Japan Belting Industry Association Releases Demand Forecast for 2024 and 2025 Dec. 20, 2024. - The Japan Belting Industry Association has released its demand forecasts for rubber and plastic belts for the years 2024 and 2025. According to the report, rubber belt production in 2024 is expected to be 17,651 tons, down 9% from the previous year, and rubber belt demand in 2025 is forecast to be 17,402 tons, down 1% from the previous year. […]
Eneos Materials Takes Full Control of Hungarian SSBR JV Dec. 19, 2024. - Eneos Materials will make Eneos MOL Synthetic Rubber (EMSR), a Hungarian consolidated subsidiary that manufactures and sells solution-polymerized styrene-butadiene rubber (SSBR), into its wholly owned subsidiary by acquiring all shares held by the MOL Group (MOL). MOL, as a shareholder of EMSR, has been primarily responsible for supplying raw materials, utilities and various services to EMSR. The companies have agreed […]
Japan Belting Industry Association Releases Demand Forecast for 2024 and 2025 Dec. 20, 2024. - The Japan Belting Industry Association has released its demand forecasts for rubber and plastic belts for the years 2024 and 2025. According to the report, rubber belt production in 2024 is expected to be 17,651 tons, down 9% from the previous year, and rubber belt demand in 2025 is forecast to be 17,402 tons, down 1% from the previous year. […]
Eneos Materials Takes Full Control of Hungarian SSBR JV Dec. 19, 2024. - Eneos Materials will make Eneos MOL Synthetic Rubber (EMSR), a Hungarian consolidated subsidiary that manufactures and sells solution-polymerized styrene-butadiene rubber (SSBR), into its wholly owned subsidiary by acquiring all shares held by the MOL Group (MOL). MOL, as a shareholder of EMSR, has been primarily responsible for supplying raw materials, utilities and various services to EMSR. The companies have agreed […]
JATMA Publishes Demand Forecast for Automobile Tires in 2024 and 2025 Dec. 19, 2024. - The Japan Automobile Tire Manufacturers Association (JATMA) has announced its forecast for Japanese domestic demand for automobile tires in 2024 and 2025. According to the report, total demand in 2024 is expected to be 102,768,000 tires, down 4% from 2023, as demand for all tire types for new vehicles, replacement tires, and motorcycles are seen to be lower than in […]
Toyo Tires CEO Shimizu Holds Year-End Press Conference Dec. 18, 2024. - Takashi Shimizu, President & CEO of Toyo Tires, recently spoke at a year end press conference. “Looking back on 2024, we need to maintain a strong awareness of our origins, continue to reform, and make full use of the flexibility and suppleness that are characteristic of our company. For 2025, we will strive to return to the basics, and strengthen […]
Yokohama Rubber Launches New Flame Retardant and Oil-Resistant Conveyor Belt Dec. 17, 2024. - Yokohama Rubber MB Japan, a Japanese domestic industrial products sales company of Yokohama Rubber, has released a product with excellent flame retardant and oil resistance from its original brand Criterion steep inclined conveyor belt series Z (Zeta). This product is a conveyor belt that combines a special shape that enables conveyance at steep inclines and vertical conveyance, which is impossible […]
Nitta Establishes New Company to Sell Maple Syrup Dec. 16, 2024. - Belt, hose and tube maker Nitta has established a new company, Wakutto Nitta Corporation, to plan, propose, and operate a new business utilizing the natural resources of Hokkaido, and will start selling “domestic maple syrup” next spring, taking advantage of the company’s forest holdings. The company owns a vast forest of approximately 6,700 hectares in the Tokachi region of Hokkaido. […]
Resonac Sees Significant Recovery in Semiconductor and Electronics Materials Nov. 22, 2024. - Resonac Holdings announced for the first nine months (January-September) of the current fiscal year net sales of 1.028 trillion yen ($6.65 bilion), up 9.0% year-on-year, operating income of 58.89 billion yen (4.39 billion yen loss in the same period of the previous year), ordinary income of 46.5 billion yen (7.15 billion yen loss in the same period of the previous […]
Sumitomo Rubber Posts Record Revenues and Business Profit: 9M Results Nov. 21, 2024. - Sumitomo Rubber reported its results for the nine months (January-September) of the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024, with sales revenue of 874.94 billion yen ($5.64 billion), up 2.8% year-on-year; business profit of 61.51 billion yen, up 46.6%; and net income of 4.05 billion yen, down 85.1%. Sales revenue and business profit reached record highs for the same period. Net […]
Interview With Bando Chemical President Tomio Ueno Sep. 3, 2024. - Bando Chemical is pursuing its medium-term business plan under the three guiding principles of Value Creation, Smart Manufacturing Creation, and Evolution of Organizational Capabilities for the Future. With co-creation as its keyword, the company is working to create new value and steadily achieving results in the fields of electronic materials, medical equipment, and healthcare equipment. Japan Rubber Weekly sat down […]
Interview With Yokohama Rubber President and COO Shinji Seimiya Aug. 21, 2024. - Japan Rubber Weekly recently sat down with Shinji Seimiya, president and COO of Yokohama Rubber, to talk about the company’s latest developments. Semiya is in charge of tire design and development, as well as manufacturing, quality, and and overseeing technology and production on a global scale. Under the new mid-term management plan Yokohama Transformation 2026 (YX2026), which started this year, […]Bridgestone Begins Industry-Academia Research to Establish Polyolefin Material Recycling Technology Dec. 11, 2024. - Bridgestone, in collaboration with Tohoku University, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), and the University of Shiga Prefecture, has begun research aimed at establishing material recycling technology for polyolefin, a type of plastic typified by polyethylene and polypropylene. The research aims to establish guidelines for the development of new resource-recycling polyolefin materials that can be recycled […]
Yokohama Rubber Develops Image Processing Method for Rubber Material Electron Microscope Images Nov. 25, 2024. - Yokohama Rubber, the University of Tsukuba, and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) have developed a new image processing method to clearly visualize the internal nanoscale structure of rubber materials. Conventional electron microscope images are noisy and obscure the outline of the interior of rubber, but the new method clearly captures the network structure of reticular molecules and quantifies […]
Nitta Posts Financial Results, Sees Opportunity in Semiconductor-related Business May. 24, 2024. - Nitta announced net sales of 88.61 billion yen ($565.29 million), up 0.7% year-on-year; operating income of 4.42 billion yen, down 11.4%; ordinary income of 12,01 billion yen, down 6.9%; and net income of 9.68 billion yen, down 9.2%, for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2024. “Sales were decent, but profits fell sharply due to a slower-than-expected decline in the […]
Special Report: Signs of Recovery in Demand for Rubber Sheets Apr. 26, 2024. - Signs of recovery have emerged in demand for fluorine rubber sheets, which had been in a slump. With the elimination of the oversupply of semiconductors, there has been movement in the production of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, which had been undergoing production adjustments, and this has led to an upturn in current demand. Demand for silicone rubber sheets is also increasing […]
