Material issue　Product/process innovations

Management and Promotion Method of Product/process innovations

[Responsible Departments]（Product）

• Engineering divisions
• Engineering Department of New Businesses Promotion Center
• Research laboratories

Coordinating office: Technical Committee (Secretariat: Technology Planning Group of Research Laboratories for Core Technologies)

[Policy/Point of view]

The “Group Code of Conduct” stipulates the preservation of the global environment, and the “Environmental Basic Policy” aims at saving resources and energy and reducing wastes and hazardous substances in each of the stages of technology development, design, procurement, production, sale, and use of products and services. In addition, we are working to develop high-functional, energy-saving, and low-environmental impact products meeting market needs.

[Targets/Vision]

Ratio of environmentally-friendly products among the total newly marketed products: 50% or more (fiscal 2026)

[Measures]

Products to be developed are checked against the “Environmental Instruction and Design Standards” at the time of proposal, registered as environmentally-friendly products for a development theme by the Technical Committee and monitored for its progress. When the development is completed, the products are reviewed by the Eco-moving Subcommittee of the Technical Committee and registered as environmentally-friendly products to appeal to customers and society.

[Responsible Departments] (Process)

• Manufacturing Technology Development of Manufacturing Planning Center
• Manufacturing technology divisions of business divisions

[Policy/Point of view]

The Group develops the manufacturing methods that care for the global environment and people in the mid-term management plan CV-1 as the innovation of manufacturing is essential to grow our core businesses globally and improve profitability.
Guideline 2: Creation of smart manufacturing, Development of smart manufacturing methods

[Targets/Vision]

Labor productivity: Double
Energy productivity: Double
Environmental impact productivity: Double

[Measures]

• Prepare for the Bando Dream Factory through the mid-term management plan CV-1

Manufacturing Technologies Development Department, Manufacturing Planning Center: Develop elemental technologies and manufacturing methods to improve labor and energy productivity
Manufacturing technology department of business divisions: Develop smart manufacturing methods for specific products

Product Innovation: Expand “Environmentally-Friendly Products”

We have focused on developing belt products for automotive and other industries for years and refined our energy-saving related technologies by sincerely addressing needs of customers and society. Currently, products under our eco-friendly private brand “eco moving,” products satisfying at least 50% of the baseline values for the Environmental Claims that define this brand, and products with fewer hazardous substances are grouped into the “Environmentally-Friendly Products” category, and we are working to expand it. By fiscal 2026, the final year of CV-１, we aim to increase the ratio of “Environmentally-Friendly Products” to 50% or more of newly marketed products.

In fiscal 2023, we certified 56 new products as environmentally-friendly products, including accessory drive power transmission belts for automobiles that reduce wastes and CO2 emissions generated in the production process and heat dissipation sheets for 5G base stations. In fiscal 2023, "Environmentally-Friendly Products" accounted for 66% of the newly marketed products.

Labeling standards of “eco moving” products

The products are labelled as “eco moving” if any of the following three items are satisfied:

1. The product reduces CO₂ emissions during its lifecycle compared to the pre-established reference product and meets at least one of the certification criteria specified in the Environmental Claims.

2. The use of the certification mark is permitted by a third-party organization that operates the environment-related accreditation system.

3. In case of new products for which the reference product cannot be established, the product meets the certification criteria clearly determined for the Environmental Claims at the planning stage of the product development by using industry standards as baseline value or setting our own baseline value.

[Other Environmentally-Friendly Products]

Product Development That Contributes to Solving Customer Issues

Food conveyor belts may experience problems such as rippling and dimensional changes due to oil or powder from the food products being conveyed getting into the back of the belt during use or hot water washing for heat sterilization. These problems can cause belt meandering, or removing the belt from the conveyor for hot water cleaning can cause it to shrink, resulting in troubles where it cannot be reinstalled. As a result, belts need to be replaced frequently, lowing productivity. To solve all these problems, we have improved the canvas on the back of the belt to suppress dimensional changes of the belt compared to conventional products and have developed “Mr. L Keeper™,” a food conveyor belt with excellent low shrinkage properties, which was launched in April 2023.

