Domestic Civil Engineering Business
Characteristics and Strengths of the Business
Based on our extensive experience, we provide the optimal design and construction technology in the construction and maintenance and renewal of civil engineering structures that support societal infrastructure, such as bridges, tunnels, river improvements, land development, and water supply and sewerage facilities. In the prestressed concrete (PC) bridge sector, we take pride in being one of the industry's leading firms in terms of design and construction achievements. We promote technological development such as new structural forms and construction methods using precast concrete (PCa) to shorten construction periods and streamline constructions. Through these, we can offer high-quality, durable, and easily maintainable bridges.
In Japan, we are focusing on large-scale rehabilitation (such as deck slab replacements for bridges) and new tunnel construction, while overseas, we have been steadily building up a track record of large-scale construction projects such as subways and high-speed railways to gain a competitive edge.
Mid- to Long-term Policy
In the domestic market, orders for disaster prevention, disaster mitigation national resilience-related construction, and renovation of aging infrastructure have remained strong. Our domestic civil engineering business continued to receive orders and secure high-quality work backlogs. In addition, thanks to the steady progress of several major construction projects, both net sales and profits surpassed the record levels of the previous fiscal year.
In our strategy for winning orders in fiscal 2025, we will maintain good performance in technical proposals in the comprehensive evaluation bidding system and aim to win orders for projects with high productivity and profit margins. In addition, we will continue technology development and DX promotion, and reduce the workload at work sites by supporting work sites through cooperation between head office and branch offices.
Major Initiatives for FY2024
Promoting Personnel- and Labor-Saving for Work Site Technicians through the Development of DX Technologies
We are responding to the urgent need for personnel- and labor-saving measures at work sites by promoting the development of DX technologies. In fiscal 2024, we released two DX technologies news and are actively deploying these at work sites. Specifically, our Raku Camera®, a real-time automatic reinforcement form inspection system, incorporates new artificial intelligence (AI) and has significantly improved measurement accuracy and work efficiency and made a large contribution to labor savings. Meanwhile, our One Man Leveling Survey System was developed as a device and system that enables leveling survey to be undertaken by one person, which reduces the number of workers required for conventional surveying work from two persons. We are currently developing numerous other DX technologies and will accelerate our development efforts to contribute to the realization of "i-Construction 2.0," a new initiative advocated by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism to improve productivity (labor savings) at construction sites.
Developing New Technology that Utilizes AI
As a new technology in the SMC-Tunneling series that improves tunnel construction productivity, we developed AI de Sakiyama (blasting version), which uses AI to automatically select blasting patterns. By incorporating the tacit knowledge of skilled workers through AI, we were able to alleviate skilled workers shortages and improve the efficiency and safety of blasting work. Additionally, we have newly equipped our Raku Camera® real-time automatic rebar inspection system with AI, which automates rebar recognition and enables measurements even under adverse conditions such as direct sunlight or backlight.
Developing Young Human Resources Who Will Become the New Leaders of the Company
In the Civil Engineering Division, the number of employees between the ages of 35 and 45 is small while the number of younger employees is large, so the early training of young employees is an urgent issue. We have been holding practical training camps for new employee education since 2017. At these training camps, employees are divided into groups to build structures with their own hands to cultivate their ability to think on their own from planning to construction. Additionally, in fiscal 2024 we launched an on-site support group within our Head Office. This group equalizes on-site workloads mainly by supporting busy worksites nationwide while creating an environment where on-site employees can focus on their core tasks and improve their own skills.
FY2024 Construction Results
Daidogawa Bridge and Two Other Bridges (PC Superstructure Construction) on the Shin-Meishin Expressway
This project serves as part of the Otsu Junction (tentative name) on the Shin-Meishin Expressway. Spanning over 1,300 meters, this consists of four bridges together with a ramp bridge for merging and separating the inbound and outbound lanes. The main girders with asymmetric cross sections to handle three lanes on each side were constructed rationally using precast materials.