The investment, spread over three years, would increase Showa Denko's global production capacity by nearly 50 per cent.

The hard disk manufacturing industry in Singapore is set to take a leap to its next level of growth with the completion of Showa Denko HD Singapore (SHDS) Pte Ltd's second hard disk media plant.

In anticipation of further growth within the hard disk media industry, Showa Denko has committed S$770 million (US$502.3 million) in its fourth global hard disk media plant. This investment includes the construction of the building, the clean room and future expansions in conjunction with worldwide increase in the demand for hard disk media. It will be the largest among the company's four hard disk media plants - two in Singapore and one each in Japan and Taiwan.

Passion project

The hard disk media has been earmarked by Showa Denko to be one of the main growth drivers in alignment with its Passion Project. The hard disk media industry falls in the "growth business" category under this project, meaning that it is one with an established business model and it has proven to be "the most important 'growth driver' under the Passion Project".

"Now, Singapore is one of the most important locations in the world for the Showa Denko Group. As the government intends to make Singapore the centre for the world's hard disk industry, we look forward to receiving continued strong support for our operations," says Kyohei Takahashi, Representative Director, President and CEO, Showa Denko K.K.


(L-R): Kyohei Takahashi, Representative Director, President and CEO, Showa Denko K.K.; Takaaki Kojima, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the Republic of Singapore; and Lim Hng Kiang, Minister for Trade and Industry.

Completed last December, the 68,000 sq m facility, located in Tuas, is expected to start full operation early this year, and would be manufacturing aluminum and glass-based hard disk media. The new plant features Showa Denko's first production line installed within a clean room, based on their innovative perpendicular magnetic recording technology. The focus of the plant would be the high storage capacity hard disk media manufactured using this technology. When fully ramped up, the facility could potentially be the largest single hard disk media plant in the world.

"We have decided on this location in view of the very clear and reliable political and economic systems here and the Singapore Government's enthusiasm for advanced manufacturing industries," says Takahashi.

The plant is expected to boost Showa Denko's current total production capacity of 15.8 million disks per month to 24 million disks per month by end 2008. This represents a near 50 per cent jump in production capability.

"[We] are deeply committed to producing the best quality and most competitive product in the world to serve our esteemed customers," promises Shinji Sakai, Managing Director, SHDS.

Growth potential

Singapore is currently a major base for the final assembly of high-end enterprise hard disk drives, accounting for more than half of the enterprise market share in terms of volume. In 2005, Singapore's hard disk industry was valued at S$11.6 billion (US$7.6 billion) and it saw 20,000 people employed within this sector. Currently, Showa Denko has 1,100 staff under its employ for the two Singapore-based plants. The new plant would add 600 more to that number when fully operational.

2005 also saw 20 per cent of the volume for hard disk media global output originate from companies based here in Singapore, with Showa Denko, Seagate and Hoya as the major contributors.