The Roots of Yamaoka Co., Ltd.
First, could you tell us about the roots of Yamaoka Co., Ltd.?
Hirotada Yamaoka, General Director (hereinafter “Yamaoka”):
The roots of the company lie in a “spirit of manufacturing” passed down from the main family’s tofu-making business. After surviving World War II on multiple occasions, my grandfather (the second son), who founded Yamaoka Manufacturing, made a firm decision to earn his living as a geta craftsman. As times changed, my father further transformed the business, expanding from footwear manufacturing to lumber processing, with the ambition of building a larger enterprise. These efforts formed the foundation of the company and ultimately led to the plastic molding business operated today.
So the spirit of manufacturing has continued since your grandfather’s generation.
Yamaoka: Yes. My great-grandmother’s tofu was supplied to famous inns and traditional restaurants designated as registered cultural properties. I still vividly remember watching her make tofu from around two in the morning when I was a child. My grandfather was also an excellent tofu craftsman, and as a wooden clog maker he was highly regarded locally. He received orders from all over Japan and made clogs for well-known figures, including sumo champions. He even appeared on educational television programs at the time. Later, in my father’s generation, the business expanded into lumber processing for the furniture and construction industries.
A Turning Point During the Burst of the Economic Bubble
We heard that there was a major shift in the business around the time of the bubble economy’s collapse.
Yamaoka: Yes. Until the bubble period, my father used to say that if you made something, it would sell. But just before the collapse, imported timber increased and demand for wood products declined. To make effective use of our land and factories, he decided to shift into plastic molding. We began by taking on simple plastic molding orders.
What triggered the move into plastic molding?
Yamaoka: In lumber processing, wood chips are generated. At that time, those chips were used to absorb oil leaking from hydraulic machines and then discarded. Some of the companies that needed these wood chips were in plastic manufacturing, and through them we were introduced to plastic molding work. That became a major turning point.
“The Technology of Yamaoka,” Established by the Current President
Could you tell us how you came to take over the business?
Yamaoka: When I was a university student, my father encouraged me to study and gain experience in plastic manufacturing. As I helped out little by little when I returned home, I became deeply absorbed in it. After gaining industry experience as a working adult, I returned home in 2002 at the age of 28 to take over the business for a new project.
How did you expand your orders after that?
Yamaoka: By not missing the new opportunity that brought me back home and by solving our customers’ requests one after another, we were able to gain further projects and expand the business.
That suggests a very high level of manufacturing technology.
Yamaoka: Yes. In manufacturing, we are always committed to meeting customer needs and taking on challenges. Not only our customers, but also our partners in materials, equipment, and mold making share the same high level of commitment. The strong cooperation within our company and the valuable network of trusted partners form the foundation of our technical capabilities.
So do you feel more motivated when the requests are difficult?
Yamaoka: Yes. I often say, ‘I want to do difficult molding,’ and as a result we receive more and more requests for new products and projects.
That sounds like the ideal form of a manufacturing company. In concrete terms, what differentiates your technical strength from others?
Yamaoka: It is the determination to pursue things to the very end. We accumulate countless small improvements. There are so many detailed innovations everywhere.
In particular, when we receive a development request, we place the greatest importance on concept and design. For any part, we think through every detail at the concept and design stage. By achieving advanced molding technologies in this way, we establish our strengths, and these achievements are the source of our current competitiveness.
Another of our strengths is our fast-paced development system. This speed is highly valued by many of our customers.
Turning Economic Crises into Opportunities Through Technology and Trust
We have heard that you also have unique approaches to improving productivity.
Yamaoka: Yes. For example, by designing molds carefully from the conceptual stage, we eliminate unnecessary processes and greatly improve work efficiency. We also design with downstream processes in mind and have built a system in which all sites, including overseas factories, work together as one team.
Growth in Overseas Business and a Long-Term Vision
Finally, could you share your future outlook?
Yamaoka: In thick-wall molding, where we have built up many achievements, we are further improving quality levels that were previously difficult to achieve and establishing new molding methods. Not only in thick-wall molding but also in precision small-part molding, we have achieved zero-defect manufacturing at levels other companies cannot reach.
Guided by our desire to ‘take on difficult molding,’ we continue to enjoy working with rare and challenging plastic products and strive every day for even higher quality. We hope to continue this pursuit indefinitely.
Because of this approach, it is not uncommon for us to form contracts that last for decades. We see particularly strong growth in long-term relationships, and we intend to keep advancing our manufacturing capabilities.”"
You have established a local subsidiary in Vietnam.
Yamaoka: Yes. We have established a production base in Vietnam to strengthen our international supply system. The Vietnam factory began operations in 2019, although some projects were delayed due to COVID-19. From 2025, we are aiming for full-scale business expansion again.
In the future, we will also respond to needs where development is handled in Japan and mass production in Vietnam, and we plan to increase transactions led by our overseas factories as well.
