Appendix
 
Backgroud on shortage of semiconductors
 
Shortage of semiconductors is a worldwide problem for all businesses using these components in their production. The current shortage is the result of a wide range of factors creating the perfect storm.
 
The semiconductor industry is dominated by a few large vendors, providing different industries with components. Production is largely based in Taiwan, Japan, USA, South Korea and China. The global semiconductor supply chain is relatively fragile, prone to disruptions from natural and man-made shocks. The supply of semiconductors cannot be turned on and off with a switch. Multibillion-dollar wafer fabrication plants are finely tuned and run 24/7, 365 days a year. Changing the production line for a new chip product can take significant time and adding significant new wafer fabrication capacity can take years.
 
These are some of the main reasons for the lack of global supply of semiconductors:  
   
Konica Minolta has based a major part of the supply on microchips from Texas Instruments and Renesas, both vendors suffering from production interruptions and a general surge in demand from the market.