• 日本語

October 23, 2013
Fujitsu Limited

Fujitsu Supports Japan's Manufacturing Industry with "Monozukuri Solutions"

Manufacturing support services, analysis of manufacturing-related big data and other new offerings to commence

Tokyo, October 23, 2013 — Fujitsu today announced a new systematic approach to support manufacturing customers in Japan. Named for the Japanese word for "making things," or "manufacturing," "Monozukuri Solutions" is based on the axes of product lifecycle management (PLM) and supply chain management (SCM), giving new structure to the ICT-supported manufacturing offerings announced in October 2012, and other manufacturing products and services of the Fujitsu Group. This approach enables manufacturing customers to select the solutions best suited to the issues they face and the type of task they undertake. Monozukuri Solutions is currently only available in Japan.

Leveraging its manufacturing prowess and resources utilized at its own plants - such as prototyping with 3D printers - Fujitsu will begin offering manufacturing support services, as well as manufacturing-related big data analysis that aids in the smooth operation of manufacturing facilities, and virtual testing solutions that utilize advanced 3D display technology. In this way, Fujitsu is committed to providing strong support to Japan's manufacturers based on the expertise it has gained through its own initiatives in manufacturing innovation.

Background

Among Japan's manufacturers, there is a renewed recognition of the importance of global manufacturing capabilities to cope with a variety of business risks. At the same time, as manufacturers in Japan improve their domestic production facilities, such as by building flexible production systems that can cope with fluctuations in demand, or by reducing the lead time from development and design to production, there is a clear resurgence of manufacturing innovation in Japan.

As a manufacturer itself, Fujitsu has continued to focus much of its production in Japan on shortening the delivery times of products that meet the varied requirements of its customers around the world. The company continues its thorough manufacturing innovation initiatives, such as automating its production lines, so it can reduce production costs to the same level or below that of competing products that are manufactured in emerging market countries.

About the New Services

1. Manufacturing support service

With this service, Fujitsu will work under contract to produce whatever finished product or prototype is needed by customers in their product development. Because this service takes advantage of the expertise Fujitsu has developed in virtual testing using 3D data for its own products, Fujitsu can also help build quality into products starting from the design phase, enabling customers to produce high-quality products in a short period of time and at low cost. Services will be offered in the following three fields:

(1) Fabrication of precision components
Using its specialized production facilities in Japan, Fujitsu will accept orders to produce precision components, including highly complex components, such as those used in satellites and automobiles.

(2) Building prototypes using 3D printers
Using its own practical experience, Fujitsu will produce prototypes using 3D printers, and not just from 3D data but from two-dimensional engineering drawings, or even hand-drawn pictures.

(3) Services to support production of customer products at Fujitsu's production facilities
Based on the expertise it has gained from designing and manufacturing a wide variety of products, from mobile phones to supercomputers, Fujitsu will support a wide range of customer production needs, from product circuit boards to the assembly of finished products. Fujitsu will also offer production contracts at the request of customers.

2. Big data analysis services for manufacturing

At factories, it is frequently the case that production needs to be temporarily halted to determine what is causing the production of flawed products, and then restarted once the cause has been fixed. This new service helps to minimize such factory downtime. Fujitsu takes the enormous volume of log data (big data) from the production equipment, performs curator analysis, and passes the results to Fujitsu's manufacturing innovation experts who develop improvements from the FUJITSU Production System perspective. This service can help customers to raise their productivity.

3. Virtual testing solution

Fujitsu has long used 3D design data to raise the precision of its design and production quality verifications through the concept of "manufacturing without physically making something." Through the same concept, it is offering solutions to customers in the manufacturing industry. To further enhance virtual verifications that employ Fujitsu's design and production quality verification software, VPS⁽¹⁾ and GP4⁽²⁾, Fujitsu will begin offering EON Ibench Mobile/zSpace⁽³⁾ and EON Icube Mobile⁽⁴⁾ products that incorporate the latest virtual reality⁽⁵⁾ technology.

With these products, more realistic verifications are possible in a 3D space, and they can be extended to encompass simulations of responsiveness, a realm that was previously beyond the reach of virtual verifications. Rather than being confined to the electronics products that Fujitsu designs and produces, these new software products have a wide variety of applications, such as in residential construction and building materials or medical care industries.

Fujitsu's design and production divisions are using a virtual reality environment linked to VPS and GP4, and Fujitsu expects to offer it as a product development platform by the end of fiscal 2013.

Monozukuri Solution system

On the PLM axis of product lifecycle management, which primarily covers the realm of design, and the SCM axis of manufacturing, which covers procurement, production, and sales, Fujitsu has organized its Monozukuri Solution into four domains: consulting, in which Fujitsu works with the customer to transform business tasks; expert services to help to improve the customer's manufacturing operations; contract services to perform manufacturing for the customer; and systems for the customer to use.

Pricing and Availability

Pricing is by quotation.

Sales of each solution will be phased in starting today.

Sales Target

Sales for Monozukuri Solution: 150 billion yen by the end of March 2017.

Glossary and Notes

1 VPS:

Refers to FUJITSU Manufacturing Industry Solution VPS (Virtual Product Simulator), a digital production preparation tool that assists in considering product assembly processes using 3D models. It was developed by Fujitsu and Digital Process, Ltd., and is sold by the two companies.

2 GP4:

Refers to FUJITSU Manufacturing Industry Solution GP4, software for simulating the movements of production line workers for customers in the manufacturing industry, such as automobile parts suppliers and precision electronics manufacturers.

3 EON Ibech Mobile/zSpace:

Enables users to view objects in a 3D format by wearing 3D glasses. This solution is comprised of zSpace Inc.'s 3D display and a viewer from EON Reality, Inc.

4 EON Icube Mobile:

This system from EON Reality, Inc enables users to enter an enclosed space with four walls in which they are able to see objects in 3D. The product consists of four walls, 3D glasses, and a workstation to process the 3D images.

5 Virtual reality:

Technology that stimulates the user's senses to create a life-like environment whose functions are essentially the same as the real thing, even though it may have no form or its form may be different.

About Fujitsu

Fujitsu is the leading Japanese information and communication technology (ICT) company offering a full range of technology products, solutions and services. Approximately 170,000 Fujitsu people support customers in more than 100 countries. We use our experience and the power of ICT to shape the future of society with our customers. Fujitsu Limited (TSE: 6702) reported consolidated revenues of 4.4 trillion yen (US$47 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013. For more information, please see http://www.fujitsu.com.

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