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Mitsui Australia sees new drone tech as key to productivity gains

19/9/2015

According to The Australian Financial Review today, Mitsui Australia chief executive Yasushi Takahashi says the country's mining industry has "a long way to go" on capital and labour productivity, and it must push harder on innovation to achieve that.

Mining productivity has dropped sharply since 2000, for both labour and capital and the "real bottom" was hit about two years ago, he said. After the rush to invest and expand during the boom years, Australia was "left to fix the problem of deteriorated productivity".

Mitsui is Australia's fourth largest exporter, and is in long-running iron ore joint ventures with both BHP and Rio Tinto in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, and in coal on the east coast. It is also in joint ventures in coal in Australia with Anglo American and in liquefied natural gas with Woodside.

Mr Takahashi said on Thursday that mining was "transforming to a high-tech industry".

He said a new drone technology developed by a company part owned by Mitsui, called Komatsu Australia, could "drastically improve many stages of mining operations".

It has been developed for general construction use but the Mitsui chief "predicts that it could be applicable to the mining industry, and deliver huge productivity gains".

Called "Smart Construction", it uses a drone to measure a site's configuration in 10 to 15 minutes, compared to conventional procedures that take two to three months. It then transfers the 3D site data to a computer cloud platform and automatically computes a construction plan, which automated dozers and shovels take cues from to start work.

"With this innovation, work efficiency can be four to five times better than the conventional way."

Ref: http://www.afr.com/business/mining/afr17asmitsui--20150917-gjp3pn

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/87

Local ramen, other Japanese noodles getting hot among overseas foodies

18/9/2015

According to The Asahi Shimbun today, specialty local ramen, udon and other noodles, seldom tried by most Japanese outside their home regions, are being devoured by hungry slurpers overseas, riding the wave of Japanese noodle culture.

Producers of the popular “bar ramen” instant noodle in Fukuoka, historic “Inaniwa udon” from Akita Prefecture and “kishimen” flat udon in Nagoya have all found increasing business opportunities overseas, thanks also to the cheaper yen.

To meet the increasing demand from overseas markets, Marutai Co., the Fukuoka-based producer of the bar ramen noodle, will increase production of the instant noodle product by 30 percent from October.

The company’s trademark product is a set of rehydratable noodles of Kyushu ramen, known for its thick pork flavour, bundled like "bars" in a package. It remains a perennial favourite among residents of the Kyushu region.

While the company recorded losses for two consecutive years through fiscal 2014 due to the stagnant sales of its cup noodle products, it expects to turn a profit for fiscal 2015, thanks to the brisk sales of its bar ramen line-up overseas.

The export value of the company's bar ramen products is expected to more than double this fiscal year from the previous year thanks to brisk sales in Taiwan, Hong Kong and elsewhere. Company officials said it plans to make inroads to Malaysian and Singapore markets with bar ramen products in the near future.

Sato Yoske Co. in Yuzawa, Akita Prefecture, the manufacturer of traditional Inaniwa udon noodles, which operates restaurants mainly in Akita Prefecture, opened its second outlet in Taiwan in July.

The three overseas outlets, including one in Hong Kong, have enjoyed brisk sales although the menu and product prices are set higher than at domestic outlets. Sales from the overseas businesses now account for more than 10 percent of its total sales, company officials said.

Sagami Chain Co. in Nagoya, which operates Japanese restaurants mainly in the Tokai region, plans to make inroads into Vietnam with kishimen traditional flat udon noodles and other local foods in Nagoya next year.

The company has already opened seven restaurants in China, Thailand and Indonesia. As kishimen noodles proved to suit Europeans’ palates when they were served at the company’s booth at Expo Milano 2015 in August, Sagami Chain is now considering opening outlets in Europe.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Japan’s exports of noodle products, including instant ramen noodles, udon, “soba” buckwheat noodles and “somen” fine noodles, totalled 3.6 billion yen ($30 million) during the January-June period, up 20 percent from the same period a year earlier.

The export volume was the largest since the ministry started keeping such statistics in 2006.

“While Japanese noodle makers are expanding overseas production (to meet local demands), overseas consumers are increasingly preferring the genuine flavour of products that are made in Japan,” said a ministry official.

