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AMERICA'S MOST RESPONSIBLE COMPANIES

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Japan’s chemical industry players a step aheadof the competition
The Japanese chemical industry has suffered
when it comes to the production of basechemicals due to regional competitors’ capacity to offer products at lower costs. However,Japanese chemical manufacturers still remain
leaders in highly functional and specializedchemicals. Furthermore, Japan can count on
a variety of SMEs to develop niche chemicaland material technologies. As such, Japan iswell-positioned to meet the ever-evolving demands of a wide range of industries, including
automotives and advanced semiconductors.
“The strengths of the Japanese chemicalindustry is seen by the number of patents thatJapanese companies hold in the field. Thesestill outnumber some other countries out there
only because of the foundation that Japanesecompanies have developed,” says Shigeru Takaragi, President & CEO of TODA KOGYO CORP.
“Another strength lies in the ability to be nicheand produce difficult chemical compounds. This
demonstrates Japanese companies’ strengths,
especially in comparison to some regional competitors that are inherently cheaper and tend tospecialize in more conventional chemical compounds. While it is true that regional competitors
have mass production, cheaper labor forces, andaccessibility to cheaper raw materials, Japanesecompanies will continue to be competitive andsurvive, especially when we talk about specialty
and complicated chemical compounds.”
As they often deal with specialty high-mix, lowvolume products, customization and the ability tomeet specific client needs is another factor thatsets Japanese companies apart from regional
competitors. “Our survival hinges on our ability
to tailor our products to suit specific applications of our customers,” stresses Hayato Hirano,

President of ENEOS Materials, which is engaged
in synthetic rubber, thermoplastic elastomers,
latex, and other raw materials. “One of our corestrengths lies in our expertise in customization
technology, which is bolstered by our extensive
experience and knowledge in polymerization.
Presently, a significant portion of our revenue isderived from baseline products categorized aselastomers. However, our goal is to increase theshare of specialized products, such as binders forlithium-ion batteries (LiB) and Solution Polymerized SBR (SSBR) for high-performance tires usedin automobiles, including EVs (electric vehicles).”
As a manufacturer of electrolytes for LiBs, theemerging EV segment is also a focal point for
MU Ionic Solutions. “It is true that EV and LIB
customers, as well as suppliers, are expanding
their production capacity. As a battery material
supplier company, we believe that this growthin demand will give us a huge opportunity forbusiness growth,” explains president Kenichiro
Mawatari. “Our target is to capture 25% of theworld’s demand and at this time market demandfor electrolytes for xEV on the basis of LIBequipped vehicles is 500,000 tons per year, but
it is expected to exceed 2 million tons by 2028.”
For adhesive manufacturer Alteco, the transition to EVs indeed poses challenges, but also
a great opportunity. “We can provide suitableanaerobic adhesives for the motor shaft, motorcore, motor magnet and so on. We believe theseproducts will be of interest to EV manufacturers,”
says president Reo Tanaka. “Another popular
product of ours is our light-curable instant glue,
which is an instant adhesive that has light curability. The curing is faster than conventional highspeed adhesives due to UV light irradiation. We
believe that this is also ideal for EV applications.”

Nippon Pigment is also focusing on the EV
sector, as well as semiconductors, with its
liquid dispersion technology. “For us, power
semiconductors will be of big interest and weare working on developing die bonding materials for power semiconductors,” says president
Tatsumi Kato. ”Through aggressive investmentsin the metal material area of semiconductor
production, we would like to make it a corepillar of our future business. This is why webuilt our new facility in Saitama in 2018. Thisfacility is producing color filters for LCDs andliquid dispersions for semiconductors.”
Moving to the health and hygiene industry,
Hattori Paper has pioneered alkaline electrolyzed water, whose applications include thecompany’s wet cleaning wipes. “We are a small
manufacturer, but we have a big dream. Our
mission for alkaline electrolyzed water is tomake kitchens around the world safer andcleaner,” says president Masakazu Hattori.
Indeed many Japanese SME manufacturers
like Hattori have ambitions to grow internationally and Takumido, whose mission is “to drive andrevitalize struggling businesses”, is there to support their global ambitions. “Japanese companies
conduct business in Asia with a strong client-firstmentality, often going above and beyond, evenat their own expense, to provide exceptional
services and maintain a trustworthy monozukuri reputation,” says president Mitsunori Suwa.
“This commitment is a strength we can harness
through our company. While these companies
may incur significant costs and investments
without immediate returns, our support allows
them to realize returns in the future. We believethat our support will differentiate our companies
from many other Japanese SMEs.”

ENEOS Materials: Committed to global sustainability
ENEOS Materials aims to promote technology skills, innovation, and contributing to the development of society.