In addition to suppressing dimensional changes due to oil and powder getting inside as mentioned above, the product also possesses antibacterial, mildew-proof and fray-free properties, as well as excellent moist heat and chemical resistance, allowing hot water cleaning at temperatures of up to 100°C.

We will continue to develop products that are people- and eco-friendly and solve social issues.

Launched a removal detection system “Removal Alert™”

In recent years, with the aging of society and an increase in the ratio of patients with dementia in dialysis patients, there have been cases where unintentional removal (pullout) of dialysis needles by dialysis patients has led to serious incidents. Although dialysis devices that detect blood leakage due to needle removal have been in use, there were strong demand for a device that could alert them before blood leakage occurs.

To contribute to solving such issues, we developed a removal detection system “Removal Alert™” using our elastic strain sensor “C-STRETCH™.” The product quickly detects unintentional removal or unintended pullout by dialysis patients and alerts with a warning sound and light. We will contribute to the improvement of medical safety by preventing removal accidents with this product to ensure that dialysis patients, caregivers, family members, and healthcare professionals can undergo dialysis treatment with peace of mind.

Contributing to downsizing/high efficiency/ high performance of electronic devices

“Thermal Management” products that apply core technologies

In recent years, demand for "downsizing,” “high efficiency,” and “high performance” of electronic devices has been increasing at an accelerated pace in various fields due to the full-scale application of IoT and edge computing to the telecommunications industry in addition to the spread of the next-generation semiconductors in power devices used in automobiles, railways, and new energies, etc. To meet these demands, efficient “thermal management” that actively “controls heat” is indispensable, and it also requires an elaborate thermal design as well as high-performance electronic materials to realize it.
The Company has applied our core technologies, including the rubber and elastomer processing technologies developed from “dispersion technology,” to develop products that suppress heat generation by enhancing heat dissipation effects with a combination of orientation technology and nanoparticle generation technology and has produced optimal electronic materials for thermal management. We have developed and manufactured “distinctive products” that can solve customers’ issues in manufacturing electronic devices, including “HEATEX™,” a high thermal conductive sheet that has achieved ultra-high thermal conductivity using boron nitride as thermally conductive filler, and "FlowMetal™,” a silver nanoparticle bonding material paste which can be bonded at low temperatures and without pressurization.

Process Innovation: Improve labor productivity and energy consumption through development of new production method

Under the guideline of “Creation of smart manufacturing” set in the mid-term management plan CV-1, we are promoting the development of manufacturing methods that do not rely on human judgment (smart manufacturing methods) to achieve carbon neutrality.
We will realize significant reduction of wastes and energy consumption through the development of new production methods.
Please see here for details.

Improve precision and efficiency of the compounding design using material design simulation by quantum chemical calculations

We use the quantum chemical calculations to model material structures on the molecular level and clarify how physical properties appear through simulations.

Compared to the conventional methods that evaluate physical properties by test productions or experiments based on past knowledge and experiences, this new material design method can not only increase development speed but also further improve performance through a theoretical approach such as comparing and verifying simulation and experiment results.

* We use a supercomputer of Foundation for Computational Science (“FOCUS”) for the quantum chemical calculations.

Optimized structure

Comparison of IR spectrum

Development of visual inspection device using AI

The Bando Group has been promoting the application of AI to manufacturing sites to raise the level of SEQDC (Safety/Environment/Quality/Delivery/Cost) of our products. In fiscal 2019, we started the application of AI to part of the visual inspection. We will continue the development to overcome issues in the visual inspection including “it takes time to foster inspection workers,” “inspection results varies depending on inspection workers,” and “inspection takes manhours” while aiming at flexible response to changes in production volume. We will also broaden the scope of AI application to various manufacturing sites in addition to the visual inspection device.

Contributing to reduction of industrial waste and energy consumption

The establishment of a new production method for urethane belts also enables to reduce industrial waste through reduction of urethane material loss and also reduce energy consumption resulting from shortened crosslinking time and a change of the heating method.