Japanese firm Toray plans to set up new research base by 2026, says report

Japan-based chemical giant Toray Industries could open a new development base in Nagoya by 2026. The new base, which will be established at Toray’s office in the industrial centre of Aichi prefecture, will conduct research on materials for flying cars as well as next-generation aircraft, as per a report in Nikkei. The chemical firm will invest around 6 billion yen ($45 million) in the project.

The development comes as the materials industry is gearing up for growth in the urban air mobility sector. According to Toray, the overall global urban air mobility market is going to exceed 30 trillion yen $223.25 billion in 2030.

Toray’s new facility is going to include an open laboratory for allowing joint research with universities, research institutes and client companies. The lab will have a capacity for 140 researchers. Toray’s research and development section will focus on materials like carbon fibre, which decrease the weight on an aircraft. At present, next-generation aircraft in the urban air mobility sector utilise modified versions of carbon fibre materials used in passenger planes. However, this is not best suited method because the planes are smaller in size. According to the media reports, keeping costs down is likely to become an issue as the market competition grows. Hence, Toray Industries is working towards reducing costs through measures like improving the resin material that is mixed with carbon fibre. As per a Nikkei Asia report, Toray is also going to adopt technologies that utilise artificial intelligence for efficiently choosing materials that match customers’ requirements and then develop those materials. This method will reduce the development time and lower costs. Toray is a leading carbon fiber manufacturer in the world and has already delivered the material to urban air mobility start-ups, such as United States’ Joby Aviation and Germany’s Lilium. These start-ups are planning to begin commercial operations in 2024 and 2025, respectively. Toray deals with the manufacturing, processing, and sale of numerous materials for automobiles and aircraft to apparel and information technology-related products. The firm operates via segments, including carbon fibre composite materials, fibers and textiles, and functional chemicals. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.