Speaking at a press conference on Sept. 11, Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) President Masaaki Ito commented on his company’s progress toward a new joint venture in Thailand. Set to be...
Kuraray
Kuraray Targets Significant Growth in Sales of Dental Materials by 2020
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is targeting roughly 30 percent growth in its dental materials business by 2020, planning to achieve this goal through subsidiary Kuraray Noritake Dental Inc. With dental...
Kuraray to Establish US Production Base for Biomass-Derived Barrier Film
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is planning to establish a U.S. production base for its Plantic line of biomass-derived barrier films by 2020. Around 80 percent of the market for these...
New Trends Take Shape in Effort to Reduce Environmental Impact From Cars
Japanese companies are doggedly pursuing next-generation technologies to reduce the environmental impact of automobiles. One area is the coatless movement, where interior parts have been at the forefront. As part...
Kuraray to Deploy Micropatterned Film for Onboard AR-HUDs
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is set to deploy a micropatterned film for use in onboard augmented reality head-up displays (AR-HUDs). Used as an intermediate screen, the film will help display...
Chemical Industry Grapples With Rising Yen, Shale Influx
Fiscal 2018 is under way. Accounts have been settled for fiscal 2017, and as of this February all of Japan’s major chemical companies are expecting to see record highs on...
Kuraray Eyes New Vacuum Insulation Panel Applications for EVOH Film
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is looking to find more applications for its Eval brand of ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) film in the market for vacuum insulation panels (VIPs). VIPs are...
Kuraray Outlines 2020 Financial Targets in New Medium-Term Plan
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) recently released its new three-year medium-term management plan, outlining financial and other targets for the company moving forward. By fiscal 2020 – the final year of...
Kuraray Looks to Build Artificial Muscle From High-Strength Polyarylate Fiber
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) aims to commercialize a pneumatic artificial muscle made with its high-strength polyarylate fiber, Vectran, a superfiber spun from liquid crystal polymer. The type of artificial muscle...
Kuraray Tackles Pharmaceutical Packaging Market With New PET Resin
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is targeting an entry into the pharmaceutical packaging sector with its specially modified polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin, Kurapet. Having gotten under way with providing samples to...
Kuraray to Focus on Three Growth Areas in New Medium-Term Plan
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) has signaled that it is ready to push forward with growing three new areas of business. The company is firstly looking to put momentum behind its...
Kuraray Targets ZLD Systems in Pursuit of Growing Water Treatment Business
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is ramping up the overseas development of its water treatment business. With the ability of its polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) gel to reduce the volume of excess...
Kuraray Reaches Deal to Acquire Calgon Carbon
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) recently announced that it will acquire the world’s largest activated carbon company, U.S.-based Calgon Carbon Corp. The move will make Calgon Carbon a wholly owned subsidiary...
Hurricane Harvey’s Impact Extends to Japanese Firms
Japanese chemical companies operating in Texas and nearby localities are feeling the impact from Hurricane Harvey’s rampage through the southern U.S. as they shut down facilities in the area. Harvey’s...
Kuraray to Increase US Production of Poval Water-Soluble PVA Film
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is gearing up to bolster U.S. production of its Poval water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) film. The Japanese chemical manufacturer has earmarked roughly 4 billion yen ($36.63...
Nexco West Japan and Sumitomo Mitsui Construction Develop Non-Ferrous Material for Expressway Bridges
West Nippon Expressway Co. Ltd., commonly known as Nexco West Japan, and Sumitomo Mitsui Construction Co. Ltd. (TYO:1821) recently developed Dura-Slab, an ultra high-strength slab made of fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP)...
Kuraray to Ramp up PMMA Production Capacity
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) has announced that it will increase its production capacity of soft, rubber-containing polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). Inquiries for the material have been growing, as it has the...
Chemical, Materials Firms Set to Exceed 1 Trillion Yen in Capital Investments for 2017
Investments in plant and equipment by major chemical and materials companies during fiscal 2017 are set to total 1.18 trillion yen ($10.62 billion), increasing 20 percent over the previous year’s...
Digest: Chemical Price Hike Announcements for Week of April 17
A series of price hikes were announced by chemical companies during the week of April 17 – April 21. Unless noted otherwise, all price increases listed here are per kilogram....
Kuraray to Expand Sales in Asia of Interlayers for Super-Tough Laminated Glass
Kuraray Co. Ltd. (TYO:3405) is expanding sales of ionoplast interlayers for high-hardness laminated glass in Asia. Kuraray’s interlayers have earned a reputation for allowing design flexibility and transparency of glazing...
