Strategies by Business Segment

Automotive-related Equipment• Profit Opportunities

Including EV-related systems and the primary components of power transmissions and drive trains tomore specific components like computerized control systems, sensors, and the air compressors used in airconditioning, we produce and sell a wide range of assembly equipment. Completely handling a large numberof devices and items of equipment at our company, we run comprehensive in-house tests to ensure theircorrect operation before delivering them to our customers’ factories.
Hirata’s standard designs and solutions improve ease of maintenance for the end-user. In addition, digitaltwin technologies are used to design and develop production lines more efficiently.

S

1. Integrated systems, from development to production andmaintenance
2. Engineering capabilities that enable us to fulfill customer
requirements
3. Vast plants where entire production lines can be verified
4. Trust and continuous transactions from customers

O

1. Expansion of market for products that address environmental
issues
2. Local production for local consumption (strengthening of local
procurement at each manufacturing company)
3. Advancement of DX for business4. Cooperation on overseas expansion with domestic companies

Strengths

Weaknesses(Internal)(Internal)

Opportunities

Threats(External)(External)W

1. Profitability management and profitability in new development
projects
2. Development capabilities for own key devices and standard
equipment
3. Competitiveness in specific regional markets

1. Changes in market environment due to tighteningof environmental regulations
2. Decrease in number of parts and in demand for production
equipment due to shift to EVs
3. Rise of Chinese companies
4. Exchange rate fluctuations
5. Loss of business opportunities due to travel restrictions brought
about by spread of infectious diseases, natural disasters, etc.

T- North America- China

In recognition of the high regard in which our track record

There is a wave of local procurement by Japaneseand reliability are held, in terms of EV-related equipment

companies, amid which our company is also building up a

we will further strengthen our cost competitiveness,track record. Going forward, we will further strengthen ourspeed, quality, local support, and modification response,

sales and production as well as cost response capabilities,

while strengthening the relationships with our customers.

while expanding opportunities for receiving orders inChina.

- Europe
A market in which the in-region competition is intense,- Southeast Asia

there is a sense that the export of equipment from Japan

We recognize that, at this point in time, EV-related

is problematic. In response to this situation and to lower

investments have yet to begin in earnest, and that theprices, we will cultivate cooperation with peer companies

resulting major wave of local production opportunities hasand suppliers in Eastern European countries andyet to present itself. We will, however, make preparations

strengthen our responsiveness by the building of supply

for a smooth transition to the production systems in whichchains, while working to increase profitability.

Japan and other countries are taking the lead.

Business Strategies• Retrospective Overview of Previous Medium-Termneutrality, we regard capital investments in EVs and otherManagement Plan

initiatives as a major business opportunity. In aiming toIn EV-related equipment, we entered the European market

improve our competitive advantage to win more orders

and accumulated know-how with regard to customer

in the Japanese, North American, European and Chinese

specifications and other factors. We also aimed tomarkets, we are working on product development.

included personnel exchanges within the Group.
As an ongoing issue, in regions with high demand forEVs such as Europe and China, we came to recognize(Millions of units)
70

More than70.0 million

world and auto industry leaders have pledged to increase
the market penetration of EVs, the sales of which areexpected to reach 40 million units annually in 2030.

lanu35• Major Business PartnersndanupomCo

Our major business partners include General Motors andas start-up EV manufacturers.

Participating from the customer’s product development
stage—and actively collaborating with external parties

insufficient.

so that we are not limited to our own resources—we arethowgrerat0)

3201→03.1
2020

and implementing initiatives to save energy and reduce

Medium-Term Management Plan

costs with the goal of creating products that meet

Against the backdrop of efforts towards global carbon

customer needs and exceed their expectations.

2Topics
40.0

New, EV-related Wire Bonder Product2(20• Business Strategies and Priority Measures in New

4%

Development of world’s largest dual-head wire bonder
capable of handling large battery modules for EVs

19.0

Ford Motor Company in North America, Fiat Chrysler
Motor Co., Ltd., and DENSO Corporation in Japan, as welldemand is expected.

conducting the development of new EV-related products

curb global temperature rises, governments around theAutomobiles in Europe, Toyota Motor Corporation, Honda

process in the field of EV batteries, where expansion inproduction, engineering, and procurement had been
EV Global Sales Volume Forecast

The long-term expansion of the EV market represents afuture trend that can be regarded with certainty. To help

improvement of key devices in each type of manufacturingthat the strengthening of the systems relating to local

Business Environment• Industry Outlook

We are focusing in particular on the development andstrengthen cooperation by implementing measures that

5.6

2021

Source: BloombergNEF

2025

2030

2040 (Year)

Installing two bonding heads has shortened cycle times, which are
an issue with large batteries, and doubled the previous processing
capacity. Also, configuring the standby position of the bondingheads outside the bonding area has achieved high maintainability,
as the battery cells can be easily accessed should a problem occur.

