Metal-bending firm Benda-Kogyo targets a key role in the EV industry.
The transition to next-gen technology is a crucial step for all major manufacturing companies in the modern business world. At Benda-Kogyo Co., Ltd., the idea of making a difference through innovation has been the philosophy from its early days, allowing the Japanese firm to enhance its key role in new developments across Asia and beyond. Its core business specialty is ‘cold bending’, an energy-efficient form of manipulating metals into products such as rings and gears for use in cars, construction vehicles, and agricultural equipment, among others.
President Kazunari Yashiro has big plans for an innovation-powered future to help the business take advantage of hybrid and electric vehicle (EV) developments, along with the CASE (Connected, Autonomous, Shared, Electric) trend transforming the industry. “At the core of our philosophy lies the aspiration to create what has yet to exist and our paramount competitive edge resides in dual commitment to devising innovative equipment and solving client-requested challenges,” said Yashiro. The firm has evolved significantly in its 59-year history, which has also included developing cold-bending technology for H-shaped steel, which is said to be used in 80% of Japan’s dams. Today, the Tier 1 supplier splits its research and development work between an advanced research center in South Korea and the Japan-based Benda Global Technical Center, which opened in 2021. Meanwhile, an alliance with Iwaseya Seisakusho, which specializes in alternator manufacturing, has helped it branch further into the EV market.
The company’s plans are implemented in its groundbreaking ‘One Benda Project’, which confirms its commitment to working with the latest developments in industries such as automotive, utilizing its newest plants opened during the last decade in Japan, Thailand, South Korea, and China. As a result, the business has set ambitious revenue targets for the medium to long term. “Our portfolio goal, set for the early 2030s, is an equitable distribution of 50% for existing products and 50% for HVs (hybrid vehicles), EVs, robots and industrial machinery,” said Yashiro.