Ref: http://ajw.asahi.com/article/business/AJ201509160008

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/86

In Japan, robots solve labour, productivity issues

17/9/2015

According to The Australian Financial Review yesterday, robots are welcomed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government as an elegant way to handle the country's aging populace, shrinking workforce and public aversion to immigration.

Japan is already a robotics powerhouse. Abe wants more and has called for a "robotics revolution." His government launched a five-year push to deepen the use of intelligent machines in manufacturing, supply chains, construction and health care, while expanding the robotics markets from 660 billion yen ($US5.5 billion) to 2.4 trillion yen by 2020.

"The labour shortage is such an acute issue that companies have no choice but to boost efficiency," says Hajime Shoji, the head of the Asia-Pacific technology practice at Boston Consulting Group. "Growth potential is huge." By 2025, robots could shave 25 percent off of factory labour costs in Japan, according to the consulting firm.

Japan has been a leader in factory robots, especially in the car industry, for decades. Now, with China and South Korea making automated machines of their own, the new focus is on service robots.

Getting costs down is key to expanding the use of service robots. They could assist workers at nursing homes, however costs are still high.

"We want to bring down the cost of a robot to 100,000 yen per unit, but it still costs 500,000 or a million yen," Kentaro Okamoto, who works on robot-related projects at the economy ministry.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/news/world/in-japan-robots-solves-labour-productivity-issues-20150914-gjm08k

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/85

Employment woes hastened Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott's demise

16/9/2015

According to The Nikkei Asian Review today, the ballot coup that cut short Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott's stay in office Monday was made possible partly by a deteriorating jobs market.

Abbott's approval rating had been languishing. Sworn in nearly two years ago, he has failed to keep a number of campaign promises, such as cutting the corporate tax and expanding paid family leave. Inside the ruling Liberal Party, officials had begun to despair of winning this coming Saturday's by-election in the state of Western Australia, let alone a general election that must be held by September 2016. Malcolm Turnbull, who defeated Abbott in Monday's hastily convened party leadership contest, cited the by-election at the party caucus.

With commodity prices slumping, economic growth slowed to 0.2% on the quarter in April to June from 0.9% in the preceding three months. The unemployment rate has been stuck in the 6% range. These lean times have seen a surge in support for the opposition Labor Party.

In foreign affairs, Abbott made much of relations with Japan. He and Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe deepened bilateral ties in a remarkably short time, starting with an economic partnership agreement. Abbott's government was keen on ordering Japanese-made Soryu submarines as a way to strengthen three-way defense cooperation with the U.S., their countries' mutual ally. The change of prime ministers in Canberra may affect the submarine purchase.

Few expect Abbott's departure to have much impact on policies overall. Some think that Turnbull will be more disposed to strike a diplomatic balance between Japan and China, Australia's biggest trading partner. But as leader of the opposition Liberals back in 2009, he attacked the Labor government's foreign policy under then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who boasted of his own China expertise. Turnbull has also said Australia's Asian diplomacy must have consistent goals, uphold principles, and be faithful to Australian values. He does not appear likely to greatly change the course of Australia-Japan-U.S. defense cooperation, which seeks to create a counterweight to China.

Speaking to reporters Monday, the incoming prime minister called the free trade agreements negotiated under Abbott "some of the key foundations of our future prosperity," which suggests that he will keep Australia actively involved in pursuing the 12-country Trans-Pacific Partnership. Should he prove more popular with the public than Abbott, he may succeed in amassing the political leadership needed to advance structural reforms to get Australia through the post-commodities boom.

"The Australia of the future has to be a nation that is agile, that is innovative, that is creative," he said.

Ref: http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/Policy-Politics/Employment-woes-hastened-Abbott-s-demise

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/84

Australian farmland sales reach $14.94 billion with more expected

15/9/2015

According to The Australian Financial Review today, the value of agricultural land sales across Australia in the 12 months to May reached $14.94 billion, up from $13.72 billion in the year to November as investors and farmers took advantage of low interest rates and optimistic beef and cotton prices.

There were 50 farm sales of more than 2000 hectares in NSW's far west worth a total of $133 million.

In the Central West at Landmark Harcourts Forbes, Ainslie Toole said the number of sales and listings were starting to grow.

