|
|
|
 |
 |
|
| Making the Most of Toyota's Special Advantages |
For Toyota, a company used to manufacturing
vehicles, the biotechnology business is a completely new field. But
there is no question that Toyota has expertise that can be introduced.
Methods for quality control, plant operation, and setting up an efficient
production line using energy-saving measures are among the many things
where ability goes with the Toyota name.
Toyota has even bigger advantages in the field of developing biodegradable
plastics. In addition to its aim of becoming a manufacturer of biodegradable
plastics, Toyota is also an end user of such plastics. In other words,
before it even starts making biodegradable plastics, Toyota has a
concentrated demand on its own doorstep. As a company starting up
a new business, there is nothing more reassuring than having a view
of the needs of the market before beginning development. |
| |
| If It's Strong Enough for Cars... |
 |
| Starch processing plant |
The fact that up to now Toyota has mainly
produced cars is also a great advantage. Quality standards for products
used in cars are incomparably higher than for general household appliances
such as air conditioners and audio equipment.
As an example, few complaints are heard when a computer breaks down
because it has been dropped or left in direct sunlight for a long
time. But with cars, consumers will not accept that a little knock
might cause a breakdown. This means that Toyota can be quite confident
in advance when adapting products and materials that have been used
in cars to other fields. So once Toyota biodegradable plastics have
undergone practical use in cars, they should be perfectly adaptable
to other fields. In this way, two complete opposites, like cars and
biotechnology, can make use of each other's strengths. This seems
to be a case where one plus one equals more than two. |
| |
| A Revolution in Plastic Materials! |
So what kind of a material is biodegradable
plastic? Basically, it can be defined as a material with the same
function as conventional plastics but which is broken down after use
by microorganisms in the soil.
Plastic has the advantage of being lightweight and easily molded,
but its material stability becomes a disadvantage after use and makes
it resistant to degradation. How to deal with plastic after disposal
is therefore seen as a problem.
How will this be different with biodegradable plastics? Take for
instance garbage bags used for kitchen waste. With biodegradable materials,
the whole bag, including its contents, can be turned into compost.
In the case of plastic sheeting used in agriculture, which has been
troublesome to dispose of, one would only have to plow up the soil
where it lies. Such examples give a good idea of the degree to which
it will be possible to reduce environmental impact. With items ranging
from sundries and foodstuffs to fiber materials, medical supplies,
and construction materials, the potential scope of application of
biodegradable plastics is unlimited. This wide range of applications
means that both the contribution to reducing environmental impact
and the size of the market will be great. |
| |
| Bioplastics: Recyclable Materials that do not Use Petroleum Resources |
| The name biodegradable plastics emphasizes the post-use disposal aspect, but actually the term bioplastics, which emphasizes the manufacturing process, is also used. Biodegradable plastics can be made like conventional plastics using petroleum resources, in which case despite degrading following disposal, they use up limited petroleum resources. Bioplastics, being plant-based, are different. The carbon dioxide and water which is generated when they degrade is simply returning to where it came from; the carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and the water into the ground, so that over their whole lifecycle they cause no additional generation of carbon dioxide, apart from the energy consumed in their manufacture. These are the bioplastics that Toyota is currently developing. |
|
•Outline of Bioplastic Production
 |
|
| |
| High Quality with Carbon Neutrality |
 |
| Examples of bioplastic products |
This
feature of not increasing the volume of carbon dioxide is called carbon
neutrality. Achieving widespread use of carbonneutral materials is
a major hurdle on the way to a recycling-oriented society.
The bioplastics which Toyota aims to create are carbon-neutral materials
using sweet potatoes, sugar cane, etc. as raw materials. The manufacturing
process starts by taking the starch of the sweet potatoes and other
materials and breaking it down with enzymes to turn it into sugar,
which is then fermented to produce lactic acid. This is then polymerized
to form polylactic acid, and a process of refinement and molding is
used to produce a range of plastic products.
Various companies around the world are working on bioplastics, but
apart from Toyota, the only other major company using polylactic acid
seems to be the U.S. firm Cargill Dow. Because of the difference in
the degree of purification, the technology Toyota has established
will yield products whose quality will easily match the competition.
With regard to cost, including recycling costs in the equation, Toyota
is now confident of being able to produce bioplastics at only slightly
more than the cost of conventional petroleum-based plastics.
The future plan is to undertake verification in the middle of next
year at a plant capable of producing 1,000 tons a year. If results
are positive, plans call for production at a full-scale plant as soon
as possible.
The present size of the market is around 20,000 tons, but in 2020
the target is for production of 20 million tons at Toyota alone, generating
sales worth 5,000 billion yen. This figure may seem exaggerated considering
that total demand for plastics in Japan in FY2000 was only around
14 million tons. But looking at the world market, where the amount
used every year is 150 million tons, and supposing that 30 million
tons of that is replaced by bioplastics by the year 2020, the figure
does not seem unrealistic. This annual production figure of 20 million
tons, which seems at first wildly optimistic, is the reason why bioplastics
are being heralded as a homerun batter as great as Matsui. |
| |
| Market Debut as Toyota Eco-Plastic in New Model Raum |
|
 |
|
Floor mats used in the new Raum made
with Toyota Eco-Plastic |
|
|
The ES3 concept car displayed at motor shows
in 2001 was fitted with automotive parts made of bioplastics. This
was no more than a trial use, but now they have been used for the
first time on a vehicle for the commercial market, with the launching
of the new Raum in May 2003. The bioplastic used has been named Toyota
Eco-Plastic, and plans call for keeping an eye on developments and
successively extending its use.
Compared to the total amount of parts used in a car, this introduction
of bioplastics represents just one small step. But if this step is
followed by another and another, it will eventually become one giant
leap forward on the path to a recycling-oriented society. It is now
certain that the development of clean-energy vehicles in the automotive
sector, such as hybrid or fuel cell vehicles, will link up with the
biotechnology business, which comes from a completely different starting
point, to constitute the twin engines propelling us toward a recycling-oriented
society. Additionally, areas in which the Biotechnology and Afforestation
Division is active are not limited to those mentioned so far. Presently
data is being gathered in the search for areas with potential for
commercialization. It is quite possible that one of these areas will
turn up a batter who tops Matsui. |
| |
| Problems are Opportunities Springboard to Mass Production |
 |
| Young staff members conducting experiments at the Biotechnology and Afforestation Laboratory |
Naturally, the biotechnology business too
has many technological issues to resolve. When questioned on this
point, Tsukishima answers: "There are some technological issues, but
that is because nobody has succeeded in this before. That means a
great business opportunity. Problems should not be called problems.
Problems represent an opportunity." He goes on to describe his aspirations
for the future: "Bioplastics is a field where there is still room
for development and progress. Indeed, this is the reason I think that
research and development, including fundamental technology, is important
at this stage. I want to carry this out with enthusiasm so that if
we continue, ten years down the road Toyota will produce a Nobel Prize
winner in this field."
Even putting aside all partiality to one's own company, it does seem
that if further advancements are made in the field of bioplastics,
it will be a revolutionary technology that leads towards a recycling-oriented
society. And future generations will no doubt be moved to express
their gratitude with the same words as Chairman Okuda: "Thank you." |
| |
|
|
