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| Kobe Steel to establish copper sheet processing company in China to meet growing demand for electronic applications |
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May 30, 2005
TOKYO, May 30, 2005 - Kobe Steel, Ltd. announces that it has established
a wholly owned company in China to slit copper sheet for use in electronic
applications. Called Suzhou Kobe Copper Technology Co., Ltd., the
new company is based in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, west of Shanghai.
A plant will be constructed in Suzhou Industrial Park, and Suzhou Kobe Copper
Technology, which will employ 40 people, will have a slitting capacity of
600 metric tons per month. Operations are to commence in spring 2006.
By 2009 or 2010, its fourth or fifth year of operation, the new company
aims to produce over 6,000 metric tons per year with sales of roughly 4
billion yen.
Kobe Steel's copper sheet business specializes in copper sheet for automotive
terminals and connectors and semiconductor leadframes. To meet customer
needs for high electrical conductivity, material strength, and heat resistance,
Kobe Steel supplies proprietary copper alloys such as KLF5 and CAC60, which
are qualified and used by major wire harness makers and automakers for use
in terminals and connectors, and KFC, a world-standard material for high
current, high voltage semiconductor leadframes. These products are
highly rated in the market.
Demand for copper sheet for electronic use is expanding in Shanghai and
the southern China area, including Hanzhou. Car production is increasing
sharply, furthering demand for electrical connector parts. In addition,
semiconductor manufacturers are setting up plants, creating a need for leadframes.
To date, Kobe Steel has been making master copper coils in wide widths and
slitting them at its Chofu Plant in Japan for its customers in China. In
the future, Kobe Steel will keep an inventory of wide-width coils made at
the Chofu Plant in Suzhou. This will enable Suzhou Kobe Copper Technology
to promptly slit the coils in accordance with customer requirements. By
situating a slitting operation in China, Kobe Steel will be able to more
promptly and flexibly respond to the rising demand for copper sheet products
in that country.
Combining technical services, Kobe Steel aims to incorporate design and
product development with its customers in its marketing activities.
In addition to alloy development, group companies positioned in Japan and
Asia contribute to Kobe Steel's strong presence in the market. Kobe
Leadmikk, Ltd. and Singapore Kobe Pte., Ltd. stamp and plate leadframe material,
while Kobe Electronics (Thailand) Co., Ltd. slits coils. Through these
group companies, Kobe Steel supplies copper alloy sheet made at its Chofu
Plant in Shimonoseki, Japan, to users throughout Asia. As a result,
Kobe Steel estimates it has the top share of the copper sheet market in
the Asian region. It has roughly 40% of the 6,000 metric ton-per-month
market for copper sheet used in automotive terminals and connectors. It
estimates it has about one-fourth of the 13,000 metric-ton-per-month market
for semiconductor leadframes.
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Suzhou Kobe Copper Technology Co., Ltd.
| Location: |
Suzhou Industrial Park, Suzhou, Jiangsu
Province |
| Capital: |
500 million yen (100% owned by Kobe
Steel) |
| President: |
Hideo Ohgi (concurrently Senior Officer,
Kobe Steel) |
| Established: |
May 2005 |
| Business: |
Slitting, sale and servicing of copper
sheet for electronic use |
| Employees: |
About 40 (at start-up in February 2006) |
| Start-Up: |
Spring 2006 |
| Slitting capacity: |
600 metric tons per month |
Kobe Leadmikk, Ltd.
| Location: |
Kita-Kyushu, Fukuoka, Japan |
| Capital: |
1.8 billion yen (Kobe Steel 75%) |
| President: |
Kazuomi Hashiguchi |
| Established: |
1984 |
| Business: |
Leadframe stamping and plating |
Singapore Kobe Pte., Ltd.
| Location: |
Singapore |
| Capital: |
S$4 million (Kobe Steel 100%) |
| President: |
Kazuhiro Nakata |
| Established: |
1976 |
| Business: |
Manufacture and sale of leadframes,
copper coil slitting and plating |
Kobe Electronics Material (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
| Location: |
Ayutthaya, Thailand |
| Capital: |
72 million baht (Kobe Steel 85%) |
| President: |
Minoru Uehara |
| Established: |
2001 |
| Business: |
Slitting and sale of copper alloys for
electronic use |
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