Home :. Table of Contents :. Index :. Nikkei Monozukuri December, 2004

Nikkei Monozukuri

December 2004 Issue

P. 6 Mastering Manufacturing

Nissan “FAIRLADY Z”

P. 15 This Month’s Craftsmanship

Advanced Techniques Under the Spotlight

P. 17 World News

How a Technology Is Presented Is Also Important

P. 42 Cover Story

Use Materials When They Are in Season

P. 44 Part 1 – General Introduction
- High functional materials blossom after waiting their chance
- The conditions for adjusting material axes have been prepared

P. 52 Part 2 – Case Studies of Users (1): Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
- The company successfully reduced the weight of its cars by about 151kg compared to models made with conventional materials by making full use of aluminum, magnesium, CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic) and other lightweight materials

P. 56 Part 2 – Case Studies of Users (2): Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
- The company used aluminum for the doors of mass-produced cars for the first time and reduced their weight by 41.8kg by changing materials and utilizing magnesium

P. 59 Part 2 – Case Studies of Users (3): Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.
- The company shortened the control distance by approximately 2m at a speed of 100km per hour by controlling the rubber structure at the micro level

P. 60 Part 2 – Case Studies of Users (4): Casio Computer Co., Ltd.
- Using a transparent ceramic lens, the company realized the smallest zoom camera in the world, with a volume of about 79 cc

P. 62 Part 2 – Case Studies of Users (5): Sharp Corporation
- Aiming at creating ultra-thin PCs with a thickness of 6mm, the company uses aluminum and magnesium in pursuit of maximum thinness

P. 64 Part 2 – Case Studies of Users (6): ELNA CO., LTD.
- The company jointly developed activated carbon electrodes with a material manufacturer and succeeded in increasing the capacity of its capacitors by 50%

P. 65 Part 2 – Case Studies of Users (7): NSK, Ltd.
- The company increased the longevity of its case-hardened steel more than tenfold by applying a new component design method and using special heat treatment techniques

P. 66 Part 3 – Exhibition Report
- Material manufacturers propose new ways of using materials in clearly understandable terms

P. 61 Kaizen in China

Part 9: High quality comes from well-managed factories

Reports

P. 78 Showing off your tricks: ingenuity improves the efficiency of daily operations

P. 80 Toyota Motor launches “Mark X” luxury sedan

P. 82 Showa Denko enters the blue LED market

P. 84 Suggestions by outside designers lead to technological improvement of products

P. 86 According to interim financial statements for the six months ended 30 September 2004, results were good because this period was the harvest from the digital boom

P. 88 Bridgestone enters the electronic display market

P. 89 Introduction of PDM enables module-based component design

P. 90 Helmet CCD sensors enable users to share the perspectives of experts

Features

P. 99 How to turn a profit through cost visualization and information sharing

P. 107 Goodbye truck shows, goodbye NOx and PM

P. 115 Report on the 22nd Japan International Machine Tool Fair (JIMTOF)

P. 128 Search for Manufacturing

This month’s research theme: Natural disaster countermeasures at factories

P. 161 Accident Investigation

A shinkansen bullet train was derailed by the Niigata Chuetsu Earthquake

P. 164 Understanding SCM from the Basics Up

Part 3: Limitations and Prospects of SCM

P. 168 The Method

QFD (Quality Function Deployment)
Part 2: How to Implement Quality Expansion

P. 172 The Master

Part 7: What can we gain from chaos

P. 193 Documentary

Kenwood’s production innovation (Part 4): I was supposed to take a vacation starting the next day

P. 198 Studying Hot Products

DVD Recorders: They enable users to enjoy “unsynchronized” TV viewing

P. 200 Interview

Richard Riff: D. Sc., Henry Ford Technical Fellow, Virtual Product Creation & PLM, Ford Motor Company

P. 136 Interesting News

P. 150 New Products

P. 176 Plaza

P. 179 Calendar