Mitsui Miming & Smelting Co. Ltd. FY2007

Business Highlights

Financial overview (in millions of JPY)
  FY2007 FY2006 Rate of
Change(%)
Factors
Overall
Sales 595,463 591,518 0.7 -The Company made group-wide efforts to maintain sales volume and win new orders
Operating
income
27,993 38,865 (28.0) -Selling prices were down due to a sharp rise in  materials prices and greater competition in the electronic materials market
Ordinary
income
41,780 56,585 (26.2) -
Net
income
7,830 31,370 (75.0) -
Parts Manufacturing & Assembly Division
Sales 153,821 161,756 (4.9) See below
Operating
income
73 1,585 (95.4) -Operating profit was down due to negative currency translation because of the rapid appreciation of the yen.


Highlights of the assembly and processing division
Functional components for automobiles
-Production volume for the fiscal year that ended March 2008 amounted to 101,400 million  yen. 

-Automotive products such as door locks sold well, mainly to Japanese automakers, which are the Company's major customers. Sales were down year-on-year due mainly to sluggish sales in North America, despite a rise in selling prices in connection with a steep rise in materials prices.

Die-casting products
-Production volume for the fiscal  year that ended March 2008 amounted to 12,200 million yen. 

-Sales of aluminum die-casting products for automotive applications increased due to the growing trend in customers to choose lighter products. 

-Sales of die-casting products were down due to decreased sales of magnesium die-casting products; and lower selling prices. 

Automotive catalysts
-Sales of automotive catalysts were down as a result of decreased sales of catalysts for mini-vehicles in Japan. 


New project
-
The Company established the Advanced Sensor Division on April 1, 2007 to reinforce its business dealing in urea identification sensors used in exhaust purification units installed on diesel engines. The Company developed urea identification sensors for SCR systems, commercializing them by working in cooperation with Nissan Diesel Motor Co., Ltd. It supplies about 10,000 of these sensors a year and is working on winning new orders from Japanese truck manufacturers while at the same time, conducting marketing activities outside Japan. (From a press release dated March 14, 2007)


Business reorganization
-The Company absorbed Aichi Instrumentation Engineering Co., Ltd., its wholly owned subsidiary, on April 1, 2008. Aichi Instrumentation Engineering, headquartered in Komaki City, Aichi Prefecture, designs and manufactures electronic devices. (From a press release dated February 15, 2008) 

R&D

R&D structure
-The Company mainly conducted R&D activities at its main laboratory and worked on its Chief Technology Officer (CTO) project. 


R&D Expenditure (in millions of JPY)
  FY2007 FY2006 FY2005
Corporate 8,314 7,359 6,019
Parts Manufacturing & Assembly Division
(as a % of total R&D expenses)
2,380
(28.6%)
1,956
(26.6%)
1,817
(30.2%)


Parts Manufacturing & Assembly Division

-The Company developed functional parts such as door locks; it also systemized and modularized functional products and other items.

-The Company developed new, high-performance automotive catalysts

-The Company developed environmentally friendly surface treatment technology for aluminum die-casting products.

-The Company developed urea water sensors for an emission purification system designed for diesel engines

Investment Activities

Capital investment (in millions of JPY)
  FY2007 FY2006 FY2005
Overall 39,200 40,300 45,100
Parts Manufacturing & Assembly Division 6,800 5,400 6,900
as a % of total investment 17.3% 13.4% 15.3%


Parts Manufacturing & Assembly Division
-The Company made investments to enhance the productivity of manufacturing automotive parts such as door locks; and to save labor.


Plans for capital investment (in millions of JPY)
  Planned amount of
investment
Details and objectives
Overall 29,500 -
Parts Manufacturing &
Assembly Division
6,400 To enhance the productivity of automotive parts manufacturing operations and to save on labor 
as a % of total investment 21.7% -