"No photos. Leave your smartphones here. And helmets on!" The resolute receptionist has a dominant tone. It's a chilly start to the factory tour at the Shimonoseki plant in south-west Japan. Snowflakes drift in front of the halls where forging hammers pound aluminium. The tour zigzags quickly through four halls, past a multitude of pounding machines and glowing furnaces. The guide runs in front, banging out chunks of difficult-to-understand English into our radio earpieces. An attendant acts as the broom man and warns us to hurry if we stop to take a closer look. This could be fun. Gain in knowledge: metal is moulded into components here, but how exactly is to remain a secret.
The next day starts on a friendlier note. The hostesses at the Sakai City headquarters near Osaka are charming and their English is sparkling. But the rules remain strict: notepads are now forbidden. But ears and eyes are treated to a lot. Walkways made of precious wood parquet lead through the brand new "Intelligent Plant" at lofty heights. Whispering music, light-filled expanses, plants in light wells and a subtle machine noise backdrop exude a wellness atmosphere that has little in common with a conventional metalworking plant. The obvious purpose of this cathedral of machinery is to make an impression. Work is also carried out - by machines enclosed in sound-insulating and dust-absorbing housings. Four large presses continuously stamp and punch pinions from steel strip, which fall out of the five metre high machine blocks every second. We estimate that the giants churn out gears for up to 30,000 cassettes a day. The sheer volume gives an idea of how profitably Shimano manufactures.
The pinions fall into chutes. When one is full, it is lifted onto a pallet by a robot. When the pallet is full, a self-propelled transporter comes along and transports the sprockets to the next processing station. If the steel strip weighing several tonnes, which the machine continuously sucks in, runs out, the robots bring a new roll from the warehouse. And if a bottleneck is imminent in the warehouse, the supplier is sure to be informed automatically.
Workers who operate machines or move parts? Not necessary. Hundreds of robots and automated machines do almost everything autonomously on the 25,000 square metre, sparkling clean factory floor. The machines punch, forge, turn and mill; they harden, polish, coat, glue and assemble. Workers only seem to be needed to maintain and monitor the machines. Two men sit in the glass control centre high above and look at the monitors that document the heartbeat of the machines.
Shimano employs around 1100 people at its headquarters and around 13000 worldwide in 13 factories and 37 other branches. The plant in Sakai is by no means the largest in the global empire. Mainly high-end components from the XT, XTR, Ultegra and Dura Ace series are built here. Shimano states that the cycle rate for forging the top cranks is four per minute. The focus is on quality and fast changeover times in order to be able to react flexibly to customer requests. The increasing differentiation of bikes such as 1x11, 2x11, 3x11, electric or mechanical, with countless variants of derailleur linkage, is leading to more and more variants in parts production, making flexibility more important than traditional mass production can provide. The plant in Sakai serves as a blueprint for further development in other production facilities around the world, says Shimano, including the only European production facility in the Czech Republic.
The flagship production facility in Sakai is the culmination of 95 years of company history, which began on the edge of the site where the factory still stands today. Shozaburo Shimano began manufacturing freewheel cogs here in 1921. Quality at an affordable price was the founder's motto. Since then, the company, which is listed on the stock exchange but is majority family-owned, has been expanding. The business received a major boost with the establishment of its first US branch in 1965. With an ear directly to the American market, customer wishes could be translated into products more quickly. This is how Shimano discovered the world of mountain bikes at an early stage, and this is how Shimano still operates today. The company is managed from Japan. However, it has feelers all over the world and soaks up information on what cyclists want.
The product managers travel and interview team mechanics and professional riders, get feedback from importers and shops, visit races and festivals. Then the creative process begins and a decision is made on which direction to develop. It typically takes two years from the idea to the product. However, the Japanese don't just want to satisfy customer needs with a new product, they want to exceed them. Thinking ahead and coming up with unexpected solutions is their ambition, but it is also the most difficult part of the job, admits Manabu Tatekawa from Global Marketing. The game is played at risk, flops are not out of the question.
The early involvement in Singapore was not a flop. As early as 1975, Shimano set up its first foreign plant here - inspired by a stopover by the Shimano brothers on their way to India, where they wanted to set up low-cost production, so the legend goes. Today, Singapore is an important hub for trade in Southeast Asia and, as a melting pot of cultures, is an interesting place to find employees who are familiar with both Western and Eastern cultures and speak their languages.
