F.C.C. CO., LTD. Business Report FY 2007

Business Highlights

Financial Overview
In million JPY FY2007 FY2006 Rate of Change (%) Factors
Overall
Sales 133,747 127,905 4.6 -
Operating income 14,594 14,443 1.0 -
Ordinary income 15,289 15,430 (0.9) Ordinary income decreased, as the Company suffered a non-operating loss from negative currency translation.
Net income 4,876 8,454 (42.3) Net income decreased due to increased costs incurred for corporate taxes accountable in previous years.
Vehicle Clutch Division
Sales 53,632 52,171 2.8

Even though domestic sales to the Company's main customer, Honda, were sluggish, its overall sales increased, thanks to strong sales of AT clutches in the U.S. and Indonesia.

Operating income 3,219 4,108 (21.6) Income declined due to costs incurred for launching a new subsidiary in China.

Recent Developments in Japan

In May 2007, the Company announced an acquisition of a site for a new factory in Suzuka city, Mie prefecture. The Company will construct a new plant to manufacture clutch parts for motorcycles and automobiles, and move its existing motorcycle parts manufacturing plant in Suzuka city to consolidate with the new facility.

>>> See Investment for more details

Challenges for FY2008
- The Company will provide production support to China FCC Foshan Co., Ltd., which was established in January 2006 and started mass-producing automatic transmission (AT) clutches in January 2008.
-The Company will migrate the current production operations at its plant in Suzuka to its new plant in Suzuka.

R&D

R&D Structure

The Company has a Technology Laboratory and Production Technology Center in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture.

R&D Expenditure
(in billion JPY) FY2007 FY2006 FY2005
Overall 3,316 3,102 3,023

Automobile clutches

1,816 1,772 1,754

R&D Activities
-The company plans to carry out R&D activities on clutches, developing them as component parts. Included are activities, starting from basic research through to manufacturing technology on friction materials for two- and four-wheel vehicles and for general purpose machines.
-The Company will develop new products by leveraging the technology it has accumulated over the years through manufacturing clutches and friction materials, and through improving existing products.
-The Company, working on consignment under the Japan Science and Technology Agency, is conducting joint research activities with Kyushu University in the field of paper catalysts, developing "porous fiber catalytic sheets". It is also developing "emission purification paper catalysts" in which paper catalyst technology is being applied. The Company aims to offer a new motorcycle emission processing device, which is cost-effective and highly efficient, by applying its paper catalyst technology.

Automobile clutches
-R&D activities were conducted on clutches for automatic transmissions including CVTs, lock-up clutches, and friction material for clutches used in manual transmissions.
-R&D activities were conducted on clutches to heighten their product appeal, making them low-friction, light-weight, and compact.
-R&D activities were conducted on elemental technology involved with the configuration of grooves in friction plates. The Company was doing this by adopting production technology, i.e., the segment method of production, used in producing friction plates . The company also is working on developing technology for making multistage clutches for automatic-transmission vehicles, and technology that enables clutches to be made lighter in weight and more compact; as well as conducting system research for improving the level of efficiency of its development activities.

Major achievements in FY2007:
-The Company developed lock-up clutches that create higher fuel efficiency in compact CVT units..
-The Company used new friction materials to meet the needs for improved durability.
-The Company expanded the application of AT friction plates based on the new-generation segment method to meet the needs for low-friction products.
-The Company began mass-production of center differential friction panels for new customers.
-The Company used more components produced locally in countries where it operates for new products, which are manufactured at the most appropriate production sites to meet the needs of the growing market outside Japan.

Investment Activities

Capital Investment
Capital investment in FY2007 was 15,956 million yen.

Major Capital Investment Activities
Region Name of Company (in billion JPY) Details/Activities
Japan FCC Co., Ltd. 6,099 Land acquisition, plant construction, production facilities, expansion of production capacity
North America FCC (Indiana) Mfg., Llc. 1,547 Start of in-house production, new product production, dies
FCC (Adams), LLC. 837 Plant construction, production facilities
Asia China FCC Foshan Co., Ltd.
2,724 Plant construction, production facilities
FCC (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
1,671 Plant construction, R&D facilities, dies
FCC (Vietnam) Co., Ltd. 697 Expansion of production capacity, start of in-house production
PT. FCC Indonesia 459 Start of in-house production
Others FCC Do Brasil Ltda. 903 Expansion of production capacity, new product production, dies

Domestic Investment Activities

In May 2007, the Company announced an acquisition of a site for a new factory in Suzuka city, Mie prefecture. The Company will construct a new plant to manufacture clutch parts for motorcycles and automobiles, and move its existing motorcycle parts manufacturing plant in Suzuka city to consolidate with the new facility. The supplier will acquire a 50,477-square-meter site in May, begin the plant construction in August and launch the operation in February 2008. The new plant will have a floor space of 22,535 square meters, and the company invests 5.2 billion yen in the land, facility and equipment. With a workforce of 380, the new plant will produce paper linings for motorcycles and automobiles as well as multi disc crutches for motorcycles. (From a story in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on May. 16, 2007)

< New facilities >
Name
(Location)
Business segment Type of facility Planned total investment
(million yen)
Start Planned completion
F.C.C Co., Ltd
Suzuka Plant
(Mie, Japan)
Motorcycle clutches
Automobile clutches
Others
Building, production facility for clutches 1,788 2008.04 2009.03
Ryuyo Plant
(Shizuoka, Japan)
Motorcycle clutches
Automobile clutches
Others
Production facility for clutches 848 2008.04 2009.03
Hamakita Plant
(Shizuoka, Japan)
Motorcycle clutches
Automobile clutches
Production facility for clutches 387 2008.04 2009.03
Hosoe Plant
(Shizuoka, Japan)
Automobile clutches
Others
Production facility for clutches 234 2008.04 2009.03
Subsidiaries
FCC (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
(Bangkok, Thailand)
Motorcycle clutches
Automobile clutches
Building, production facility for clutches 1,603 2008.01 2008.12
FCC Adams , LLC.(Indiana, USA) Motorcycle clutches
Automobile clutches
Building, production facility for clutches 1,408 2008.04 2009.03
FCC (Indiana) Mfg., L.L.C.
(Indiana, USA)
Automobile clutches Production facility for clutches 1,139 2008.04 2009.03
FCC Rico Ltd.
(Haryana, India)
Motorcycle clutches
Automobile clutches
Building, production facility for clutches 933 2008.04 2009.03
China FCC Foshan Co., Ltd.
(Guangdong, China)
Automobile clutches Building, production facility for clutches 852 2008.01 2008.12