Tire manufacturer The Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd., has successfully developed a catalyst that allows the direct synthesis of butadiene from the bio-resource cellulose (a sugar that is a key component in plant fibers), in a joint research project with the Tokyo Institute of Technology. With eyes moving forward on the production of butadiene rubber (BR) — a synthetic rubber that...
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Japanese Synthetic Rubber Production Increases 0.7 Percent in First Half of 2015
According to a report by the Synthetic Rubber Manufacturers Association, the total amount of synthetic rubber produced in Japan during the January―June period 2015 was 819,403 tons, an increase of 0.7 percent over the same period last year. In particular, while SBR and CR showed decreases of 5.6 percent and 5.8 percent respectively from the same period lastyear, BR increased...
Bridgestone Starts Production at Thai Conveyor Belt Plant
Bridgestone Corp. recently announced that its subsidiary in Thailand, Bridgestone NCR Co. Ltd. (BSNCR) has started production of conveyor belts in July, and that the first batch of belts has been sent to Laem Chabang Port in Thailand’s Chonburi Province. Founded in 1996, BSNCR is a production base for anti-vibration rubber, automotive hoses, hydraulic hoses and other products. The plant,...
Yokohama Rubber President Expects Continued Momentum in North America
While announcing second quarter 2015 financial results, The Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. President Hikomitsu Noji said that sales in overseas tire markets, especially in North America, were sluggish from January to April. This was due to the fact that there were too few tire sets for SUVs, which make up over 50 percent of the market. This will be rectified with...
Uvex Safety Enters Distributorship Agreement With Kokugo
Uvex Safety Group GmbH & Co. KG, a German manufacturer of safety equipment, has entered into a distributorship agreement with Kokugo Co. Ltd., a historic Japanese vendor of physics and chemistry products for the sale of the former’s industrial gloves in Japan. The partnership will see the full launch of a range of high function, value-added products in the country....
Demand for Construction Equipment to Increase 2 Percent
According to estimates by the Japan Construction Equipment Manufacturers Association, an organization of companies including makers of hydraulic excavators, construction cranes and tractors, the 2016 demand for shipments of construction equipment is projected to rise to 2.16 trillion yen (approximately $18 billion), an increase of 2 percent over the previous year. The Japanese domestic portion of this figure is 853.6...