Do you realise the significance of 22 October? It means something to you even if you don’t realise it. You see, Tuesday, 22 October 2019, was the 81st anniversary of the day the first xerographic image was produced and xerography began. Without that special day, the Xerox printer or multi-function device you use would probably not exist. It is amazing to think how far the xerographic technology has come in 80+ years.

Back on 22 October 1938, Chester Carlson, a patent attorney and part-time inventor, made the first xerographic image. The first image was a hand written note that simply read “10-22-38 ASTORIA” (see picture). The copy is preserved in the Smithsonian Institution. If Carlson were still alive, he might be surprised to learn his invention began an information revolution that has continued to this day, making information readily available and expanding the world’s total knowledge.

According to Megatrends in Digital Printing Applications, 8.5 trillion letter-size simplex pages are printed annually in North America on products fathered by Carlson’s invention.

Xerox has gone on to be a leader in innovation over the last 81 years. ConnectKey-enabled office assistants, apps, artificial intelligence (AI) and printed electronics are just a few of the innovations that continue to be generated by minds at Xerox. Xerox is made to think. Xerox is building the future of work every day at our innovation centres. Take a look at this Made To Think video to see a few of the innovations and what we are up to on a daily basis:

https://youtu.be/49XLvlFJ8So

You can see the innovations that have evolved from the xerographic technology and more at the Xerox Innovation site. Read more about the history of Chester Carlson and Xerography or download the Story of Xerography.

In celebration of Carlson’s Astoria notice, as you go through your normal workday, how xerography helps you and your business every day.

About Bytes Document Solutions
Altron Bytes Document Solutions (BDS) is Africa’s leading document management technology and services company and the largest Xerox distributor in the world. It is the authorised Xerox distributor in 26 sub-Saharan countries offering the complete range of Xerox document equipment, software solutions and services. BDS forms part of JSE-listed Allied Electronics Corporation (Altron).