"We have negotiated a number of properties in the last month," she said, "Rural property can be a bit like a rollercoaster sometimes, but things are certainly on the rise although not like 2006 and 2007."

In Victoria there was $3.4 billion worth of sales, with only four sales of more than 2000 hectares.

Queensland registered $1.5 billion worth of sales in the 12 months to May. About 36 per cent of the value of sales was for farms of more than 2000 hectares.

In South Australia sales for the period hit $827 million while Western Australia hit $1.6 billion with only two properties over 2000 hectares selling during that period.

Tasmania registered $484.7 million in sales and there was $225 million of sales in the Northern Territory where more than 17 per cent were for farms of more than 2000 hectares.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/real-estate/australian-farmland-sales-reach-1494-billion-with-more-expected-20150910-gjj8k9

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-1496000

BHP, Rio take to mining robots to counter iron-ore bear market

12/9/2015

According to The Australian Financial Review today, automated drills and driver-less trucks are among the new tools employed by the four biggest companies, including BHP Billiton, in a bid to preserve profit margins during a bear market that began more than two years ago. Using more technology helped reduce costs at Rio Tinto by 8 per cent since 2013, even as it boosted output by 5 per cent, according to Paul Young, an analyst at Deutsche Bank in Sydney.

Last month, Rio Tinto CEO Sam Walsh said "Our highly sophisticated autonomous trucks demonstrate the value of our technology."

Rio unveiled its "Mine of the Future" program in 2008, when commodity prices were surging to records. The aim was to deploy more technology and more efficiently access deep ore bodies while improving safety for workers. From 10 driver-less trucks in 2012, the fleet has expanded to 66, according to the company.

The vehicles can run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, without a driver who needs bathroom or lunch breaks. Each truck can save more than 500 work hours a year, according to Michael Murphy, chief engineer of mining technology at Caterpillar, a supplier of autonomous mining equipment to BHP and Fortescue.

One worker at a computer screen can monitor as many as 50 driver-less trucks, Murphy said. Savings are even greater with autonomous drills inside an underground mine, where labourers using traditional equipment can take hours to walk from the opening to the work site for each shift, and they operate in dangerous conditions, he said.

In the case of Rio Tinto, the number of injuries per 200,000 hours worked last year had dropped to about 0.6 from about 1.8 in 2003.

Productivity rose 4 per cent last year in Australia, which has mines run by Rio Tinto, BHP and Fortescue, which together control 54 per cent of supply, according to Christian Lelong, an analyst at Goldman Sachs in Sydney.

The rest of the industry is taking note. About 69 per cent of the 190 mining companies in an International Data Corp. said they are reviewing remote-controlled equipment, while 29 per cent are considering more robotics.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/business/mining/iron-ore/bhp-rio-take-to-mining-robots-to-counter-ironore-bear-market-20150910-gjk53w

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-bhp

Toyota races to reclaim top fuel-efficient mark with new Prius that gets 40 km per litre

10/9/2015

According to The Asahi Shimbun, Toyota Motor Corp. is gearing up to reclaim bragging rights to the top fuel efficient vehicle with its new fourth-generation Prius hybrid, which can get 40 kilometers per litre.

The new Prius, which will be released in Japan later this year, is more than 20 percent more fuel efficient than the current model, according to Toyota. The automaker rolled out the new model for the media in Las Vegas on 8 Sept.

Toyota intends to tout the automaker’s technology of making eco-friendly cars by offering the most fuel efficient vehicle. The honour is currently held by a rival automaker’s gasoline-powered vehicle and another Toyota HV.

The third-generation Prius model is rated at 32.6 kilometres per litre.

The development of the fourth-generation Prius, which underwent the first full-scale modifications in six and a half years, focused on making a more efficient engine and reducing the weight of the car to achieve the 40-kilometer-per-liter rating.

Currently, the most fuel efficient HV sold in Japan is Toyota’s Aqua, which can travel 37 kilometres per litre. The most fuel efficient gasoline-powered vehicle is Suzuki Motor Corp.’s Alto, which boasts the same kilometres per litre rating.

The fourth-generation Prius, which is larger than both the Aqua and Alto, will outperform these cars in fuel economy, according to Toyota.