22

Hirata Integrated Report 2022

Hirata Integrated Report 2022

23

Strategies by Business Segment

Semiconductor-related Equipment
We develop, manufacture, and sell the components—primarily the openers for various storage containers,
atmospheric/vacuum robots, and aligners—used to transfer wafers in the semiconductor manufacturing
process. We are also focusing on system product applications for these components. For semiconductor
manufacturing equipment manufacturers, we provide optimized EFEMs* for each item of equipment in original
equipment manufacturer (OEM) and original design manufacturer (ODM) forms, and for semiconductor
manufacturers (foundries) we provide EFEMs and sorters under our own brand.
We also support innovation (miniaturization and the switch to 3D modelling) in semiconductor
manufacturing technologies. In addition to developing, manufacturing, and selling the various components
and system products (EFEMs) used for panel level packaging (PLP) transport, we also provide N2EFEM, whichtransfers wafers in an N2 (nitrogen) environment to reduce the adverse effects of the atmosphere on wafers.
*Equipment Front End Modules

S

1. Extensive line-up of wafer transfer components
2. Provide lineup of components for PLP substrate transfer
3. Lineup of system products that combine various components
4. Knowledge and technology necessary for customization andoptimization of components and system products

Strengths

Weaknesses(Internal)(Internal)

1. Further growth of semiconductor market
Opportunities
2. Innovation in semiconductor manufacturing technology(External)
3. Acceleration of electrification due to stricter environmental
regulations
4. Local production for local consumption
5. Trends toward vertical set-up of/standardization of facilities forfabrications by end-users
6. Establishment, revision/addition of SEMI industry association standards

OThreats(External)

1. Delays in strengthening overseas production bases (costcompetitiveness) and in responding to local production for
local consumption trend
2. Strengthening of sales structure in European and U.S. markets
3. Profitability of parts sales/after-sales service business4. Insufficient development resources due to excessivecustomization
5. Strengthening the lineup of our own-brand system products

W

1. Growing demand, soaring material prices and longer delivery
times stemming from conflicts
2. Rise of emerging market companies and start-ups
3. Innovation in semiconductor manufacturing technology
4. Economic friction, sanctions, disputes
5. Market exclusion due to legal regulations and economicpolicies
6. Establishment, revision/addition of SEMI standards

T• Major Business Partners

refining existing components and system products, will

Our major business partners include Tokyo Electron Limited,enable us to further increase our earnings. In the case ofDISCO Inc., Advantest Corporation, ULVAC, Inc., and Ebara

in-process transfer systems, we are also looking to furtherCorporation.

expand our earnings by broadening the scope of our Group’s
response through the development and market introduction• Profit Opportunitiesof new products, such as vacuum-related components,

We believe that further growth in the semiconductor

systems, and logistics systems, outside the scope of themarket, allied with increasing our share of that market byexisting products mentioned above.

Business Strategies• Retrospective Overview of Previous Medium-Term• Business Strategies and Priority Measures in NewManagement Plan

Medium-Term Management Plan

Amid burgeoning demand for semiconductors, we moved

In a market in which growth is expected, we will promote

toward local production in China, implemented initiatives

the investment of resources in this business field through,such as the building of a collaborative system within thefor example, internal organizational restructuring while

Group, and achieved net sales of ¥10 billion.

working to expand the scale of our response in each field.
By strengthening our sales capabilities, we will deepen ourIn contrast, we recognized that there was still roomfor growth in terms of sales and various types of profit

understanding of customer needs to an unprecedented

compared with other companies in the same industry. We

level and thereby promote the development of products

thus believed that we needed to aim for further growthwith high added value. By focusing on standardizingby building an optimal production system in this business,products and the adding of functional products, we will

including the strengthening of our global production

broaden the scope of our responses to customer needs.

system. We also recognized that the promotion of productIn our business, which has been based on a made-standardization and the shortening of lead times throughto-order business, we will also aim to realize an optimalbulk orders were issues that needed to be addressed.

production system and expand earnings by, for example,
introducing a new production management system for

Business Environment

mass-produced products and expanding the in-houseproduction area in this business field.

• Industry Outlook
Demand for semiconductors, which can be said to be
the core product of digitalization, is increasing year byForecast of Global Semiconductor-related Market Size
(Billions of U.S. dollars)
1,200year. Also, in societies that are aiming to be carbon
neutral by 2050, electrification is gaining pace, and theimportance of semiconductors, including their automotive

110

1,00090800

applications, is increasing. Against the backdrop ofgovernments around the world that are considering
the introduction and expansion of policies to actively
support investment in their semiconductor industries,
the semiconductor manufacturers in each country arealso planning record-high levels of capital investment.
The semiconductor market is expected to reach theequivalent of approximately ¥100 trillion in 2030, and the600
400504020044060507060
1,00055060002020
Semiconductors

2021

2022

Production equipment

2030 (Year)
Materials/Components

semiconductor manufacturing equipment field is expected
to grow accordingly.

24

Hirata Integrated Report 2022

Source: Based on all kinds of data, including Japan Electronics and Information
Technology Industries Association (JEITA), Ministry of Economy, Trade andIndustry (METI)(Composition ratio of semiconductors, production equipment, and materials
and components assumed to remain same until 2030, based on the METI’s
Strategy for Semiconductors and the Digital Industry [Summary] June 2021.)

