Japan Steel Works- Builds 600 Ton Parts for Nuclear Power Plants and Samurai Swords
March 14, 2008 · Print This Article
Bloomberg has a fascinating article about Japan Steel Works Ltd., the only company in the world capable of manufacturing the central piece of a nuclear reactor’s containment vessel in a single pour, which is important for safety considerations. The piece starts life as a 600 ton ingot with a required down payment of $100M that takes three months to produce. There’s a years long back log to order one if you’re in the market.
Here’s a quick bit of the story from Bloomberg:
Orders for nuclear generators are multiplying as electricity use surges worldwide and governments pressure companies to cut carbon emissions to fight global warming. As many as 237 reactors may be built globally by 2030, an average of more than 10 a year, according to the World Nuclear Association in London. That compares with 78, or fewer than four a year, started since the 1986 Chernobyl meltdown in Ukraine.
Given Japan Steel’s limited capacity, the math just doesn’t work, said Mycle Schneider, an independent nuclear industry consultant near Paris. Japan Steel caters to all nuclear reactor makers except in Russia, which makes its own heavy forgings.
Competitors’ Moves
“I find it just amazing that so many people jumped on the bandwagon of this renaissance without ever looking at the industrial side of it,” Schneider said.
It would take any competitor more than five years to catch up with Japan Steel’s technology, said the company’s chief executive officer, Masahisa Nagata.
Rivals are working to break the Japan Steel stranglehold, including South Korea’s Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. and Japan Casting & Forging Corp., a joint venture of Nippon Steel Corp. and Mitsubishi Steel Manufacturing Co.
The coolest part of the story is that the other product made by Japan Steel Works are $10,000 samurai swords. The have craftsman who forge them in a special little hut up the hill from the main building using ancient Japanese forging techniques. Pure Awesome.
Photo credit: Flickr user renfield
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Raw steel of japanese sword is made by Hitachi metals.
History of Hitachi steel Manufacturing is more than 1000 years old.Recentry Hitachi has developed New die and mold steel “SLD-MAGIC” with applying ancient japanese sword technology.Strengthening of die and mold is demanded because
car body or frame are tend to be made from high strength steel.
Hitachi is good at manufacturing high performance special steel,and so worldwide market shear of razor blade for Gillet Shick etc is more than 70%.
I remenber the Godess Izanami of Japanese Myth as soon as i look at the above picture.
You may be able to remenber the Godess,if you know the head story of the famous moive “the Last Samurai Bushido”.
Indeed Special steel works of Hitachi Metals is located on yasugi-shi shimane-ken(ancient name Izumo) Japan where Izanami’s grave is also located.
That makes me feel the mystery more than a chance agreement.
The yasugi is named by the Iron’s God “Susanoo”.
The oldest book “Kojiki” in japan says that Susanoo is a son of the God Izanagi and the Goddess Izanami.
However the history of Hitachi’s steel making,Hitachi is the highest technology firm of steel making and its steel is famous as highest end one in japan.
The movie “ARIANA’S QUEST” is also similar to that.
I know the ancient japanese steel making method.
It is called “tatara” and the way is making steel from chacoal and iron sand.If you watched the japanese movie “the Princess Mononoke”, you know it as “Takadono”.
The movie was seen after a long time recentry.
The latter overwhelms this movie “Last Samurai” with the samurai at the beginning of the Meiji era by the fight with military forces of the West type. The modernization of our country and the spirit of Japan are content something being thought.
This time was miraculously the period of the big revolution that the age of of the traditional steel manufacture method “tatara” that supplied the material of arms “Japan Steel” changed places into the modern steel manufacture method with high manufacturing efficiency.
The history of the iron manufacturing company in Japan is first Unpaku steel company in 1899. (Present Hitachi Metals,Ltd Yasugi Works),and second government-owned Yahata steel in 1901(Present Nippon Steel)established.The history of modern steel manufacture of Japan is about more than 100 years if the establishment of the latter is ths start point of modern steel manufacturing.
The operation of Nittoho tatara revived in 1977 was done in the Yokota-cho of Ocizmo in January. It is hear that about ten tons iron sand and same quantity charcoals are burnt three days and night, Ingot iron of 2.5 ton are obtained.And about 30 percent of this is roughly divided into Japanese sword smiths of the whole Japan with Tamahagane as a material of the sword.
In Izumo shimane, the exhibition related to the steel manufacture is in each place. Historical Museum etc. of the iron of of the Japan steel(Wakou) museum in Yasugi-shi,Tatara and swords museum in Oku-Izumo-cho, History of Japan iron Museum, and the route of the inquiry of the history of iron.
As for Izumo, the traditional steel manufacture method has been firmly succeeded with the steel making process in a modern factory though it is an age when people very often pay attention to the new one, and a past thing is deserted.
Because there are material etc. by our company, I will recommend the thing that it is referred, and Izumo of iron and the steel of Japan at the reason hometown is visited by all means.
@Aiba - WTF? I have no freakin’ idea what you are writing about. Japanese Steel history? Save it for someone who gives a crap.
Yes,it is modern history of steel making.
But i cant say ancient one is fake.
Ancient steel making was kept untill about 100
years ago in japan.
Nowaday we can only recognize ancient one in yasugi
Izumo shimane prefecuture japan.