Industrial rubber products
Last year, ENEOS Materials – a subsidiary of Japan’s leading oil company, ENEOS Corporation – wasestablished following the break up
of JSR Corporation’s elastomer
business, and is today engaged inresearch and development, manufacturing, and sales of synthetic
rubber, thermoplastic elastomers,
latex, and other raw materials. Since
the original business was founded
in 1957, it has contributed to thedevelopment of various industries,
including the automotive sector, bysupplying various synthetic rubbers
both in Japan and overseas.
“In addition to our top-level
R&D capabilities and manufacturing technologies cultivated so far,
we aim to make use of the ENEOS
Group’s abundant procurement of“Going forward, we wantto emphasize developing
original products andproviding specialized
industrial parts forboth the domestic andinternational markets.”
Toshihiro Tsuchiya,
President, Tsuchiya Kogyo
Tsuchiya Kogyo uses a broad spectrum of techniques to convert concepts into tangible products, suchas durable decals, molded partsand emblems for a wide variety

of applications, including the automotive industry, home appliances,railways, and theme parks.
The company also uses printing,injection molding, and vacuum-forming technologies to manufacture
products requiring precision, suchas industrial parts. Most notably,
Tsuchiya Kogyo is in the process ofcreating a lightweight plate that canbe applied in the automobile industry,
especially for the interior of EVs. Thistransparent light guide plate has theability to switch between different
display patterns depending on theentry direction of light. The company is also developing a durable andlight-weight replacement for chrome
plating using insert molding.
Tsuchiya Kogyo’s multi-industry
know-how has enabled it to expand
internationally, and it now has two
additional factories in the Philippines,
allowing it to export more easily to theU.S. The company is actively seeking
overseas partners not only in the U.S.,
but also in Europe, India, and Vietnam.
“Recently, we have started todiversify into Japanese pop culture
projects,” says president Toshihiro
Tsuchiya . “We, as a manufacturer,strive to develop products that meet
constantly changing market needs,including environmental issues.”

Comiket 2023

Hayato Hirano, President,ENEOS Materials
petrochemical raw materials, funds, creation and innovation, and conand global network to stably sup- tribute to the development of sociply higher quality and even more ety through materials derived fromcompetitive products,” says the biomaterials and biofuels.”
ENEOS Materials operates withcompany’s president, Hayato Hirano.
“In addition, in order to respond two main missions in mind. One isto changes in the business environ- a direct contribution to carbon neutrality, which involves
ment such as globalthe supply of bio-based
ization, social infraproducts mentioned
structure, mobility,above. Another is an
and the achievement
indirect contribution,of sustainable dewhich is through thevelopment goals
provision of specialized(SDGs), we will conproducts suitable fortinue to improve ourenergy saving and low
quality and technolabrasion tires.
ogy skills, promote
Butadiene Tower

www.tpd.co.jp

www.eneos-materials.com

As the automotive sector undergoes a once-in-a-lifetime change, TODA KOGYO provides unique products, likeFEROTOP, to help spark the EV revolution.
range of iron oxides and material
parts globally. With an emphasis
on R&D, the Japanese firm has developed high-quality materials for
toners used in printers and copiers,
cathode materials for lithium-ion
automotive batteries, and antennamaterials for mobile devices.

“Our activities right now
are geared toward theautomotive industry tocapitalize on a once-in-ageneration shift.”

GYO. Mr. Takaragi explains that
FEROTOP is “a material that allows us to control the magneticpowder and provide magnets withthe magnetic properties that ourcustomers are looking for.” FEROTOP can be used in components
such as fan motors for air conditioners and cooling water pumps
for automobiles. The company also
provides further solutions for EV
production through its use of ferrite material as a replacement for
metallic sealing in order to prevent
electromagnetic disruption.

Shigeru Takaragi, President& CEO, TODA KOGYO CORP.

Switchable light guide plate

Rubber bale (bulk of raw rubber)and the U.S,” says Mr. Hirano. “Thesestrides and measures are based onthe ‘Glocal’ management philosophy
and strategy. The business is about
global development, however, theoperations should be localized. Thisis at the center of ENEOS Materials’
management policy. We will neverstop improving our quality and technology skills and the uniqueness of
our materials continue to contributeto the development of society.”

Magnetic materials for the next generation of vehicles

Tsuchiya Kogyo ready to tackle markets with innovative technologies
From automotive and home appliances to theme parks, innovative printing and molding
company Tsuchiya Kogyo is bringing its unique technologies to new markets.

“Over the past decade, our company has made significant strides,
largely attributed to our overseas
production sites, a global sales network, and robust technical support
infrastructure across Germany, Belgium, China, Thailand, India, Korea,“Our strategy isto transform ouroperation into a‘glocal’ one, effectively
combining global andlocal elements.”

With more than 200 years of experience in the chemical material
manufacturing industry, TODA KOGYO is looking to expand its uniqueproducts into the electric vehicle(EV) market. The company uses thecharacteristics of inorganic materials to develop and supply a wideAnniversary logo
One of the company’s most innovative products is FEROTOP, acomposite molding material madeby mixing resin with magneticpowder, developed by Shigeru
Takaragi, President of TODA KO-FEROTOP®
TODA KOGYO has partneredwith fellow Japanese companies
to conduct research on new chemical compounds as well as new
methods of application. Mr. Ta-karagi states that TODA KOGYO
is ready to accelerate its businessexpansion overseas if the opportunity presents itself.

CO2 solid sorbent
Carbon neutrality has become an
important focus in many industries,and Mr. Takaragi explains that thecompany wishes to “to continue
to innovate and develop positive
materials that contribute to theglobal goal of a carbon neutral andEarth-friendly environment.”

www.todakogyo.co.jp/english