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COVER STORY INTERVIEW
© Haruya KATADA
"We develop and supply the optimum
materials, together with our customers"
Sumitomo Light Metal is known globally for the development of Extra-Super-Duralumin (ESD), which laid the foundation
of lightweight high-strength material for aircraft. UACJ is a major global aluminium group that was born in Japan in
October 2013, when Furukawa-Sky Aluminium Corp. and Sumitomo Light Metal Industries Ltd., integrated their
business operations. It has the world's third largest production capacity in aluminium rolled products after Arconic and
Novelis (as of the 2013 integration date).
The Head Ofce is in Tokyo, Japan, and the R&D Division is in Aichi Prefecture in the central part of Japan. The UACJ
Group operates around 85 production and sales bases worldwide, focused on three regions: North America; Europe,
including the UK, the Czech Republic and Greece; and Southeast Asia, including China, Thailand and Vietnam.
Akio Niikura received his doctorate at Tohoku University Graduate the forefront as a technical manager with automobile manufacturers,
School in 1995. He belongs to the Institute of Technology Development especially in North America. He is actively engaged in lecture activities
and has engaged in the research and development of aluminium and PR activities at exhibitions of the Society of Automotive Engineers
materials for automobiles for many years. Niikura is currently active at of Japan (JSAE) to further disseminate aluminium materials.
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