Toray Holds Opening Ceremony of New Airbag Fabric Plant in India

Toray Industries, Inc.

Toray Industries, Inc. (head office: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President: Akihiro Nikkaku; hereinafter referred to as “Toray”) today announced that on February 20, 2017 it held an opening ceremony of a new plant for producing airbag fabric of Toray Kusumgar Advanced Textile Private Limited (location: Gujarat, India; President: Hirohito Minowa; hereinafter referred to as “TKAT”) located in the Sarigam Industrial Estate in the state of Gujarat in India.
The ceremony was attended by about 70 people including Mr. Kenko Sone, Minister at the Embassy of Japan in India, and Mr. Yogesh Kusumgar, the chairman of Kusumgar Corporates private limited.

TKAT manufactures and sells airbag fabric and was established in September 2014 jointly with Kusumgar Corporates private limited (head office: Mumbai, India) of India, which manufactures and sells functional textiles. The demand for airbag fabric is expected to increase in India as automobile production goes up and crash testing becomes mandatory and the establishment of the new plant is aimed at responding to this increase in demand.

Toray Group has positioned the expansion and advancement of global business as one of its basic strategies under the new Medium-term Management Program AP-G 2019, to be launched in April this year, and is aiming to expand its business globally by capturing the earnings opportunities in growing countries and regions.
Toray has been expanding its airbag fabric business globally and TKAT in India is the fifth airbag fabric manufacturing base for the company following Japan, Thailand, China and the Czech Republic. Toray has established a new base in Mexico, Toray Advanced Textile Mexico, S.A.de C.V. (abbr.: TAMX), which would produce from yarn to fabric in an integrated manner, and the construction of the plant is underway for an April 2018 start of operations.
Toray will continue to further strengthen its global production structure that can supply airbag fabric of the same quality from all production sites in a timely manner. It will also accelerate Toray’s business expansion by utilizing its development capability with the integrated production covering from yarns to fabric, and Toray aims to acquire the largest share in the global airbag fabric market in 2020.

In 2014 in Vapi, Gujarat, we established TKAT - Toray Kusumgar Advanced Textile Private Limited – to manufacture airbag fabric. Our vision has been finally realized on time and in budget. We constructed the factory and recently started production with perfect safety record. Hence, we have decided to celebrate today the opening ceremony for TKAT.

Toray has established a globally integrated production system from yarns to fabric, supplying nylon fibers produced in Japan and Thailand to its airbag fabric production bases in India, The Kingdom of Thailand, People’s Republic of China and the Czech Republic. Next year, for the first time in Americas we will start production and sale of airbag fabric in Mexico.

The Indian airbag market growth is expected to grow with future mandatory crash testing, growing population and economy and expansion of automotive industry. Thus, it is with some pride that I say that Toray’s expansion in India which continues to grow GDP at over 7% annually is both strategically important and well-timed. This plant will help Toray become No.1 fabric maker in the world.

We are delighted to situate this plant in Gujarat – clearly India’s favored destination for Foreign Direct Investment, Ease of Doing Business. Our Gujarat factory will supply world-class quality airbag fabric.

For Toray Group, this is the first production base in India. Toray lacked knowledge and experience in the Indian Sub-continent. From the inception of the project to its establishment - your support, guidance and encouragement for the infrastructural installment including, but not limited to, factory & construction permits, utility supplies, securing of the work force, etc. - are profoundly appreciated.

Toray Group wishes for more increased collaboration and friendship with the people of Gujarat and India; we would like to expand our footprint in India by bringing world class technologies, new products and management processes that contribute to the development of India and its people.

While the opening ceremony is taking place today, we shall need your continued support and encouragement in order to make this plant a successful role-model of a Japanese investment in Gujarat and India.