Full Scale Operation of Garment Production Company Starts in China

Apr. 14, 2004
Matsuoka Corporation
Toray International, Inc.

Full Scale Operation of Garment Production Company Starts in China
(Toray International, Inc.)

Matsuoka Corporation (Headquarters: Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture; President: Noriyuki Matsuoka) and Toray International, Inc. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; 100% owned by Toray Industries, Inc.; President: Tsuyoshi Watanabe) announced that Nantong TIM Garments Co., Ltd., their apparel-manufacturing center in Nantong, Jiangsu, China, held an opening ceremony on April 13. The announcement also said that mass production has since commenced at the center, which was originally established in August 2003.

Nantong TIM Garments Co., Ltd. is a new-style clothing factory that employs the hanger system. With a planned output of 1.7 million pieces a year, the company aims to receive orders for the production of clothing items such as slacks, uniforms and sportswear from a wide range of customers from regions including Japan, Europe and the U.S.

The company is capitalized at US$1.19 million (about 126 million yen). Pinehill International (HK) Company Ltd. (owned 100% by Matsuoka Corporation) holds an 80.1% stake in the company and Toray International, Inc. holds 19.9%.

In addition to its proximity to Toray Group's business site, the fact that it is inside “Jiangsu Nantong Export Processing Zone,” China's first full-scale export processing block, was a deciding factor in the selection of this site as the plant location.

China, at present, is gaining attention not only as a gigantic manufacturing center for textile industry but also as a mega market for its products.

Given such circumstances, Matsuoka Corporation, with its philosophy of "“New Value Creation”, has been seeking to enhance its own market value along with offering services catering to customer needs that are getting highly sophisticated and diversified. The company believes that this alliance will enable enhanced “supply chain management” by exploiting the global business network of Toray International, Inc. and the expertise of Toray Industries, Inc. in supplying globally acclaimed materials with Japanese quality. By introducing the new concept of a hanger system, the company aims to become an apparel manufacturer that is in tune with the market’s needs.
At the same time, having an apparel-manufacturing base in China has been considered essential for Toray International, Inc. to expand its sales into the U.S. and European markets. The partnership will allow Toray to exploit Matsuoka Corporation’s expertise in managing apparel manufacturing business and product planning in China. Furthermore, by adding this apparel manufacturing function to Toray Group’s textile business that ranges from yarn to dyeing, will lead to an improvement in the effectiveness of overall operation flow.

The two companies intend to cooperate and proceed with further expansion in the apparel manufacturing business in China.

<New company profile>

1.	Name	:	Nantong TIM Garments Co., Ltd.
2.	Main business	:	Manufacturing of apparels such as slacks and uniforms.
3.	Location	:	Nantong, Jiangsu, China
4.	Established	:	August 5, 2003
5.	Capital	:	$1.19 million (approx. 126 million yen)
6.	Shareholders	:	Pinehill International (HK) Company Ltd. 80.1% Toray International, Inc. 19.9%
7.	President	:	Makoto Baba Corporate Officer and Manager of Production Control, Matsuoka Corporation
8.	Production capacity	:	1.70 million pieces a year
9.	Number of employees	:	430 (As of March 31, 2004)

Toray International, Inc. Website

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