Shipment volume of carbon black for May rose to 43,271 tons, up 0.2 percent from the same period a year prior, according to data compiled by the Carbon Black Association. This marks the fifth consecutive month of year-on-year increases. Looking at carbon black shipments for rubber, the volume for general-purpose rubber rose 1.4 percent. However, shipment volume was sluggish for...
Industry
Toyoda Gosei Develops New Side Airbag
Toyoda Gosei Co. Ltd. (TYO:7282) recently announced that it has jointly developed a new side airbag with Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203). Compatible with various makes and models, the new airbag has already been adopted for use in Toyota’s new Camry and is scheduled to be equipped in about 2.5 million vehicles annually. Side airbags, which are mounted by the side...
JSR to Acquire Lexi, Expand 3D Printing and Material Business
JSR Corp. (TYO:4185) recently reached an agreement to acquire a 100 percent stake in 3D software company Lexi Co. Ltd. With the JSR Group expanding its business through 3D printing and material technology, this is an opportunity for the company to move forward and establish a new business in the life sciences sector. The acquisition would see the combining of...
Japan Rubber Workers Union Confederation Successfully Negotiates Wage Increase
The Japanese Rubber Workers Union Confederation (JRWUC), comprising 58 member unions from the rubber industry, announced the results of its 2017 spring labor offensive negotiations to improve living standards for its membership. All 58 unions reached an agreement regarding the wages negotiated during the spring labor offensive and 53 unions reached an agreement regarding the negotiated lump sum payments for...

Japan’s Rubber Roller Makers Adopt New Strategy to Cope With Weak Domestic Demand
Japanese manufacturers of industrial rubber rollers are developing more high-performance products as a strategy to cope with declining domestic production and anticipated weak demand. Production volume is currently in a state of stagnation. According to a report by the Japan Rubber Manufacturers Association (JRMA), roller manufacturing volume during the first quarter of calendar 2017 was 996 tons, down 3.1 percent...
Japan Sees Low Number of New Earthquake-Resistant Buildings for 2015
According to the Japan Society of Seismic Isolation’s (JSSI) recent report on the penetration of earthquake-resistant buildings, the cumulative number of buildings employing seismic isolation technology as of December 2015 amounted to 4,139, of which government buildings were 804 and private buildings were 3,335. The number of new earthquake-resistant buildings for 2015 was 170. The year saw a drastic decline...