Toray to build new artificial kidney plant in China

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Toray and Toray Medical Co are to build a new plant to manufacture artificial kidneys at Toray Medical (Qingdao) Co Ltd (TMQ), which was established in Jimo City, Qingdao, Shandong Province, in July 2011.

TMQ was established by Toray and TMC as joint venture with Qingdao Jifa Group Co for manufacture and sales of dialysis machines.

The plant for manufacturing of the dialysis machines is currently under construction and is expected to begin operations in the first half of 2012. The company expects to start selling the products at about the same time.

Toray and TMC are planning to build a plant for manufacturing artificial kidneys at a site adjacent to the dialysis machine plant by investing about 6 billion yen, aiming to start sales in the latter half of 2014.

The plant will manufacture TORAYLIGHTTM NV, a polysulphone membrane artificial kidney, which was launched in Japan in April 2011.

This will double Toray Group’s production capacity for TORAYLIGHTTM products. Demand in the global dialysis market is expected to expand led by Asia and other developing nations, and is expected to increase significantly in China boosted by factors including state policies on establishment of medical insurance systems.

More than half of the demand for dialysis machines and artificial kidneys in the Chinese market is currently met through imports. Toray, by building a supply system with these two products, will swiftly respond to this current market requirement.

Toray and TMC position TMQ as the beachhead for the pharmaceutical and medical product business in China, and plan to strengthen the customer service in China and expand from the existing dialysis machine and artificial kidney business into other fields.