Fittings firm TAKIGEN out to contribute to the EV revolution

“We really take good aftercare of the customers after we release the product, so that our customers feel safe in our hands.”

Mitsugu Tanaka, President, TAKIGEN MFG. CO., LTD.

Since TAKIGEN was founded in 1910, it has established itself as a leading manufacturer of industrial fittings.

The extensive range of approximately 8,000 types of sealing fittings – handles, locks, hinges, etc. – are professionally manufactured for customers in a wide range of industries.

Customer feedback is key to product development at TAKIGEN, whose quality commitment is typical of manufacturing in Japan. While competitors elsewhere in Asia may offer lower prices, can they provide the same dependability?

“Japan is unique for its quality control,” President Mitsugu Tanaka says. “Not only in terms of functionality and appearance, but also the materials we use.

“Companies in China and Korea have been able to copy products like ours, but our customers continue to purchase our products because, even though they may be more costly, they are defect-fre safer.”

TAKIGEN’s clients hail from sectors such as heavy electrical machinery and semiconductor manufacturing – as well as the automotive industry, for which the company now produces fittings for electric-vehicle (EV) charging stations.

“We have been making a holder for the charging gun for the past eight years,” Mr. Tanaka says. “When it comes to charging stations, we are behind in Japan compared to Europe, but this equipment will be increasingly installed here.”

Takigen is working on EV-related products because they require functions that have never been available before. The company is developing new fittings in areas such as solar power generation, rechargeable batteries and robotics.

“If we don’t have a keyword for something, we create it,” Mr. Tanaka says. “Through our research, we aim to develop good products that will be suitable for that market.”