MHI and Shinwa Industry Establish Joint Venture in Matsusaka City to Perform Surface Treatment and Painting of Commercial Aircraft Parts

TOKYO, June 10, 2016 - (ACN Newswire) - On June 7 Shinwa Industry Co., Ltd. and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) jointly established Matsusaka Aircraft Parts Manufacturing Corporation (Matsusaka APM) in Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture, to perform surface treatment and painting of commercial aircraft parts. The new entity is to become a member of the Aircraft Parts Manufacturing Cooperative, an industrial cluster based in Matsusaka. Plans call for Matsusaka APM to launch production in the fiscal year ending March 2018, to respond to mass production of the Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ), the next-generation regional jet under development by the MHI Group, and to increased production of commercial aircraft parts for The Boeing Company. 

Shinwa Industry, which is headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, is a group company of Kojima Industries Corporation, a business partner of Toyota Motor Corporation that produces interior and exterior automotive parts. Shinwa Industry handles the development, design, manufacture and logistics management of metallic and resin auto parts.

Matsusaka APM has been capitalized in the amount of 100 million yen, with Shinwa Industry and MHI holding equity stakes of 51% and 49%, respectively. The company's head office and factory are located within the premises of the Matsusaka cluster. Takashi Kojima of Shinwa Industries has been selected to serve as inaugural president.

Plans call for the Matsusaka cluster to become Japan's first base dedicated to the production of small and medium-size aircraft parts. The cluster is to encompass a collection of manufacturers capable of fully integrated production from machining through surface treatment. Matsusaka APM will cooperate with the other cluster members to create a parts production system offering unprecedented efficiency and short flow time.

With establishment of their new joint venture, Shinwa Industry and MHI will devote their full and collective energies toward the success of the MRJ project and the development of a home aircraft industry capable of capturing a winning position in the global market.

About Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. ("MHI"; TSE:7011), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is one of the world's leading heavy machinery manufacturers. MHI's diverse lineup of products and services encompasses shipbuilding, power plants, chemical plants, environmental equipment, steel structures, industrial and general machinery, aircraft, space rocketry and air-conditioning systems. For more information, please visit the MHI website atwww.mhi.co.jp.