The factory tour in Singapore reveals clear differences in mentality compared to Japan. Here, the bosses are keen to ensure that visitors understand the processes in detail. For example, forging, the company's key technology. Material is formed step by step. For example, a crank blank is gradually formed from round aluminium from the roll by upsetting and flattening. Brake bodies, gearstick components and hub bodies are created in this way. A few thousand tonnes of pressure make aluminium flow like a tough dough.
Shimano has even mastered the trick of rolling the material in such a way that a hollow body is created, as with the cranks of the Deore, SLX, Deore XT and XTR series (keyword "Hollowtech"). Eugene Koh, Head of Southeast Asia, speaks almost tenderly about the appeal of forming: "The beauty of forging is that the material is used one hundred per cent. Nothing is wasted," explains the industry veteran. However, forging also has tangible technical advantages: Forged components are more resilient than milled components because they have an internal structure that is better suited to the load.
However, Shimano not only forges metal, but apparently also particularly strong bonds between its employees. "Shimano is like a family, we are very close," emphasises Koh. Decisions are never made alone; a team always has to be convinced. And if something goes wrong, no employee is fired because of it, because behind every step is always the work of a group. "Mistakes are rare, and when they happen, we use them to improve," says Koh, explaining the general approach. However, he then has to explain major blunders at the semi-annual management meeting in Japan. The fact that the team concept is upheld cannot be overlooked: "Team Shimano" is a ubiquitous term in the factories. The blue uniform, which is not always very dressy, is also worn by top management as a sign of togetherness.
In neighbouring Malaysia, Shimano's largest factory is located in the small town of Pekan Nanas, an hour's drive from Singapore. A good 3000 people work here. At the entrances to the halls, boards provide information about the qualifications and origin of the employees: most of them come from Nepal or Bangladesh. But even in the densely populated factory, labourers work side by side with robots, like the man who assembles 10,000 shift cables a day. Between 400,000 and 700,000 cranks leave the factory every month. Automation is soon to be increased from 30 to 50 per cent, explains plant manager Ng Nam Seong and enthuses about Sakai as a role model: "They are improving faster than we can catch up."
Shimano is very successful with its automation strategy and pronounced focus on quality. The Japanese company is by far the world market leader in the gear shifting sector, and manufacturers and importers who don't want any stress prefer to fit Shimano parts to their bikes. Erwin Rose, head of the mail order company, has been doing business with the Japanese for a long time and is full of praise: "Good quality at a good price, and they always deliver on time. If there is ever a problem, they deal with it very quickly and the supply of spare parts works well. I have no complaints."
Investors are also impressed by Shimano's growth. The share price has increased almost fivefold in the last five years. Nevertheless, it is credible when Shimano states that one of the company's main concerns is to promote cycling culture and motivate people to get out into nature - be it with bicycles, whose parts account for 82 per cent of sales, or with fishing rods, the company's second mainstay. The official "mission statement" is close to the biker: "Promoting health and satisfaction through the enjoyment of nature and the world around us."
Some people may consider this to be empty talk. But it is certainly more appealing than a pure profit maximisation message. There are other signs that Shimano has its own way of looking at things. Company boss Yozo Shimano once told us that weight comes third in the development process, after the function and price of the components. In the world of bicycles, where weight fetishism is omnipresent and many prices are losing their grip, this is a truly sovereign position.
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MTB milestones from Shimano
1st Di2 Syncro Shift
A switch for two or three blades simplifies
simplifies the operation of the first electrically operated MTB gearstick. The shifting behaviour is programmable.
2. rapidfire
In 1989, the Rapidfire system was introduced, in which the shift cable was tensioned with one lever and gradually released with a second. The system was later adapted for road use. In principle, this system is still used today.
3. dual control
2003 saw the introduction of the XTR dual control levers, in which the brake lever is also used for shifting. This system met with a lot of resistance in the scene - because compatibility with other disc brakes was lost and shifting with the top of the finger was not very popular. Shimano therefore soon discontinued the technology.
