BookTitleToyota Tsusho 70-Year History

Summary

Toyota Tsusho 70-Year History

dismantling plant similar to those used in Japanin the past.It would not be possible to transplantJapanese methods and expertise here. Sohow about a new plant? The two Japanesecompanies felt that if they could be involvedin the project from the beginning, it would beeasy to introduce the facilities, processes, andmethods that had worked well in Japan.In December 2013, the two companiesdecided to build a new plant, with ToyotaTsusho Group investing 32% of the capitaland Showa Metal 8%. Construction started inFebruary 2014.Safety and EnvironmentalMeasures Still a Work inProgressToyota Tsusho and Showa Metal both tookon roles in the new plant project. ToyotaTsusho was responsible for matters such as thelayout, installation of facilities, and safety andenvironmental measures. Showa Metal wouldactually run the plant.Operations from the old plant were movedto the new plant in 2015. The launch wentwithout a hitch. The project proved successful,mainly because of a good supply of ELVs.“The biggest challenge in the ELV business ishow many ELVs can be procured,”explainsthe Metals Division team leader.“We wereable to procure a large number of ELVs froma wide range of recovery routes, includingdealer businesses that had been proactive indeveloping this business and our partner’sown local collection network.”Another reasonfor the project’s success was that the moveto the new plant had brought a total overhaulof work processes, leading to a boost inprocessing capacity of close to 400%. Theplant also provided improved services, such asreducing the time required to cancel vehicleregistrations. The upshot was that in 2016, theplant had acquired a close to 20% share of theBeijing market, beating out all competitors.How did Toyota Tsusho handle its biggestmission: safety and environmental measures?Things did not go as expected. The companyhad to start with the basics?wearinguniforms, wearing helmets, wearing safetyshoes. But to fully implement these measures,it was necessary to completely change theworkers, way of thinking about safety and theenvironment. This would take persistence andeffort.In 2017, with the support of the GlobalSafety & Environmental Promotion Group,Toyota Tsusho began a campaign of promotinghealth and safety based on its own safetymanagement methods. This formed part of alarger effort to build a successful model for thedismantling business that would also includemanagement, administration, and on-siteoperations.“We’ve made a good start,”saysthe Metals Division team leader.“I feel thatawareness has certainly increased comparedwith before, but there’s still a long way to go.But of course this is true for Japan as wellas China. In this business, there are alwaysimprovements that we can make in the areas ofsafety and the environment, no matter wherewe operate.”The Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050 logoUsing a gantry to drain waste oil194