Ref: http://ajw.asahi.com/article/business/AJ201509090059

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-40-2

Back to the Future: Trash-fueled DeLorean to hit Tokyo, Japan on 21 Oct 2015

10/9/2015

According to The Asahi Shimbun, somewhere in the far-flung future, “Doc” Brown and Marty McFly may be smiling.

A recycling firm and DVD retailer have teamed to create a DeLorean automobile that runs on trash clothing, replicating the fictional time machine of the “Back to the Future” film trilogy.

Developed by Jeplan Inc. and NBC Universal Entertainment Japan LLC, the vehicle is powered by bioethanol produced from cotton fibers of old clothes.

The companies plan to drive the car somewhere in Tokyo on Oct. 21, 2015, the date that the two “Back to the Future” protagonists travel to in their time machine. The time-traveling DeLorean uses garbage as fuel.

“My three decade-long dream will finally come true,” said Michihiko Iwamoto, Jeplan CEO. “We have been working to complete the machine by this date.”

Last week, the two companies unveiled the bioethanol-fueled DeLorean, which is almost identical in appearance to the car featured in the three Robert Zemeckis productions.

Jeplan and NBC Universal will collect old clothes at 1,450 shops nationwide, including Aeon shopping malls and Muji variety stores. The clothing will be sent to a Jeplan plant in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture, where it will be made into bioethanol through a process called saccharification.

Ref: http://ajw.asahi.com/article/sci_tech/technology/AJ201509020081

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/83

Investors welcome a resource giant, Glencore, plans to fix its balance sheet but questions remain

9/9/2015

According to The Australian Financial Review today, investors have welcomed Glencore's plans to strengthen its balance sheet against a prolonged slump in commodity prices although questions remain over the effectiveness of the Swiss company's business model in a downturn.

The London-listed mining and trading house responded to its weak share price and widespread concern about the strength of its balance sheet on Monday by announcing it would cut dividends, consider assets sales and undertake a dilutive $US2.5 billion capital raising in order to cut its £30 billion debt pile by a third.

Glencore shares have been one of the FTSE 100 index's worst performers this year, losing more than half their value and underperforming rivals Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton. However, the stock closed 7 per cent higher at 131.8p on Monday.

Analysts were broadly supportive:

"These are big and achievable steps by management who are injecting up to $US550 million of their own money into the business," said Barclays in a note to clients. "They are clearly designed so that the company can operate in current or materially worse market conditions."

"Unlike other management teams in the sector, Glencore has acknowledged its debt problem and is taking steps to address it," Bank of America Merrill Lynch noted.

"We see this series of announcements as a positive overall," said analysts at Bernstein. "It removes a certain degree of uncertainty as bankruptcy risks had clearly become a serious concern for investors."

Glencore is hoping to generate $US1.5 billion in savings by cutting working capital and is aiming to raise around $US2 billion from assets sales including a stake in its agricultural business.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/business/mining/investors-welcome-glencore-plans-to-fix-its-balance-sheet-but-questions-remain-20150907-gjh91o

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-glencore

Construction rises in August as new orders strengthen across all sectors in Australia

8/9/2015

According to The Australian Financial Review today, construction picked up in August as new orders strengthen in all sectors, including the beleaguered commercial and engineering sectors.

The Performance of Construction Index jumped 6.7 points to 53.8 last month, its highest reading in almost a year, as continued strong residential work was bolstered by positive signs in the other sectors.

"Continued strength in the residential sub-sectors and a lift in conditions in commercial construction underwrote the welcome return to expansion in the national construction sector during August," Ai Group Head of Policy, Peter Burn said.

New orders in all sectors grew, led by apartments, the sub-index for which jumped 10.8 points to 60.9.

"This suggests that the existing pipeline of apartments to be built remains at an elevated level and is expected to support further apartment building activity in 2015-16," the report said.

New orders in the house-building sector returned to growth in August after contracting in July, as the sub-index rose 9.4 points to 56.5, the highest rate of growth since October 2014.

Encouragingly, commercial construction also showed an expansion in new orders. That sector's new orders sub-index rose 6.2 points to 53.7 points, the highest level since October 2014, when it was 55.1.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/real-estate/construction-rises-in-august-as-new-orders-strengthen-across-all-sectors-20150906-gjgj4r

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/82

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