4. biopace
In 1983, Shimano launched non-circular chainrings onto the market. At that time, the direction of ovalisation was 90 degrees offset to today's egg-shaped Rotor or Osymetric chainrings. In the horizontal crank position, the effective chainring diameter was the smallest, and the movement was curiously slowed down at the dead centres. Shimano promised a lighter pedalling action, but abandoned the system ten years later.
5. the first Shimano product
In 1921, Shozaburo Shimano began manufacturing freewheel sprockets in Sakai.
6. the first MTB group
The XT groupset was born in 1982 and is still the tool of choice for ambitious bikers today. Thumb shifters, triple leaf, cantilever brakes and high-flange hubs. Hyperglide sprockets, which improved shifting under load, were not added until 1989.
Curiosities: the airline drivetrain from Shimano
Engineering madness or ingenious anticipation of the Di2 concept? In 1999, Shimano surprised us with a shifting system specially designed for downhill racing. Shifting was done with air pressure. A pressurised reservoir in the bottle cage supplied the energy for the pneumatically operated gear changer. An easy-to-operate switch moved the chain along the seven-speed gearbox. Potential advantages of the airline system: easier operation in the heat of a downhill. In addition, the flexible air hoses prevented ghost shifts caused by excessive movement of the Bowden cables due to large spring loads. The air tank could be refilled with a normal pump and was sufficient for around 400 gear changes. The technology worked and was also used in races, but remained limited to 1000 shifts and is now traded as a collector's item on Ebay. Shimano probably never produced a smaller edition.
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Interview with Kichinosuke Kubo, developer in the MTB sector
Will the XT come with Di2?
Our goal is to pass Di2 technology downwards. Our dream is to make the technology accessible even to beginners and children. Unfortunately, it is still too expensive for that.
How many XTR riders opt for the electric version?
Around 20 per cent, and rising. We are also working on an app so that we can change the setup using a smartphone.
Is the twelfth sprocket coming?
With the current hub standard, twelve-speed is not an issue, and more sprockets alone are not a development goal.
Do you believe in 1x11?
Not as a universal solution. It depends on the rider and their abilities. Depending on the course, racers can ride well with 1x11, but not all riders. That's why we rely on the custom solution with a choice of 1, 2 or 3x11.
Which gearbox is currently the most popular?
2x11 is the most popular configuration.
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Interview with Manabu Tatekawa, Global PR Manager
Tatekawa has been with Shimano for 25 years and has held many positions within the company.
What is the top priority when developing new parts?
We want top function and quality at a favourable price and therefore do not do everything that is technically possible, but make sure that the products remain affordable. At most, we allow ourselves the luxury of using particularly expensive materials such as titanium in the Dura Ace and XTR series for weight reasons.
Is simpler material used for low-cost groups?
Favourable does not mean that we use simpler material. It depends on the intended use: The Deore and XT cassettes, for example, are made of steel and are therefore particularly durable. The XTR, on the other hand, is for racing, which is why we make it as light as possible. Durability plays a greater role with the other groupsets. If a 2000 euro bike stops working after a year, customers are frustrated. That's why we try to make everything as durable as possible.
The competition uses more carbon, why not Shimano?
We have only ever built a carbon crank once for the Dura Ace. We have not pursued this further because we can build a better crank from aluminium. Why should we make customers pay more for a worse product? Shimano is not looking to use more expensive materials and charge higher prices. Low costs, better quality and better performance are our goal.
How long do you spend developing a new group?
This normally takes two years, from the decision to production. It only takes one year to downgrade an existing technology. We work continuously on the top XTR and Dura Ace groupsets over a period of four to five years.
Who is your toughest competitor?
For me, it's the electronics providers that make people stay indoors. So the manufacturers of games consoles, computer games and so on. We want people to go out and enjoy nature. Mountain biking means going out and getting dirty, it's fun. Sometimes we fall down, then we just get up again. I want my kids to go out and not hang around inside all day.
How important is the e-bike for Shimano?
The market is growing very quickly. Especially in Germany. We are trying to develop better e-bike components, but we primarily want to produce bicycles and stick to sport, more power and capacity are not our priority. We don't want to compete for the biggest battery and the most powerful motor, because then we're on the e-motorbike.
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