Monozukuri gives Japan’s niche players a competitive edge
While Japan has faced increasingly
larger competition from the likes
of China, South Korea and Southeast Asia in recent decades, many
JapaneseSMEmanufacturers havemaintained large global market
shares in B2B markets and nicheﬁ elds characteri[ed by high-mix,
low-volume production. Working
behind the scenes by supplying
high-quality parts, materials andmachinery, these niche companies
are the so-called ‘hidden champions’ of Japanese manufacturing.
They have and will continue to excel thanks to a strict adherence
to the tenets of mono[ukuri, theJapanesemanufacturing philosophy
that centers around craftsmanship,
excellence and the constant pursuitof innovation. From those engaged
in automotives and electronics, tomaterials science, plastics, printing
and textiles, these hidden champions have placed themselves at theforefront of global challenges suchassustainability and climatechange.
“Japanese mono[ukuri brought
about highly reliable and durable
products. Japanese companies’
success is also because of Japan’s
educational system and cultural
standards,” says Toshihiro Takai,
President of Asano Laboratories,
a leading manufacturer of thermoforming machinery that has
made major headways in sustainability in the plastics industry. “Themanufacturing industry in Japanis of such high quality because thepeople are very diligent and serious
when it comes to manufacturing
good-quality products. This is why
Japanese companies are able tomaintain competitiveness despitea harsh global market. JapaneseSMEs excel in high technology,
which allows them to maintain ahigh global market share.”
Yoshinori Takahashi, Presidentof New Cosmos Electric, agrees:“Japan has continued to successfully compete in a very competitivemarket by focusing on developing innovative products and consistently
offering exceptional quality.” New
Cosmos’ innovation has focused on
alarm systems, with the company
being the ﬁ rst to develop a longlife battery powered natural gas
alarm using its proprietary MEMS
gas sensor technology. “Senet andother communications providers
like Itron have partnered with New
Cosmos because our low power

consumption MEMS sensor offersa seven-year battery life (soon to
be 10 years) and enough power toprovide data to utilities via various
wirelesscommunication networks.”
When it comestohigh technology
and innovation, perhaps the sewing
industry would not be the ﬁ rst thatspringsto mind.Matsuya R&D,however, haspioneered automation and
AI in the industry, with its high-techmachinery used to develop textile
products such as airbags and medical devices, where safety is of theutmost importance. “Quality andperformance are essential. This is
why Japanese mono[ukuri is being
used in the car and medical industries, where a simple mistake cancost a human life,”explains Matsuya
president and CEO, Hidetaka Goto.
“Using all our sewing technologies,
we produce sewn products such as
blood pressure manometer cuffs,
car seat covers, airbags and seatbelts. We are proud to be the only
company promot ing productionlines with fully automated sewing
machines with AI technologies.”
As highlighted above by Asano
president Mr.Takai,cultureand education are major factors behind Japan’smanufacturing superiority; but
so too is passion. “This passion for
manufacturing that drives innovation in unexpected ﬁ elds is a special
feature of Japanese mono[ukuri,”states Atsushi Nagai, President ofSintokogio, a 95-year-old company
engaged in several areas including
surface treatment, powder treatment and foundry solutions. “Ourpassion for manufacturing has been
the driving force for our businesssince the beginning. The technologies we have developed over our
history are now being used in completely different ﬁelds as technologies for the future. For example, aJapanese government consortiumof major battery-related companies uses our casting technologies
and machines for processes in battery production. For our surface
treatment technology, we not only
contribute to lighter-weight automobiles, but also to the productionof solar panelsand semiconductors.
I n addition, our powder and handling technologies are used in thedevelopment of smartphone parts.”
Another key tenet of mono[ukuri
focusesaroundlistening,understanding and addressing customer needs,
and Japanesecompanieslikeprintingpress manufacturer Sakurai Graphic
Systems work closely with customers in order to drive innovation. “In
my opinion, mono[ukuri is about
meeting the needs of the customer,” says company president Ryuta
Sakurai. “The most important thingisthecustomer’srequirementsrather
than the technology and the market
requirements. We are not only close
to our customers,but they arealso
closeto us,and wecreatetogether.
This is for the beneﬁt of both ourcompany and our customers.”
This co-creation process has
enabled Sakurai to offer solutions
tailor-made to client speciﬁcations,with its printing press machinery
employed in a range of industries
where the strictest standards are
required. “We are looking at medical, security, automobile, electrical,
wearable, or IoT sensor devices.
Also, we arelooking at biosensors, asensor that determinesand monitors
blood sugar levels. We are focusing
on the ﬁ eld of printed electronics,
where conductive inks are applied.
I believe that clients’ requirements
are becoming stricter and require
higher accuracy,” says Mr. Sakurai,
while pointing out that “Sakurai’scylinder-type automatic screenprinting machines, which we havecultivated for some 60 years, havea global market share of over 90%”.
Shigeharu Yamanaka, Presidentof Okitsumo I nc., also sees working closely with the customer, inorder to meet and even exceed
expectations, as indispensable tomono[ukuri manufacturing. “We
prefer to directly communicatewith
our customers for better productdevelopment. Our company has
continued to develop a multitudeof products by challenging the customers’ ideas of their wants andwishes all the time. This attitude
supports our mono[ukuri and differentiates us from our competitors,” he reveals. Speciali[ing inheat-resistant, heat-insulating andlubricant coatings, plus a range ofother coating technologies, Okitsumo’sacuteunderstanding of market
needshasseenthecompany develop
carbon-cutting solutionsfor a range
of applications,with Mr.Yamanaka’s
eye ﬁrmly on the growing electricvehicle (EV) market.
I ndeed many Japanese manufacturers are gearing up for theshift towards EV and hybrid vehicles. “There will be higher de-

