For the second half of FY2021, JUKI Corporation will reinforce its business structure to further promote its JUKI Smart Solutions. In particular, the company will expand solutions in its industrial equipment business, expanding solutions for non-mounting, with automated warehouses and inspections at the core.

For the first half of FY2021 (January to June 2021), JUKI posted sales of ¥47.098 billion (US$430.55 million), increasing 54.4 percent year-on-year for a return to profit after experiencing loss in the same period of the previous year. During the period, the company also posted an operating profit of ¥1.91 billion (US$17.46 million), recurring profit of ¥1.716 billion (US$15.69 million) and a net profit of ¥1.221 billion (US$11.16 million) half-year net profit.

Taking advantage of the improving economic condition, JUKI has implemented marketing activities to capture demand for both its sewing machines and systems businesses and the industrial equipment and system businesses.

JUKI has reviewed Phase II (2020 to 2022) of its medium-term management plan and has been accelerating reforms of its business structure by setting six innovations, including the creation of markets and customers for which growth can be expected, expansion of business regions, and by making use of advanced technologies.

Shinsuke Uchinashi, President, Representative Director, and Chief Operating Officer, says, “The market has been on the recovery trend despite the continuing threats of the COVID-19 pandemic, trade tensions between United States and China, and issues on semiconductor and electronic components supply. To achieve the six innovations, I would like to push ahead to further improve corporate value in light of the changes of business environment and the progress of measures.”

Eyes New Sales Target

For the whole fiscal year ending Dec. 2021, JUKI targets to achieve sales of ¥100 billion (US$914 million) or a 42 percent year-on-year increase, and net profit of ¥2 billion (US$18.28 million). For the industrial equipment business, the company expects sales of ¥37.7 billion, an increase of 37.6 percent on the year. 

As part of business structural reforms, JUKI has been strengthening open innovations with other companies.  In the industrial equipment business, JUKI has been promoting JUKI Smart Solutions globally, and has been advancing collaborations with other companies with products that JUKI does not handle to propose total mounting lines.  JUKI has also started offering applications of automated warehouses and automated optical inspection (AOI) systems to the non-mounting region and taking part in jewelry exhibitions. 

JUKI acquired an equity stake in XTIA Ltd., a technology startup company that originated from Tokyo Institute of Technology, and jointly developed a hybrid AOI system, which enables the automated inspections of complex shapes in the manufacturing line.

Promoting its automated inspection capability, JUKI aims to capture demand in the non-mounting region. JUKI has also formed a tie up with Hiroshima-based Castem Co., Ltd., which manufactures and sells precision casting parts using metal powder injection molding (MIM) to strengthen its group’s businesses, including JUKI Aizu Co., Ltd., which provides electronic manufacturing services for precision casting. JUKI will meet needs of a wide range of customers leveraging precision casting technologies the two companies own. 

Churns 100,000cph

In the first half of FY2021, sales of industrial equipment in China increased to 83 percent year-on-year.  The increased demand in the Chinese market driven by high-speed mounters contributed to the increased sales.  Uchinashi says, “The market of high-speed mounters has been expanding.  Our company also strengthens high-speed mounters.” 

Last month, JUKI introduced RX-8 high-speed mounter with placement speed of 100,000cph, adding to the RX-7 and RX7R high-speed compact modular mounters with 75,000cph that have been selling well for the mounting of printed circuit boards for smartphones and various other electronic devices.  Featuring the same compact size (a width of 998mm) as the existing mounters, the RX-8 has achieved high-speed mounting and the highest area productivity in its class for a two-head mounter. 

With the launch of the RX-8, JUKI accelerates the spread of JUKI Smart Solutions.