort of my own home. 

My first official meeting was our weekly team video call which I joined being quite excited and nervous because I did not know anybody. I also did not expect to talk in English exclusively which caught me by surprise, but was not a problem at all. At the end of the team meeting, I was convinced that I had made the right decision to join and become a part of Fujifilm. During the following days, my excitement grew as I learned more about my tasks and the people I work with.

The world of Social Media and Digital Communication

Working as a Social Media Operator is always exciting, and it feels like every day something new and challenging is waiting for me. My task is to support several projects, e.g. Social Media communication, editorial work and sometimes even some technical tasks. Accordingly, there are many opportunities to grow, learn and also improve myself. The job makes it possible to discover various parts of Fujifilm and the business life in general, especially, throughout the field of digital communication. 

Digital communication is playing a huge and important role in our daily life. Communication is based on a dialog, which means interacting with many people is the main emphasis. Therefore, communication – and especially digital communication – becomes more and more essential for businesses because that is the new way to reach and interact with people interested in Fujifilm related topics. To conclude, interacting with different people on a daily basis, solving problems, being challenged and a lot more makes this job so diversified.

Making mistakes is part of the process!

Everything I mentioned before makes this position seem like a perfect and balanced job, which I would not deny, but there are some challenges, too. We all know these times when your Manager gives you a task, but you have no idea how to solve it or what he or she is even talking about. I always told myself that, first, I try to solve problems or difficult tasks by myself, but if there is no possible way for me to manage then I will ask for support immediately and without feeling ashamed or being afraid to disappoint someone. I tell myself that mistakes are human and that it is not a problem to make mistakes and to not be perfect, no matter whether I just started or have already been working at Fujifilm for years. We all make mistakes! This is also something my boss always advises me about. He gives me the chance to correct my mistakes rather than just calling me out for making them. Honestly, I made some mistakes and still do them, but realising the above at such an early stage, made me not stress out too much about it. Consequently, my motivation did not dwindle either. It actually increased because I was eager to improve and work on myself to become better at what I am doing.

Given all the difficult circumstances I decided to make the best of this new situation and find a job, team and task that fit and challenged me. Being part of the corporate communications department and being able to work with a fun, supporting and open-minded team is such an honor. My colleagues have been friendly and welcoming to me since day one, and they have not changed yet. After 100 days, I can still say that I feel more than comfortable working at Fujifilm and that I am thankful for the opportunities Fujifilm has already given to me.

I cannot wait to see what the future holds for me!

We thank Maurice for his insights into his first working days at Fujifilm. If interested in checking on Fujifilm’s open job vacancies, please have a look here: http://englishcareers-fujifilmeu.icims.com/

World Book and Copyright Day – Fujifilm colouring books lighten phases of lockdown for kids and parents

Today marks World Book and Copyright Day, launched by UNESCO to celebrate the importance of reading with children all around the world.

At Fujifilm, we know the value of education and the power of print. Which is why, in response to the pandemic and the disruption to education felt by so many students around the world, we created our very own Fujifilm colouring books to support young students, teachers, parents and carers adapt to this sudden change of routine.

The colouring books, aimed at 5-8 year olds, help to explain real-world, everyday applications of science and innovation in a fun and exciting way, learning through the power of colouring. Children in the UK and Turkey so far have been learning along with Peter Pigment, Phoebe Photon, Victor Virus and Charlotte Cho as they explain the science that power Fujifilm technologies, from taking a photography to manufacturing a vaccine.

Phoebe Photon explains how light is used when taking a photo and the technology found in digital cameras, while Peter Pigment demonstrates how these photos are printed with inks of all colours manufactured at his Ink Factory. Taking a focus on biology, Victor Virus tells readers about how small viruses like him can be used to help sick people get better.

In Bedford, UK – where FUJIFILM UK Ltd. Is headquartered – we worked with the local council to provide physical copies of the colouring books. The books, which were printed on Fujifilm Acuity printers, were delivered to local primary schools as the new school year began in 2020.

In Turkey, we worked together with the KAÇUV Foundation (English: The Hope Foundation for Children with Cancer). We gifted our colouring books to the children of KAÇUV on this year’s Childhood Cancer Day. The books reached the children in KAÇUV’s Family Houses and hospitals, and made them smile. 

In Germany  – Our colleagues shared the printed colouring books with the local community via public bookshelves around our European Headquarters in Düsseldorf. The public bookshelves can be found throughout the city area and are run by Literaturbüro NRW.