Yoshinori Takahashi,
President,
New Cosmos Electric Co., Ltd.
mand for materials with higher
heat resistance, especially for EV
and hybrid applications. We haveprocured these special materials
and developed our processing andstamping technologies to process
them,” explains M asamitsu 6 ehara, President of Techno State, arenowned manufacturer of highprecision metal sealings for powertrains, engine and transmission
assemblies. “Our capability in metal
stamping and related mold and die
technologiesrequiresvery high precision. These material processing
technologies are what differentiates us from other manufacturers.”
Tokuhatsu, meanwhile, continues to drive innovation to improvethe efﬁ ciency of various types ofvehicles, including EVs. “We wantto make sure that more customers are aware of our technology
and how it can be used in EVs,”
says company president Hitoshi
Kotagiri. “In this sense, the technology we most want our customers
to know about is the Ultra-Fine
Texture Plate. Tokuhatsu has seen
demand for its products combining
ultra-ﬁ ne texture technology andhigh-precision stamping double inﬁ ve years. “The ultra-ﬁ ne texture
has excellent friction behavior andhelps improve fuel consumption,”adds Mr. Kotagiri. “I mproving efﬁ ciency is an essential issue for EVs
as well, so we believe our products
can be used in units related to thiskind of production.”
A main supplier to Toyota,Futaba
I ndustrial is the top company for
exhaust systems in Japan. #ut withthe shift to EV and hybrids, it has
shifted more focus towards bodyparts, while also “investing funds
and resources into developing new
exhaust systems more suitable forthe diversiﬁ ed power sources forpure internal combustion engine,hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars,” explains president, Hiroyoshi Yoshiki.
Futaba has 30 production bases inNorth America, Europe and Asia,and hasestablished a system to supply auto parts to major automakers
in Japan and overseas. “The Futaba
Group intends to maintain its position as a trusted and successful supplier,” saysMr.Yoshiki. “Accordingly,
wecontinue to enforce the basics ofsafety, quality and monozukuri topursue optimization globally.”
Going global has become evermore important for Japanese companies facing a dwindling domestic
market and contracting labor force
due to the nation’s aging population– beit in search of new customersor
production bases.“A declining population inevitably means a shrinking
market, so we must grow together,including overseas. Wewould liketo
preserve and develop the essenceof monozukuri in Japan while fusing it with overseas cultures,” says
Kazumasa I ida, President of springmaker Hayamizu Hatsujou.Anotheranswer to the labor pool shortage
is automation. “No matter what
industry, digital processes and automation in factories are increasing
and we areadapting to thechanges

