09.11.23
Osaka, Japan
www.osaka.co.jp
2022 Nonwovens Sales: $108 million
Key Personnel
Soichi Inoue, head of sales section, nonwoven material; Hironori Tanaka, president of Kureha
Plants
Tsuruga, Iwakuni and Shiga, Japan
Processes
Spunbond, needlepunch, chemical bonded, spunlaced, thermal bonded, stitch bonded
Brand names
Volans, Ecule, Bonden, Kurelock, Dynac, Breathair
Major markets
Geotextiles, roofing sheets ,carpet backings, automotive interiors, automotive filters, needlepunch carpets, hot melt bonding sheets, plaster bases
Production capacity of PET spunbond nonwoven fabrics at Toyobo is 12,000 tons per year. Kureha, an affiliate of Toyobo, produces chemical bonded, needlepunch, thermal bonded and spunbond nonwovens with a capacity of about 7000 tons per year for each technology. Similarly, Yuho, another affiliate of Toyobo, manufactures needlepunch, spunlaced and stitchbonded nonwovens with a capacity of about 3000 tons each. While sales increased in 2022, profits declined due to rising raw material prices.
In April 2023, Toyobo established Toyobo MC, a joint venture company with Mitsubishi and transferred its nonwovens business to the company. Toyobo MC is owned 51% by Toyobo and 49% by Mitsubishi, and the former Toyobo subsidiaries became owned by Toyobo MC. The purposes of this joint venture company is to promote the growth of functional nonwoven products globally by combining Toyobo’s technology know-how with Mitsubishi’s global network.
Main products for the PET spunbond include automotive, construction and civil engineering. In automotive applications, tonneau covers made of spunbond nonwoven fabrics have been trending favorably and other applications include carpet backing, insulator surface materials, fender liners and under covers. In construction applications, it is mostly used for roofing sheets. In civil engineering applications, demand is beginning to expand with the adoption of a new product, a heavy metal ions adsorption sheet. In the production development of the PET spunbonded nonwoven fabrics, the company is developing nonwoven fabrics with superior formability. This development enables advanced, three-dimensional moldings by raising the module of the nonwoven fabrics from 40-50% to nearly 300%. In addition to this, the company is developing a spunbond nonwoven fabrics, under the trade name Bio-Volans, made from bio-PET resins and a spunbond nonwoven fabric, under the trade name e-Volans, made from recycled PET resins.
www.osaka.co.jp
2022 Nonwovens Sales: $108 million
Key Personnel
Soichi Inoue, head of sales section, nonwoven material; Hironori Tanaka, president of Kureha
Plants
Tsuruga, Iwakuni and Shiga, Japan
Processes
Spunbond, needlepunch, chemical bonded, spunlaced, thermal bonded, stitch bonded
Brand names
Volans, Ecule, Bonden, Kurelock, Dynac, Breathair
Major markets
Geotextiles, roofing sheets ,carpet backings, automotive interiors, automotive filters, needlepunch carpets, hot melt bonding sheets, plaster bases
Production capacity of PET spunbond nonwoven fabrics at Toyobo is 12,000 tons per year. Kureha, an affiliate of Toyobo, produces chemical bonded, needlepunch, thermal bonded and spunbond nonwovens with a capacity of about 7000 tons per year for each technology. Similarly, Yuho, another affiliate of Toyobo, manufactures needlepunch, spunlaced and stitchbonded nonwovens with a capacity of about 3000 tons each. While sales increased in 2022, profits declined due to rising raw material prices.
In April 2023, Toyobo established Toyobo MC, a joint venture company with Mitsubishi and transferred its nonwovens business to the company. Toyobo MC is owned 51% by Toyobo and 49% by Mitsubishi, and the former Toyobo subsidiaries became owned by Toyobo MC. The purposes of this joint venture company is to promote the growth of functional nonwoven products globally by combining Toyobo’s technology know-how with Mitsubishi’s global network.
Main products for the PET spunbond include automotive, construction and civil engineering. In automotive applications, tonneau covers made of spunbond nonwoven fabrics have been trending favorably and other applications include carpet backing, insulator surface materials, fender liners and under covers. In construction applications, it is mostly used for roofing sheets. In civil engineering applications, demand is beginning to expand with the adoption of a new product, a heavy metal ions adsorption sheet. In the production development of the PET spunbonded nonwoven fabrics, the company is developing nonwoven fabrics with superior formability. This development enables advanced, three-dimensional moldings by raising the module of the nonwoven fabrics from 40-50% to nearly 300%. In addition to this, the company is developing a spunbond nonwoven fabrics, under the trade name Bio-Volans, made from bio-PET resins and a spunbond nonwoven fabric, under the trade name e-Volans, made from recycled PET resins.
