Furukawa-Sky Aluminum Shuffles Some Rolling Operations

Furukawa-Sky Aluminum started to move production of some commodity grade aluminium products from Fukaya plant in Saitama to Fukui plant. The operation at Fukaya plant is normal so far but the firm prepares for potential production cut at Fukaya when local power supply would get short toward peak demand season of summer. The firm tries to minimize the production loss by optimizing the production allocation.

The firm has plants in Fukaya, Fukui, Nikko and Oyama in Tochigi. The firm makes rolled products in Fukui, Nikko and Fukaya while the Oyama plant makes extrusion, casting and forging products. The firm stopped the operations at Fukaya, Nikko and Oyama temporarily after the quake on March 11. But the firm restarted the operation at Fukaya on March 12, at Oyama and Nikko on March 14.

The Fukaya plant reduces the operation rate by 20-30% only when Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) requires lower power consumption. However, the Fukaya plant can keep normal operation when the area is excluded by TEPCO’s controlled blackout program. The Nikko plant with own hydro power facility can keep operation even during the blackout.

However, power supply around Tokyo could get shorter toward summer. TEPCO could require additional power consumption saving for manufacturers. Furukawa-Sky Aluminum would adjust the production depending on the market and power availability.