For Immediate Release
May 31, 2016
LIXIL Group Corporation

LIXIL Celebrates One Million SaTo (“Safe Toilet”) Products
in Use GloballyDedicated Business Unit Now Established to Replicate the Model, with Target of Improving the Livesof 100 Million People by 2020
Tokyo, Japan – LIXIL Group Corporation (“LIXIL”), a global leader in housing and building materials,products and services, is set to exceed one million units of the innovative SaTo (“Safe Toilet”) brandproducts in use within July this year. The first SaTo model was developed following funding from the Billand Melinda Gates Foundation and launched in 2013 in Bangladesh, retailing for an average sale price ofunder US$2. SaTo products are now sold or in field trials in countries including Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda,Haiti, Philippines, and India, and have helped LIXIL enable access to safe and hygienic sanitation toapproximately five million people.
By accelerating the development and market
penetration of innovative business solutions suchas the patented SaTo products that reduce thetransmission of disease and odors from traditional
open pit latrines, LIXIL’s target is to enableimproved access to sanitation and hygiene for
100 million people by the year 2020. To support
these efforts, a dedicated business unit has now
been established within LIXIL Water Technology(LWT) to replicate the model and acceleratebusiness development around the SaTo brand.
The business developing SaTo products will be headed by Vice President and General Manager, Jim McHale,formerly head of research and development at LIXIL’s American Standard Brands and under whose
leadership the SaTo products were originally developed. He is also joined by Daigo Ishiyama, Director ofProduct Design, who previously served as Senior Design Engineer at American Standard Brands in the U.S.
and who was co-inventor of the first SaTo model.
LIXIL Group Corporation COO, Kinya Seto said, “As the global leader in the sanitary ware industry, LIXIL hasa strong track record of applying our expertise in ceramics and sanitary ware solutions to the needs ofemerging markets and help tackle the global sanitation crisis. Through these activities we have anopportunity to make a meaningful social contribution while also tapping into an emerging businesssegment, and to play a role as a problem-solver where our global network, expertise and experience canmake a difference.”
Jim McHale added, “The innovative SaTo products are affordable, easy to install, and positively impact thelives of millions of people by improving comfort and reducing the spread of disease. By developing SaTobranded solutions as a business targeting long-term growth and profits, we will ensure the sustainability ofthis initiative, enabling LIXIL to continue expanding access to safe and hygienic sanitation to those aroundthe world.”
How the SaTo toilet works

SaTo stool type (left) and squat type (right)

The SaTo features a counterweighted trapdoor that fits over the hole inthe concrete slab and allows waste to flow through, then sealing shut tokeep out flies, other insects and odors.

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About LIXIL
LIXIL Corporation is a global leader in housing and building materials products and services. The foundation of LIXIL’ssuccess is our constant investment in technological innovation to improve the way we live. Delivering core strengths in water,
housing, building and kitchen technologies, our brand portfolio businesses LIXIL, GROHE, American Standard Brands andPermasteelisa are leaders in the industries and regions in which they operate. LIXIL produces some of the world’s mostfundamental and innovative products and services, and our solutions are an integral part of some of the world’s most iconic
and cutting-edge living and working spaces. Operating in more than 150 countries, and employing more than 80,000 people,
we bring together function, quality and design to make people’s lives better, and more delightful – wherever they are.
About LIXIL Group
LIXIL Group Corporation (TSE Code: 5938) is the listed holding company containing LIXIL Corporation, LIXIL VIVACORPORATION and LIXIL Housing Research Institute, Ltd.. The Group is involved in a broad spectrum of housing-related
businesses, ranging from the manufacture and sales of building materials and housing equipment to the operation of home
centers and a network of homebuilding franchises, and comprehensive real estate service. Led by President and CEO Yoshiaki
Fujimori, the Group posted ¥1.85 trillion in consolidated sales in FYE March 2016.

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