300mm EFEM/Sorter series
An employee from #3 Engineering Department#3 Business Unit
Hirata Integrated Report 202225

Strategies by Business Segment

Other Automatic Labor-saving
Equipment

Industrial Robots

more improvements in terms of safety, performance,functionality, and operability, and strive to broaden thespread and improve the performance of our equipment.

Having started out as a manufacturer of transport equipment that supplied carts, our company commenced
the manufacture of conveyors, which formed the catalyst for our current business, after its establishment in1951 and then underwent a transformation into robots and production systems. Having pursued technologicalinnovation with the desire to allow people to devote themselves to creative work that only people can do,
and having not limited our selves to the automotive and semiconductor industries, we provide labor-saving
equipment to customers in a variety of fields.
In formulating the Medium-Term Management Plan covering FY2022–2024, we reviewed our businesssegments and classified them into three businesses: Automotive-related, Semiconductor-related, and Other
automatic labor-saving equipment. In the latter, we manufacture and sell production equipment for a varietyof fields, such as flat panel displays (FPDs), home electronics, and medical/chemistry and physics devices.

Individual Segments

Distribution (Transfer Systems)• Business Overview
For a variety of industrial fields, we offer highly versatileand customized automated warehouses and storage
stockers with no restrictions, manufacturing and selling• Business Overview and Strategy

products tailor-made for the products and factory

Industrial robots represent our core technology. We

environments of our customers.

have standard robot controllers and are able to operate

Constructed by means of advanced simulation

multiple types of robots in the same environment. It istechnology and highly versatile and expandable transfer

also possible to operate the robot from a host device such

equipment, our Group’s transfer systems have a provenas a programmable logic controller (PLC) or PC without

track record in the automotive and home electronics fields

using a robot language, reducing the burden on system

and are in operation in many factories.

designers and shortening the time required to set up theFPDs

is progressing, but as the equipment has becomelarger, many technical issues have arisen. Expanding ourtechnological strength and production capacity for large
FPD production equipment that we have cultivated so far,
our Group will work to acquire new markets by realizing
the manufacturing of next-generation FPD production
equipment.

• Business Overview and Strategy

Medical/Chemistry and Physics
Devices

Utilizing the resources that the Group possesses (large,assembly of large equipment, design and manufacturing

products that match the processes of a wide range of• Business Overview

production systems.

By effectively combining the technologies that are atPrioritizing functional safety, we are working on thethe Group’s disposal, such as transfer, robot, clean roomdevelopment and improvement of industrial and medical

and precision assembly technologies, we provide globalrobots.

support for parts and final assembly of home electronics

Targeting production facilities in the EV andthat are continuing to evolve. These include mobile devices

semiconductor fields, which are expected to see

such as smartphones and tablets, high-quality displays,

further growth in the years to come, we will makeand high-performance vacuum cleaners.

ECO Electric Series
Contributing to realization of carbon neutrality

provide, in OEM/ODM form, vacuum process and vacuumtransfer equipment in the production processes of sixthto 10th-generation large glass substrate organic EL andliquid crystal displays. Applying the thin film coating
technology that we have cultivated over many years, inrecent years we have, on the basis of that technology, also

• Business Overview and Strategy

been providing equipment for laminating cover glass andWe are developing and manufacturing robot systems

displays using silicon resin (adhesive) in the production

and medical devices that contribute to the automation ofprocess of in-vehicle displays that require weather

laboratory testing.
We are promoting product development with the goal

Due to the high image quality and high-speedof fully automating pathological examinations. In medical

response features of organic EL displays, demand for

devices engaging in the development of equipment for

their use is increasing not only in mobile phones but

medical use, with regard to cancer treatment equipment,

also in devices with large screens, such as tablets and

we are working together with our customers to develop

gaming displays. To improve productivity, there is a

medical devices that comply with laws and safety

demand to shift the substrate size from G6 to G8, which

standards for the purpose of obtaining pharmaceuticalis currently the mainstream, and equipment development

approvals.

Hirata Integrated Report 2022

Home Electronics

Electrification

personnel with a wealth of experience, etc.), we mainly

26

along orthogonal, horizontal, and vertical axes, we provide

Topicsfive-face processing machines, clean rooms for the finalresistance.

equipment. Selling multiple types of robots articulated

Amid the environmental considerations, such as
the SDGs, that are required, for example, in theautomotive field, moves to shift from internal
combustion engines to EVs are progressing ona global scale. In terms of production, there is a
shift from pneumatic systems, which emphasize
power and emit a large amount of CO2, toelectric systems, which are environmentallyfriendly and safe.
Based on our achievements in a variety ofindustrial fields, we provide non-pneumatic,safe production equipment and contribute to therealization of factories that do not place a burden
on the environment by realizing all-electrictransfer on the basis of production equipment.

ECO electric series products
Specially set-up ECO series product website

https://hirata-ecoele.com/en/

Hirata Integrated Report 2022

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