December 26, 2012
Teijin Joint Venture Begins Full-scale Production ofAirbag Fabrics in China
Teijin Frontier Co., Ltd., the Teijin Group's fiber product converting company, announced the start of full-scale production at N.I. Teijin Airbag Fabric (Nantong) Co., Ltd., a joint venture engaged in manufacturing and sales of fabrics for automotive airbags.
N.I. Teijin Airbag Fabric (Nantong) was established in October 2011 to produce airbag fabrics on an integrated basis, from weaving to coating. It is located within the premises of Nantong Teijin Co., Ltd., a Teijin group company engaged in manufacturing, dying, processing and selling polyester textiles. Teijin Frontier owns a majority 50.1% stake in the joint venture. The other owners include Asahi Kasei Fibers Corporation (33.4%), Iwasa Orimono K.K. (8.25%) and Chukoh Chemical Industries, Ltd. (8.25%).
N.I. Teijin Airbag Fabric (Nantong) has an airbag fabrics production capacity of 6.4 million square meters per year at present, but capacity will be expanded by adding weaving machines as demand grows. Total annual capacity is expected to reach 16 million square meters by 2015. The eventual annual sales target is JPY 2 billion (USD 24 million). The joint venture can manufacture airbag fabrics from nylon, presently the mainstream material, and also from polyester, for which demand is expected to increase.
With full-scale production now under way, Teijin Frontier plans to develop its airbag business on a global scale as a provider of all-round solutions for automotive materials, leveraging its competitive procurement capabilities and processing technologies.
About the Teijin Group
Teijin (TSE 3401) is a technology-driven global group offering advanced solutions in the areas of sustainable transportation, information and electronics, safety and protection, environment and energy, and healthcare. Its main fields of operation are high-performance fibers such as aramid, carbon fibers & composites, healthcare, films, resin & plastic processing, polyester fibers, products converting and IT. The group has some 150 companies and around 17,000 employees spread out over 20 countries worldwide. It posted consolidated sales of JPY 854.4 billion (USD 10.7 billion) and total assets of JPY 762.1 billion (USD 9.5 billion) in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2012. Please visit www.teijin.com.
