Cultivating Individuals for Overcoming Obstacles - The Legacy Continues at Honsha Plant
In the heart of Toyota's production facilities, the Honsha Plant's Forging Division is making significant strides, not just in maintaining its long-standing tradition, but also in adapting to the modern age. Established over 85 years ago, the Forging Division has been a cornerstone of the plant, producing nearly 200 different components, primarily engine parts.
Recently, the Forging Division has been gaining expertise in working with aluminum, a shift that has been instrumental in boosting Ponam-31 boat production. This shift is part of Toyota's broader approach to digital transformation, as the company seeks to optimise production processes, improve efficiency, and reduce costs.
The Forging Division's journey into the realm of aluminum is a testament to its adaptability. By producing aluminum hulls for Ponam-31 boats, the division is leveraging these hulls to gain valuable aluminum expertise. This expertise is crucial, as forging aluminum parts differs from forging steel in aspects such as strength, optimum temperature, and stamping conditions.
One of the key challenges in digitising the Forging Division is the implementation of advanced technologies. While Toyota is likely embracing digital transformation by implementing Industry 4.0 concepts, including IoT sensors, AI, and data analytics, the need for close monitoring of subtle changes in temperature makes the process complex. Hiroshi Tonozono, a project manager within the Forging Division, underscores this challenge, stating that forging is a difficult realm to digitize due to the need to closely monitor these subtle changes.
The Forging Division retains processes that involve seeing, touching, and working steel with human eyes and hands. This human touch is crucial, as forging requires a combination of machines and human skill. The division deliberately nurtures "individuals who instinctively understand what makes for good or bad forging."
In addition to the challenges, the Forging Division is also addressing these issues through several initiatives. These include digital transformation, automation and robotics, and data management. Effective data management systems are crucial for tracking production metrics, inventory levels, and quality control. This data can be used to improve processes and make informed decisions.
Gaining expertise in working with aluminum requires a combination of material knowledge, process optimization, collaboration, and continuous innovation. The Forging Division is engaging in R&D activities to develop new forging techniques and tools specifically for aluminum. This might involve partnerships with universities or research institutions.
The Honsha Plant serves as a "global mother plant," providing expertise to overseas facilities. Currently, the Forging Division is working on forging aluminum parts to reduce the weight of BEVs. The lightweight nature of aluminum hulls offers the advantage of absorbing wave impact and reducing vibration, making for a more comfortable ride.
As the Forging Division continues to navigate the digital transformation landscape, it remains committed to its mission of handling the "phase in," meaning it ventures into uncharted territory ahead of other facilities. The division's dedication to maintaining a balance between tradition and innovation is evident in its approach to forging, a process that dates back more than 6,000 years.
- The Forging Division, in its journey toward digital transformation, is collaborating with data-and-cloud-computing technology to optimize production processes, improve efficiency, and reduce costs, a shift that aligns with the broader automotive industry's finance-driven focus on modernization.
- As Toyota's Forging Division delves deeper into aluminum manufacturing, it encounters challenges in implementing advanced technologies, particularly in closely monitoring subtle temperature changes, given the complexities of technology in the automotive transportation sector.
- In an effort to address these challenges, the Forging Division is exploring opportunities in technology, such as automation and robotics, and is also engaging in research and development activities to innovate new forging techniques specifically for aluminum, seeking partnerships with universities or research institutions to gain expertise in this area.
