Qualex
Encyclopedia
Qualex Inc. was the largest wholesale and on-site photographic processing
company in the world. It was formed in March 1988 as a joint venture between Eastman Kodak
and Fuqua Industries, but became a wholly owned subsidiary of Kodak in 1994. It is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina
. Qualex operates a large network of commercial and in-store labs throughout the United States and Canada.
Qualex's business has suffered from the overall decline in traditional film photography in favor of digital photography
. Qualex once operated 53 photo processing laboratories; that number had shrunk to 22 as of June 2004, and the company was expecting further consolidation. Qualex, however, continued to service over 13,000 on-site retail processing locations. On December 18, 2008, Qualex announced that it was shuttering all of its film processing facilities, essentially ending send-out film developing by Kodak.
However, their Event Imaging Solutions division will still remain.
Friday, March 27th 2009 was the last day for send-in photofinishing, while Monday, March 30th 2009, was the last day for Internet orders, and this marks the end of Qualex's photofinishing.
Photographic processing
Photographic processing is the chemical means by which photographic film and paper is treated after photographic exposure to produce a negative or positive image...
company in the world. It was formed in March 1988 as a joint venture between Eastman Kodak
Eastman Kodak
Eastman Kodak Company is a multinational imaging and photographic equipment, materials and services company headquarted in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded by George Eastman in 1892....
and Fuqua Industries, but became a wholly owned subsidiary of Kodak in 1994. It is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
. Qualex operates a large network of commercial and in-store labs throughout the United States and Canada.
Qualex's business has suffered from the overall decline in traditional film photography in favor of digital photography
Digital photography
Digital photography is a form of photography that uses an array of light sensitive sensors to capture the image focused by the lens, as opposed to an exposure on light sensitive film...
. Qualex once operated 53 photo processing laboratories; that number had shrunk to 22 as of June 2004, and the company was expecting further consolidation. Qualex, however, continued to service over 13,000 on-site retail processing locations. On December 18, 2008, Qualex announced that it was shuttering all of its film processing facilities, essentially ending send-out film developing by Kodak.
However, their Event Imaging Solutions division will still remain.
Friday, March 27th 2009 was the last day for send-in photofinishing, while Monday, March 30th 2009, was the last day for Internet orders, and this marks the end of Qualex's photofinishing.