Environmental considerations in product development

The SHIBAURA MACHINE Group is committed to the development of environmentally conscious products to oﬀer our customers products with a lesser environmental load.

Developing environmentally conscious products

As early as the new product development phase, we perform "product assessments" to pre-estimate and reduce the product's potential impact on the environment. Engineering departments develop products pursuant to the "Design Guide for Environmentally Conscious Products", which incorporate design guidelines and 3R considerations.

When the development of a product is completed, an application for environmentally conscious product certiﬁcation is ﬁled for assessment, and if the product is certiﬁed, it is registered as an environmentally conscious product.

In ﬁscal 2023, 45 new models were registered, extending our environmentally conscious product list to 709 models.

Introduction of an environmentally conscious product

All-electric injection molding machine EC230SXⅢ S-Concept

TheAll-electric injection molding machine, "EC230SXⅢ　S-Concept", requires 24% less power for heating than the conventional models, which has been achieved by improving the heat-retention performance through the review of the shape of the heater cover.
As a result, CO₂ emissions are reduced by 1.4 tons per year.

Die casting machine DC400R2-EM

The DC400R2-EM die-casting machine's die-locking system is electrically driven. This reduces the load placed on the hydraulic pump in comparison to machines with hydraulically-driven die-locking systems, and helps reduce power consumption during die locking. The highly responsive servo motor drive enables fast opening and closing and shortens the cycle times produced by stopping operation when opening or closing molds, which further reduces electrical power consumption.

DC400R2-EM image — *Die casting machine DC400R2-EM DC400R2-EM*

SFPU-55155XW Battery separator film manufacturing system for rechargeable batteries

Our battery separator film manufacturing device, "SFPU-55155XW", for secondary batteries for producing separator films, which are the materials for batteries, can manufacture films faster than the conventional ones. This supports further increase of the production of separator films, thereby contributing to a decarbonization of the society.

Double Column type Machining Center MPC-H series

In our MPC-H series of double column machining centers, we use environmentally-friendly paint that does not contain amine, which is hazardous to humans. Furthermore, we've cut the use of chemical substances subject to the PRTR system by 99% or more. We also do not use hazardous substances restricted by the RoHS directive. Normally, mist lubricant is used on main high speed rotary shafts, but the main shaft of this series of devices uses bearing grease, eliminating the need to use compressed air, as is necessary with mist lubricant. This reduces operation times for the compressors used to provide compressed air, further contributing to decarbonization.

Scala Robot THE600

The amount of power consumption was reduced by 6% from that of the existing model by reducing the motor capacity from the existing model.
As a result, the amount of CO2 emitted at the manufacturing stage is to be reduced by 0.1t.

Robot controller TS5000

While striving to further improve the control performance of our robots, we are reducing the number of heat sinks and circuit boards within the bodies of our devices, thereby making them more compact. We have achieved significant reductions in product weight (17 kg → 11 kg), helping conserve resources.