in all our Japaneseand international
manufacturing sites,” Mr. I ida adds.
DhowaTechnos,aleading providerof solutions for the Japanese manufacturing industry for more than 70
years, is supporting many Nippon
companies with the shift towards
automation and DX. “There aremanysocial problems, but right now there
are not that many young people who
wishtowork inthefactoriesinJapan;
thisisa fact,” sayspresident Hirokazu
Ono.“For that reason,automationwill
improve the efﬁ ciency of productionamid the lack of manpower. On theother hand, there is a need to employ people with speciﬁ c knowledge
who work behind thescenesto makesure the machines work accurately.
From that point of view, IT and DX
specialists are needed rather thanfactory workers. That is the only way
to transform the operation of many
companies in Japan.”As one of many Japanese players
reorienting towards the overseas
market, Yokoyama Kogyo established a base in Thailand, which,according to president Eisuke Yokoyama, has given the company “achance to rethink our monozukuri”.
“Our monozukuri continues to
produce essential building mate-rials and automotive parts, andalthough they may appear to bedisparate businesses, our monozukuri is connected through metals
and processing methods,” he explains. “Our global experience inThailand has given us a perspective
on how to build many strengths insmaller details yet at a wider range.
And I feel that Yokoyama Kogyo’s
ability to consider global market
options when commercializing its
new strengths has become a newstarting point for our monozukuri.”Specializing in the area of functional chemicals, rubber products
and molded products for a range
of industries – including automot ive, const ruct ion, semiconductors, pharmaceutical and medical
devices – Kohyei Trading’s global
expansion is focused on I ndia,
where it is constructing a new factory. “Currently, our biggest focus
is the I ndian market, where we arefocusing on selling our products tolocal companies and not Japaneseafﬁ liated companies,” says president Yoshihiko Tsuchihashi. “Oursales in I ndia will be about $23
million this ﬁ scal year and 0 million the next ﬁ scal year. Japanesecompanies in I ndia experience a

difﬁ cult phase because the I ndian
market is very cost-sensitive andalso there are many competitors.
However, we have an excellent
local partner, and we are actively
investing to increase sales.”For Japanesecompaniesexpanding to India, China, Southeast Asiaand beyond, leveraging monozukuri
asa competitiveedgeproves essential. Yoshihiro Watanabe, President
and CEO of Toyo Seiko – a leader
in peening surface treatment technologies for the automotive andaerospace fields – stresses thatmonozukuri gives Japanese companiesa uniqueability “to seethingsfrom the customer’s perspective”.
“Thinking about cust omers
is the number one rule that describes Japanese monozukuri andthat is what gives rise to our corporate philosophy in many ways,
as well as t he philosophies ofmany other Japanese companies.
Japanese companies think about
long-term perspectives and about
what else t he customers mightwant and what else might beneeded in t he indust ry. That iswhat results in the best qualit yand service levels possible; andhow we win customers’ trust.”

FUTABA: Driving innovation in automotive body parts
Since 1945, Futaba I ndustrial has pushed Japan’s automotive industry forward with its high-quality body frameparts and exhaust systems.

“We have pursued
global optimization
based on the basics
of safety, quality andmonozukuri.”Hiroyoshi Yoshiki,President,
Futaba I ndustrial Co., Ltd.
Automobiles are the true embodiment of a product being moret han t he sum of it s part s, but
the quality of these components
is what allows t his t o happen.
Through it s high-performance

body f rame par t s
and exhaust systems,
Fut aba I ndust r i al
helps Japanese automotive giants suchas Toyota and Suzuki
ensure quality in theirvehicles.
Founded in 1945
by f our engineer s
det ermined t o dedicat e t hemselves t o t he principles of monozukuri , Fut aba
is a valued supplier t o Japan’s
aut omobile goliat hs, ut ilizing
it s st rong supply net work andvalue-addi ng par t s t o help
drive t he indust ry forward.
The t rust Fut aba has developed wit h it s customers has allowed it t o expand across t heglobe, wit h 27 plant s acrossNort h America, Europe andAsia. Wit h t his global presence,
Futaba is able to keep its ﬁ nger
on t he automot ive pulse, working closely wit h client s t o de-Automotive parts
velop products such as ultra-hight ensile cold press part s which
require much less energy t hanpart s made from aluminum or
hot -pressed steel.

Exhaust system
The company is prepared forbot h t he near and dist ant fut ureof t he aut omot ive indust ry, as
president Hiroyoshi Yoshiki explains: “Now we are t rying t o
ut ilize modular exhaust systems
for I CE (int ernal combustion en-gine), hybrid and plug-in hybrid
vehicles. We form combinat ionsdepending on t he type of car,w hich gives us more ﬂ exibility
in manufact uring and lowers
capit al invest ment .”The company’s step int o t heelect ric vehicle (EV) market has
been made alongside automot ive
manufact urers. Fut aba plans t ot ransform t his change into opport unit y by extending it s valueadding domains beyond exhaustsystem parts, which have been its
t radit ional area, into addit ionalﬁ elds including body parts.
Through t his combinat ion of
st rong links wit h aut omot ive
manufact urers and innovat ive
solut ions, Fut aba has ensured
that no matter how technologies
change, it s business will always
have a place on t he road.

www.futabasangyo.com/en