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Global World Leaders! Episode 25: Nihon Rikagaku Industry Co., Ltd.
Global World Leaders! Small and Medium Size Japanese Companies
Episode 25:Nihon Rikagaku Industry Co., Ltd.
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Chalks are things that everybody took in their hands during the school days. We tensely wrote letters on the blackboard, drew graffiti during breaks, brushed off the chalk dust from our hands or clothes...Every person has his/her own memory on chalk. Nihon Rikagaku Industry has been making that chalk for the past 70 years. |
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"My father, who was running a stationary and sundries wholesale business, found out that many schoolteachers who use gypsum chalk had lung tuberculosis, and decided to import harmless chalk which was used in the U.S. He inspected it and found that its raw material is calcium carbonate which forms heavy particles that do not disperse, and furthermore, it is harmless even if it gets into the mouth as it is also used as raw material in toothpaste. However, it was a little yellowish and was not quite compatible with Japanese blackboards. Thus he decided to make it by himself and founded Nihon Rikagaku Industry Co., Ltd. The year was 1937." Yasuhiro Oyama, the company's chairman explains how the company was established. After trial and error, including the installation of German equipment, it finally made a pure white chalk. It was named "Dustless Chalk" and production/sales were started. However, since it was more expensive than gypsum chalk, it took a while to get widely used. |
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Recycling and using scallop shells "When the war ended and society started to settle down in 1953, this chalk was designated as a product procured by the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports, and Culture due to its being a sanitarily harmless chalk. Since then with the support from school sites, it eventually spread to all of Japan." Although at first Yasuhiro wanted to be a teacher, "as the company's business grew, I was told to take over after my father who was in poor health and to help run the business, and I tearfully obeyed. I wanted to have a chalk in my hand, but instead I became the side that makes it," he said with a wry smile. Calcium carbonate (limestone) is normally dug from mountains, but it is not something that is inexhaustible. Continuous digging without limit could accelerate environmental destruction, and depletion of raw materials will also become an issue. The company also focused on the research and development field, and took notice that scallop shells discarded at seafood processing factories such as the ones in Hokkaido in large quantity, are made of calcium carbonate. We attempted to use them as raw material of chalk. "However, when the shells grow in the ocean, there are many things that adhere on them. Moreover, we won't get many teachers to use it by simply recycling the shells; it has to be superior to the conventional chalk in quality." In order to clear this high hurdle, the company asked the Hokkaido Industrial Research Institute for technical assistance, and started a joint research. As a result, it was discovered that the scallop shell has a special crystal structure, which enhances the whiteness level of the chalk and provides a smoother writing feel, and it was decided to proceed with its production. However, in order to turn scallop shells into fine powder that can be used for chalk, "it costs 5 times more than processing the conventional limestone" (Oyama, the company's chairman). "When educational budget is tight, it is not easy to raise the price. We managed to reduce the unit price through mass production and management effort, and we are able to sell it at the same price as before." The dustless chalk that used scallop shells won the Regional Contribution Prize (Hokkaido sector) of the 2nd Nippon Monozukuri Grand Award, and was certified as an "Approved Recycled Product in Hokkaido" for contributing to waste reduction. It became a hit product with an annual production of 50 million pieces. |
A pioneer in employing persons with disabilities Nihon Rikagaku Industry Co., Ltd has 30% share of domestic dustless chalk now, and persons with mental disabilities are supporting its growth and momentum. Oyama, the company's chairman, still remembers what happened 50 years ago as if it were just yesterday. "It was maybe in 1959, a teacher from a special school for children with mental disabilities came and asked me to hire two 15 year old female students who were graduating soon. I first turned it down, but the teacher asked me to just give them a taste of work, so I accepted them as trainees for 2 weeks without giving too much thought. I asked them to stick the label which was the final process of production. They kept working without stopping their hands even after the dismissal bell rang. When I tapped their shoulders and told them that their work is over, they smiled happily. I was moved by their diligent attitude toward work even though they were mentally disabled, and I decided to hire them." It was the beginning of hiring persons with disabilities. After that, the company adjusted the working environment gradually with the support from other employees. Various innovations were tried on the work process one after another, such as using hourglasses to make it easier to measure the time, using colored weights to measure the weight of materials, etc. There are now 54 persons with mental disabilities among 74 employees. Furthermore, over half of them have severe disabilities. The two persons, who were the first persons with disabilities to be hired, worked until the mandatory retirement age of 60 and continued working as temporary employees for 5 years after that. The first model factory that hires a large number of persons with physical disabilities was established at Takatsu-ku in Kawasaki city in 1975. At that time, there were no subsidies or grants for the recruitment of disable people, and only the loan necessary to build the factory was available from the government. |
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God of business success As the company became known for employing persons with disabilities through coverage in the mass media and other ways, insensitive slanders were sometimes heard, such as "there are many persons with disabilities, so I suppose Mr. Oyama's factory can make nothing more than simple products." Oyama, the company's chairman said, "that is not true, we can also make sophisticated products," and set out to prove himself. He negotiated with a major audio manufacturer and received an order to manufacture/assemble molded parts related to precision stereo equipment. He named this plastic molding division as the Joint Division, wishing that "it becomes not just a joint for products, but also a joint between the society and persons with disabilities." Nowadays, the Handicapped Persons' Employment Promotion Act requires that if a company has 56 or more employees, 1.8% of them must be persons with disabilities. Although more and more persons with disabilities are being hired by some of the major companies, less than half of the companies have achieved the 1.8% employment rate. Under these current circumstances, an employment rate exceeding 70% is nothing short of extraordinary. "The 'Ebisu' who is a god of business success had no legs and was someone with disabilities. Having no legs in Japanese relates to staying within the budget, so there will be money left over --- that is why he is a god of business. In Japan since ancient times, rather than rejecting those with disabilities, people blessed them as gods and created a society of coexistence." As the numbers of schools has been decreasing due to the declining birthrate and municipal mergers, the company will continue facing a tough business environment. The company developed the "Kitpas" which is a solid marker pen that can write on glass or whiteboard, and is attempting to open up a new market. Oyama, the company's chairman smiled by saying "the gods of business success are with us." |
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Nihon Rikagaku Industry Co, Ltd. : (Administration/Sales/Kawasaki Factory) |
(Reprinted from the "July issue of J2TOP = Global World Leaders! Small and Medium Size Japanese Companies =" interview & article/J2TOP Editorial Department, published by Jiji Press Ltd.)
Translated under the responsibility of JST
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