October 26, 2006
The Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd., F-CO Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Hiratsuka-shi, Kanagawa-ken; President: Makoto Hashimoto; Capital: 200 million yen, 100% funded by Furukawa Electric) and Furukawa Techno Material Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Hiratsuka-shi, Kanagawa-ken; President: Nobuyuki Nakamura; Capital: 300 million yen, 100% funded by Furukawa Electric) have jointly developed and brought into the market two cable fire retardant materials: PROTECO® Sheet P2-eco and PROTECO® Sheet P2DX-eco (Japanese Patent No. 3676052). These are improved varieties of conventional PROTECO® Sheet P2 and PROTECO® Sheet P2DX, respectively, in terms of halogen inclusion, flame retardance and environmental impact. The products are scheduled to be launched on January 29, 2007, and the sales amount is targeted at 100~300 million yen per year.
| FY2005 1st half | FY2005 2nd half | FY2006 1st half | FY2006 2nd half | FY2006 2nd half production plan | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Result | Result | Plan | Over FY2005 2nd half | Over FY2006 1st half | ||
| Total | 6,710 | 6,930 | 7,010 | 7,100 | 102% | 101% | |
| Plate & strip | 2,400 | 2,500 | 2,500 | 2,540 | 102% | 102% | |
| Tube | 2,140 | 2,100 | 2,240 | 2,180 | 104% | 97% | |
| Bar & wire | 1,100 | 1,160 | 1,130 | 1,130 | 97% | 100% | |
| Functional surface | 1,070 | 1,170 | 1,140 | 1,250 | 107% | 110% | |
- FY2006 2nd half production plan:
- 102% over the same half of the previous year
101% over the previous half
Plate & strip
The demand in the first half of FY 2006 continued to be steady since last year. The automotive and semiconductor fields marked a high level of demand, and the digital home appliances such as handy phone and liquid crystal display showed a steady transition.
Although semiconductors are reported to see inventory adjustment early this fall, the demand is expected not to show a sharp drop because the BB ratio (book-to-bill ratio) exceeds unity for six months consecutively. The price of copper currently keeps a high level, and is expected hereafter to be high for plate & strip products.
Tube
The domestic demand for room-air conditioners, a main demand field of copper tubes, is estimated to be comparable to that of last fiscal year, but the one for packaged air-conditioners showed a steady transition. Copper tubes for refrigerant piping held steady, showing an increase than last fiscal year. As for the second half of FY 2006, a slight decrease is estimated under the influence of the “out-in”(to import products outsourced overseas) of room air-conditioners.
Bar & wire
Although the demand slightly decreased in the first half of FY 2006, it is estimated to remain stable for the second half of FY 2006, because business investment-related demands stay strong.
Functional surface
The functional surface products represent the total of plated strips including mainly reflow Sn-plated strips for automotive terminals and consumer connectors and terminals, as well as Ag-composite materials for switches. In the first half of FY 2006, plated strips for automobiles performed very well, and are expected to keep a high level for the second half.