A mold is, fundamentally, a form used to shape a car by pressing a sheet of steel with immense force.
The Meisei Metal Industries factory houses a 1,800-ton press, one of the most powerful in the industry.
To put it simply, it packs the kind of tremendous power equivalent to 300 elephants crashing down!

But Meisei Metal Industries has something even more powerful than that press machine: its passionate, mold-breaking vitality! This power has become a major driving force that extends beyond the company itself, involving other businesses and the local community. As a result, the company was honored with the Good Partnership Project award at the 5th Cars, Culture & Society Partnership (CSP) Awards in 2025.

Here, we’ll introduce the many exciting initiatives led by Meisei Metal Industries.

“We want people to fall even more in love with cars through the world of molds!” Meisei Metal Industries’ projects, born from this passionate vision, are truly unprecedented.

Around 2010, the automotive industry in Oita Prefecture was booming, but the region was facing a major challenge: “There are no craftspeople who can repair molds!” At first, Meisei Metal Industries took on the work itself, but they still found themselves short-handed. That's when they decided, “Then let's train craftspeople right here in Oita!” and set out to develop engineers. They involved Oita Prefecture and, in collaboration with the Oita Institute of Technology, launched a course where students could learn the fundamentals of mold maintenance, from classroom instruction to hands-on training.
This initiative has evolved into a major public project that continues even now, 16 years later.

Incidentally, when I naively asked, “Won’t training these craftspeople reduce work for Meisei Metal Industries?!” they cheerfully replied, “By learning through these courses, students gain an understanding of the challenges of mold manufacturing and develop cost awareness. Work hasn’t decreased—it’s actually increased!”

The ability of Meisei Metal Industries to involve the community is also being fully utilized right here in their hometown of Daito City!
“We want to share the excitement of MONODUKURI with the children who will become our future partners.” Driven by this desire, the company actively began offering factory tours, workplace experience programs, and internships for students ranging from preschool through university.
It started as a small step, but their overwhelming enthusiasm served as a catalyst that expanded the circle of partner companies one after another. With over 50 companies now participating, the entire community is working together to share the joy of MONODUKURI with future partners.

It’s surprising to learn that they’ve even expanded their efforts to include the Kanagata (Mold) Factory Tour, where the president himself serves as the guide.
In particular, the hands-on experience of tightly molding rice balls allows participants to intuitively grasp how molds work, realizing, “So this is what a mold does!” This clever approach has been a huge hit with everyone from adults to children, who praise it as “easy to understand and fun!”
This innovative project has effortlessly surpassed the boundaries of the local community, bringing the profound appeal of mold manufacturing to a wide audience.

Our company is guided by our corporate philosophy of “creating socially valuable products with our soul to achieve happiness for all Group employees.” Based on this, our guiding principles are to “practice MONODUKURI with soul and intent, cherish harmony, and nurture people.”
A symbolic example of this is the “Soul Transfer Ceremony*.”

*A gathering where employees involved in development, along with the automobile manufacturer and dealerships, share their feelings about the completed vehicle manufactured from the company's molds prior to its market launch.

We do not believe that our work ends once we manufacture and deliver a mold. The technical expertise and soul (passion) that each employee pours into the mold become parts, then cars, and are ultimately delivered to our customers. We share that soul (passion) with all our employees, as well as with our automobile manufacturers and dealerships, and pass it on to the next phase of MONODUKURI. We believe this process is what truly matters.

For Meisei Metal Industries, education goes beyond simply teaching technical skills; it is about passing on a passion for MONODUKURI, or soul. The Soul Transfer Ceremony is an initiative designed to develop human resources.

――Finally, he shared his thoughts on the future of MONODUKURI as follows:

We will continue to carry out MONODUKURI with soul. We will take on challenges with intent. We will cherish harmony and support one another as partners. We will nurture people, passing on our technology and vision to the future. We will continue to pursue MONODUKURI that earns our customers’ trust, keeping these four principles close to our hearts.

Meisei Metal Industries’ activities transcend internal and external boundaries. They stand as proof of the company’s commitment to cherishing the connections with all partners gathered at Daihatsu.
Every time I witness the passion of everyone sweating it out as One Team with the goal of “increasing the number of Daihatsu fans,” I am reminded once again of the true importance of bringing smiles through our own actions as we walk this path together.

The motto of Meisei Metal Industries is “MONODUKURI is about developing human resources.”
Through this interview, I myself felt a strong push forward, realizing, “There’s still so much more I can do!”
I want to turn this passion into the driving force behind my daily work.

Written by Ikenaga, Inner Communications Dept.