Tokyo (July 4, 2025) - Konica Minolta, Inc. (Konica Minolta) today announced that Specim, Spectral Imaging Ltd. (Specim), Konica Minolta's group company for sensing business, has been awarded the title of Photonics Finland Company of the Year 2024, a high recognition of the company’s outstanding contributions to the photonics^*¹ industry in Finland and beyond.

Specim is a global leader in hyperspectral imaging (HSI) ^*² solutions. It is one of the most established companies in the hyperspectral market, founded to commercialize the world’s first compact spectral imaging sensor technology developed by VTT, Finland’s national technical research center in the early 1990s. Konica Minolta entered the HSI business by acquiring Specim to develop new businesses in safety, security, and environmental science.

For years, Specim has been at the forefront of innovation, developing advanced technologies that integrate state-of-the-art optics, image processing, and software. These solutions are widely used across diverse sectors, including food and forestry industries, plastic recycling, and environmental monitoring.
“Specim’s growth and continuous innovation are a prime example of what determined technology leadership and strong ecosystem collaboration can achieve,” says Juha Purmonen, Executive Director of Photonics Finland.

“We are truly honored to be named Photonics Company of the Year 2024 in Finland. This recognition is a meaningful tribute to our dedicated team and valued partners—especially as we celebrate our 30th anniversary,” says Tapio Kallonen, CEO of Specim.
Specim’s success highlights the global competitiveness and long-term sustainability of Finland’s photonics expertise, and Specim continues to contribute to solving social issues.

＊1A field of science and technology that deals with devices and technologies based on the properties of light.

＊2HSI is a technique that collects and processes information across the electromagnetic spectrum to obtain the spectrum for each pixel in an image. This allows for the identification of objects and materials by analyzing their unique spectral signatures. It is expected to be used for applications such as recycling, material/resource identification, food analysis, environmental safety, product surface condition analysis, etc.