Kureha's vision is to be "a specialty solutions company that leverages proprietary technology and contributes to a new future for society," and one of the most important measures of its mid- to long-term management plan is to revive Kureha's technology-driven focus. And with policies below, promote new business development, new product development, and the strengthening of process development capability and production capacity.

In April 2023, Kureha reorganized its organization to maximize R&D capabilities and create new businesses, and established a New Business Division dedicated to corporate research. The organization has been flattened to improve agility and establish a structure that enables rapid decision-making. Also, in November 2023, the KF Project was established to bring together various technology development functions under a single chain of command in order to speed up the resolution of technological issues for KF Polymers.

Kureha established the New Business Division in April 2023.
In this division, market needs and applications are clarified at the stage of setting development themes, centered on application-based development, and differentiation, including patentability, business economics are confirmed, and the business model is solidified before moving forward with development activities. However, the division also takes on the challenge of developing themes with extremely high technology-based innovation, and conducts development and marketing activities in tandem.
The New Business Division has three departments: the New Business Products and Marketing Department, the New Business Development Department, and the New Business Creation Department. Highly specialized personnel are assigned to each department to understand market needs and investigate trends in cutting-edge technologies. In particular, the New Business Creation Department, is based in Houston, Texas, U.S.A., conducts marketing in the U.S., and scouts for technology at universities and start-ups.

In our R&D activities, we face the challenges of securing excellent human resources, strengthening our information-gathering capabilities, collaborating with external research institutions, and integrating marketing and R&D. We decided to establish a Tokyo Research Center in FY2024 as a way to set up an R&D structure to solve these challenges. the Tokyo Research Institute is equipped with various experimental facilities, is conveniently located in Tokyo, and can be expected to have active communication with external organizations. By utilizing these facilities, we will continue to promote the development of unique and differentiated technologies and products.

Kureha decided to expand its production capacity for PVDF (Kureha KF Polymer) for automotive lithium-ion battery binders in response to the expanding electric vehicle market, and is building an optimal global supply system. The KF Technology Project, established in November 2023, studies technical issues across all divisions related to Kureha KF polymers, from research and development to production technology.

For more information on the development of existing products, please refer to the following pages.

We are working on development themes in the fields of environment and energy, life, and information and telecommunications from a marketing-first perspective, utilizing other companies' technologies, and expanding globally.

3-D Touch Panel
By combining KUREHA's PVDF transparent piezoelectric film with a signal processing algorithm developed by Cambridge Touch Technologies of the UK, it is now possible to make a touch panel that detects pressing. With this technology it is possible to use a touch panel even underwater or with gloves on, and prevents unintentional actuation because it requires the user to "push" the touch panel.

SiC Fibers for Aircraft Engine Components
Ceramic composites using SiC (silicon carbide) fiber are used as substitutes for metal parts in aircraft to reduce weight and improve fuel efficiency. We are developing SiC fiber with higher performance and price competitiveness than existing products of other companies. Currently, we are working on the development of a mass production process at our Iwaki Plant, with the aim of commercialization around 2030.

PFAS Detoxification Technology
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are chemicals that don't decompose in the environment easily and are increasingly regulated in many countries. In collaboration with Claros Technologies, a U.S. startup company, we are developing a complete detoxification process that converts PFAS into safe byproducts, aiming to build a business model that will contribute to reducing environmental impact.

To grow, promote, and facilitate our business activities, Kureha engages in intellectual property activities based on the following basic policies.

Our main intellectual property activities are as follows: