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Joint Development of Fuel Cell Trucks Advances
The development of fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) that use hydrogen as a fuel for heavy-duty trucks is accelerating. Since the start of 2020, major manufacturers such as Hino, Isuzu, and Daimler have been announcing cooperation with other companies one after another.
Akihito Komuro In April, Daimler and Volvo announced that they would establish a 50-50 joint venture to develop and mass produce fuel cell heavy-duty trucks.
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SOUTHEAST ASIA REPORT: Spread of COVID-19 Shuts Down Automobile Plants
Due to the spread of COVID-19, Japanese automobile OEMs have stopped production in Indonesia. Isuzu stopped operating its plants April 1, and Honda and Suzuki stopped April 13.
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SOUTH KOREA REPORT: Doosan Infracore Hikes Sales Promotion with SNS in China
Doosan Infracore announced on March 24 that “the share of product marketing and customer support using live content broadcasting on SNS is growing in China.” The company has conducted more than 20 live machine maintenance training sessions through SNS, and the total number of users has reached about 7,300, with 140,000 followers on WeChat.
More than 1,200 machines were sold through such online marketing, and the sales of parts sold on WeChat reached 10 billion won.
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JAPAN REPORT: The Impact of COVID-19 on Manufacturers
Japanese OEMs are struggling to adapt to the COVID-19 problem. Plants are being temporarily shut down and production adjustments are being made.
Akihiro Komuro While domestic plants are generally operating quietly, overseas bases are being affected in various ways, depending on the country. Here is a summary of announcements by the major companies.
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Komatsu Launches SMARTCONSTRUCTION Retrofit Kit
This article appeared in the March 2020 issue of PowerTALK™ News
March 23, 2020–Komatsu has launched the SMARTCONSTRUCTION Retrofit kit, the add-on kit to offer ICT capabilities, such as 3D machine guidance and payload measurement, to conventional construction equipment in Japan in late April through LANDLOG Ltd.
Akihito Komuro Conventional construction equipment with no ICT capabilities account for over 98% of all construction equipment working on construction sites in Japan. When the SMARTCONSTRUCTION Retrofit kit is added to conventional equipment, it will enable the equipment to use ICT functions, such as 3D machine guidance and payload measurement, about on par with ICT-intensive equipment.
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SOUTHEAST ASIA: THAILAND REPORT, March 2020
Subcenter Development in Bangkok
This article appeared in the March 2020 issue of PowerTALK™ News
The railway network is rapidly expanding in Bangkok, Thailand, the core city of Southeast Asia. The aim is to disperse urban functions that have become severely congested due to urban development and the rapid increase in the number of cars.
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EV Postal Delivery Motorcycle Is Honda’s New Opportunity
This article initially appeared in the February 2020 issue of PowerTALK News.
JAPAN–Honda plans to introduce 200 electric motorcycles for postal delivery services by March 2020, and around 2,000 units are expected be introduced in FY2020. Approximately 85,000 postal delivery motorcycles are running in Japan today, and all are made by Honda. There are also three-wheel models, but most are Super Cubs, which has a reputation for reliability. At first, these EV bikes will be deployed in Tokyo, where the driving range is small, and in other local ordinance-designated cities.
Akihito Komuro The base unit is the electric motorcycle for business use, the Benly e-series. Honda will start selling it to corporations in April 2020. This is a 96V system in which two lithium-ion batteries with a voltage of 48V are connected in series. Charging is performed by removing the battery from the vehicle and using a special charger; it takes about four hours to reach full charge from zero.
Honda says the bike has a maximum output of 3.8PS and achieves a 12-degree slope uphill performance with maximum load capacity. The cruising range is 87km for Benly e: I and 43km for Benly e: II. According to Honda officials, the bike can be operated for one day considering the delivery range, but in most cases it will return to the post office during lunch break, and a battery can be replaced at that time.
Source: Response
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Thailand Auto Industry Brakes Sharply
This article initially appeared in the February 2020 issue of PowerTALK News.
THAILAND–Vehicles produced in Thailand are exported to the world, including Asia, Oceania, the Middle East and Europe. However, the automobile industry is in trouble because of the double punch of the global economy slowing down due to the US-China trade friction and the spread of the new coronavirus.
Akihito Komuro Exports, which account for half of Thailand's automobile production, where Japanese and other automakers such…
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Isuzu Agrees To Buy Volvo’s UD Trucks Unit
PSR Analysis: Isuzu has agreed to form a business alliance with Sweden’s Volvo in the Truck field and to acquire Volvo’s UD Trucks subsidiary. The amount of the acquisition depends on the negotiations, but Isuzu sees UD Trucks as a business size of 250 billion yen.
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2019 Tokyo Motor Show
The Tokyo Motor Show was a major event that attracted 2 million people from the 1980s to the 1990s, but in recent years the number of visitors has decreased and the last exhibition in 2017 drew only 770,000 attendees.
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