About 5 months have passed since the United States began military strikes against Iran. As rising crude oil prices and supply shortages constrain Japanese companies’ activities, Sagawa Printing is switching to water-based inks in an effort to reduce its dependence on petroleum, while road-paving company NICHIREKI is using AI to improve productivity.
Five months have passed since the United States began military strikes against Iran, and Japanese companies are being affected by persistently high crude oil prices and supply shortages. Companies are stepping up efforts to develop technologies that reduce their dependence on petroleum and cut costs using AI.
Sagawa Printing has announced plans to reduce its dependence on petroleum through the use of water-based inks, pursuing an initiative to lower its reliance on petroleum resources compared with conventional oil-based inks. The introduction of water-based inks is also viewed as contributing to a reduction in the environmental impact of the printing process.
NICHIREKI, which produces road-paving materials, is working to optimize its production and paving processes using AI, strengthening its response to the risk of fluctuations in crude oil prices. The introduction of AI has been reported as an initiative aimed at reducing costs and improving quality control.
The impact of high crude oil prices and supply shortages is also extending to the packaging and printing sectors, with changes in printing processes including the shift to black-and-white potato chip packaging. Oil-based gravure printing is particularly susceptible to the effects of petroleum-derived solvents, prompting a review of printing materials.