Our two colleagues shared the colouring books on a sunny and windy day. They found the public bookshelves in a lot of different areas – in vivid, cosy and quiet neighbourhoods of the town. This way, Peter Pigment and his friends are now waiting for their German readers in the neighbourhood of playgrounds, Düsseldorf’s famous TV Tower, restaurants, police stations and churches. Peter Pigment, Phoebe Photon, Victor Virus and Charlotte Cho feel extremely comfortable in the children’s book section, a lower area within the bookshelves, where they wait for and are easy to be reached by small readers and artists.

Beyond this, all colouring books are free to download and can be printed at home – and with the knowledge that not every child has easy access to a printer, the files can also be loaded into a smartphone or tablet device and accessed digitally.

Download possibilities:

Please find the English colouring books here: https://www.fujifilm.com/de/en/learning-hub

Please find the German colouring books here: https://www.fujifilm.com/de/de/learning-hub

We are proud to support young students and education providers not only with learning through these difficult times but also with a fun activity to complete during lockdown that can be conducted at a distance.

Best practices and innovative ways of breast cancer screening

Today is World Cancer Day and we, at Fujifilm, we are continuing our fighting against cancer even in this critical pandemic situation. During the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, countries across Europe suspended breast cancer screening programs. In some areas, the number of patients who have had mammograms has decreased by more than two thirds.

Depending on the lockdown periods, which differed from country to country, the European breast units were closed one after another, first in Italy, then in other European countries. However, we know that breast cancer screening can save lives. A number of studies conducted by leading research institutions suggest that stopping screening could result in an increase in the percentage of women who will die from breast cancer in the future.1

There is much to catch up on now. With this in mind, screening units have established new routines, adapting their workflows and their workplaces. Across Europe, women’s health services have reorganised themselves in order to face the challenges of COVID-19, showing an exemplary and effective attitude to change.

To understand this change, we have invited influential voices of the European breast cancer screening landscape to understand and learn about the current situation. We asked them to tell us about how the impact of the pandemic has demanded new models of working and how this changes their relationships to their patients. The report created based on this new input is based on interviews conducted in September and October 2020. In case you are curious, the paper can be found here.

The message that we want to push and spread as much as possible is to take care of yourself, of your health, of your body. Book your screening appointment, breast units across Europe have implemented the best ways of working which help to safely reinstate screening services even in times of COVID.

  1. https://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/covid-19-and-breast-cancer-care
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7652450/

AT YOUR SERVICE – Anika Sand

Anika Sand, Application Specialist for Fujifilm Germany’s Medical Systems division, servicing hospitals in Germany, shares her experience and feelings during the Coronavirus pandemic. Due to the rapid developments of the Corona situation, we would like to point out that we conducted the interview in 2020.

– We are at your service. During the current Coronavirus pandemic our technicians and application specialists are working on the front line alongside healthcare professionals to make sure patients can be diagnosed and treated. These are their stories. –

Fujifilm: When the Coronavirus pandemic reached Germany, what were your first thoughts?
Anika Sand: At the beginning, when Corona reached Germany, I was probably concerned about whether and how the pandemic would affect my work – not only for Fujifilm but especially for doctors, nurses and patients. The facilities, like hospitals or doctor’s practices, had to prepare for the situation within a short time. Life outside of hospitals also became more difficult for everyone.

Fujifilm: We would like to get to know you better. You are Application Specialist for Radiography for Fujifilm in Germany. Can you describe your role?
Anika Sand: My job is to look after our customers immediately after installation of our Medical Systems on site. I do the briefings with the operating staff, set up the software according to the customer’s wishes and needs. Also, I change the image processing in cooperation with the doctors, if this is desired. At Fujifilm, we work as one team, so I accompany demos to support my sales colleagues, too.

Fujifilm: What motivates you to go to work every day?
Anika Sand: I have been working for Fujifilm for almost 7 years now. Previously, I had worked as an MTA in a radiology practice and was looking for a new challenge. At Fujifilm, I never have the feeling of “stopping” due to our extensive product portfolio and the constant new developments. I look after our digital X-ray systems, mobile and portable radiography solutions, the field of mammography and our CT. Naturally, during COVID-19 we have experienced a shift in demand, especially of our mobile X-ray devices. So, the customers I look after are mixed. This can range from a radiological, gynecological or surgical practice to a university clinic. It can be very enriching to work with customers and being able to show the latest technology to them.

Fujifilm: How do you support the hospitals, doctors and nurses in the current situation?
Anika Sand: During this time, our workload has increased because appointments on site must be carefully planned and prepared. Overnight stays in hotels have also become more difficult, since the rules for protection must also be observed there. My actual job I do the same way as before. Only the “how” has changed – and it has changed a lot. The support is not much different either. Certainly you need to do certain things by phone or online, but working directly with customers usually would be the most efficient way of working – interaction is easier and more direct, you can explain and show face-to-face. I still can, and need to, go to the clinics for my work. I am responsible for radiology operation working smoothly on our devices, regardless of whether it is about the operation or the setting of the images.

“I have hoped from the start that we as society overcome this crisis and everyone can quickly get back to “normal” while learning from this experience.”


Fujifilm: What has changed on site – in hospitals and doctor’s practices – for you?
Anika Sand: I always have a facemask or face covering with me. I also bring disinfectant with me, but it is available at the customer’s sites in all departments. Even before COVID-19, the entrances to the clinics were equipped with disinfectant dispensers. It is good to experience well-managed crisis management in hospitals with all German clinics that I have worked with being well prepared. However, the uncertainty about what the future holds is there. In the meantime, however, the clinics are back in relatively normal operation, which until recently had been severely shut down. I feel safe working at home and at hospital appointments. And for sure, working with a facemask is necessary and can be lifesaving, but is a bit difficult because the air underneath gets quite thin after a lot of talking. A “regular” workday therefore can get quite exhausting.

Fujifilm: What has changed at home and at work?
Anika Sand: Not that much has changed for me. I would normally work at home. So, this is nothing new for my partner and me. At work the situation is very different though. Personal meetings and training cannot take place. Nevertheless, the team has worked out how to exchange information in the home office via regular web meetings to keep everything going as best as possible.

Fujifilm: What have you learned during your recent work in the Coronavirus pandemic?
Anika Sand: My job includes a lot of travelling; I often need to be on site with the doctors and nurses to support them as best as possible. Therefore, possibilities of travelling and overnight stays are heavily necessary to do my job. At the beginning the problem was that many hotels and all restaurants had to close and it was difficult to find something to stay overnight let alone find something to eat after a whole day of work. It was good to experience that problems can be seen as challenges and big and small ones can often be solved according to rules and thinking creatively at the same time. For example, a colleague and I simply had a socially distanced picnic at our hotel one evening. I have hoped from the start that we as society overcome this crisis and everyone can quickly get back to “normal” while learning from this experience.

To download the interview in our Whitepaper format (pdf) please have a look at our AT YOUR SERVICE homepage here.

AT YOUR SERVICE – Back then and today

– We are at your service. During the current Coronavirus pandemic, our technicians and application specialists are working on the front line alongside healthcare professionals to make sure patients can be diagnosed and treated. Today, Fujifilm looks back at decades of research and development to make this – today’s support – possible. –

Fujifilm has the possibility to support healthcare workers, doctors and patients during the current coronavirus crisis. Our colleagues have adapted to the new situation quickly to enable service and support for those who need it most during the pandemic. This approach might seem new to a few of our readers, but is actually more than 80 years old to us as the Fujifilm family. 

Fujifilm was founded in 1934, back then named Fuji Photo Film Co. Lt., and only two years later, we already launched our first x-ray films. They have been our start in a long history of caring for people’s health. Have a look at this video for a few Fujifilm milestones in the healthcare field: 

Due to the novel coronavirus emergency and the character of the COVID-19 disease, affecting the human lung especially heavily, x-ray is in focus in 2020. – Sadly, not primarily for the 125 year anniversary of Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen’s discovery of x-rays, but due to a critical new disease putting the world into crisis mode and people’s health at great risk. 

Our decades of research, development, and pursuing strategic cooperations, have now put us in a position to offer support to the healthcare sector across the entire spectrum of patient care, ranging from prevention to diagnostics and therapy solutions. 

Now, digitisation is driving us to create value from innovation; growing alongside the needs of the hospitals and doctors caring for you, we have been working in the field of medical IT and medical AI. We are grateful this approach has made it possible lately to support European hospitals, like the ASST Vimercate Hospital in Italy, to efficiently set up a system to assist healthcare professionals to manage the large number of COVID patients. 

Please visit our TAKE AWAY LIBRARY and check out Number 17 REiLI USER’S VOICE or read our latest article on ASST Vimercate Hospital to learn more about how REiLI can support hospitals in times of COVID-19.

We have always learned and evolved, enabling our technology and our colleagues to be at your service. Growing, to serve the health of society – back then, today and in the future.