Furukawa Electric to Move Cu Tube Facility to Thailand

Furukawa Electric sells a part of idling copper tube finishing facility at Amagasaki plant to Thai group company, Furukawa Metal (Thailand) Public (FMT). With the facility, FMT expands the output capacity by 20% for inner grooved tube. Furukawa Electric expands the production capacity in Thailand and Shanghai plants to follow growing demand while the firm reduces the production volume in domestic plant.

The firm reduces the domestic copper tube production to monthly 700 tonnes level by end of March 2012 while the production was 1,000-1,100 tonnes in April-June 2011. As a part of the restructure, the firm sells idling facility to make inner grooved tube to FMT.

The firm pays around 100 million yen for the facility to set by mid-2012. FMT has monthly 2,700 tonnes of production capacity. Inner grooved tube represents around 40% of the shipment. With the additional capacity, the firm increases the inner grooved tube weight to 50% of the shipment.

Furukawa Electric eyes new copper strip coil center in China as early as in fiscal 2012 starting April 2012. The firm studies the location in and around Shanghai for the 0.5-1 billion yen center. With the new base, the firm tries to serve transplants of Japanese electronics parts makers.