The Manufacturing Department Made Concerted Efforts to Strictly Keep to the Delivery Date
Technology Group 1,
Ina Plant, MIS Division,
Olympus Corporation
Masayuki Akeo
We press-processed prototype light shielding plates, but one plate was found to be defective. To cope with this problem, we successfully changed this method to an etching and ebonol processing method.
Product Assembly Group,
Ina Plant, MIS Division,
Olympus Corporation
Yutaka Imai
The toughest part was the adhesive joining process of the light shielding plates. Experienced and skilled experts took care of the process. Once they study the ins and outs, they were sure to steadily manufacture products.
Group Leader,
Technology Group 1,
Ina Plant, MIS Division,
Olympus Corporation
Hiroaki Hosoi
I appreciate people in the Marketing Department because they provided us with accurate market information. We completed development within a fairly short period of time. We think our success was the result of good cooperation between the Marketing, Development and Manufacturing Departments.
Ina Plant was in charge of prototyping, and engineers at Ina Plant managed to make three trial models in half a month. In late July,
Tanaka visited JAWE with these models, which successfully cleared the quality test. However, one of the model lenses was found to be nonconformance
because a glimmer of light leaked from a burr on a press-processed light shielding plate.
Because the light shielding plate that prevents unnecessary light from entering the lens was a key
component, engineers at Ina Plant made decided to abandon the press-processing method and switch to an etching method, which
successfully solved the light-leakage problem. Even slight scratches, minute dust particles, and a protrusion of adhesives could have been fatal
because of the requirement for high precision.
We normally increase production in August and September because our fiscal half-year period ends in September. At Ina Plant, we established a special integrated production system, from procurement to
manufacturing. Masayuki Akeo, of Technology Group 1, Ina Plant, MIS Division, scrambled for parts. Thus, we successfully delivered 150 lenses by the end of September and were able to finally produce 280 lenses by January 2006.
"Everybody in the workplace knew about the asbestos problem, and because they were aware of the fact that these lenses were to be used to
analyze asbestos, they naturally felt compelled to meet the deadline."(Yutaka Imai, Product Assembly Group, Ina Plant, MIS Division, Olympus Corporation)
"In fact, an excessive burden was placed on the general assembly line. However, we think it is a corporate responsibility to manufacture
and provide the market with our microscopes as long as they are of assistance to not only customers in difficulty but also patients. (Hiroaki
Hosoi, Technical Group 1, Ina Plant, MIS Division, Olympus Corporation)
The inspection procurement boom is now over, but the demolition of asbestos-containing buildings will start in full swing in the near
future. We think that the newly developed dispersion objective lens will be used not only in asbestos analyses but also in hazardous substance
inspections and environmental measurements.
End of main content
