As awareness of carbon neutrality and contributing to the SDGs grows worldwide, CKD has made contributing to the creation of a healthy global environment part of its Purpose and is developing eco-friendly products.
In emerging and developing countries, many women in labor-intensive factories are engaged in air blowing operations, such as for removing foreign matter. Development of the Pulsed Blow Valve had started in response to requests from production sites in Southeast Asia for an energy-saving pulse blow gun that would be easy for women to use. At the time, I was involved in materials development. Although I had opportunities to encounter new materials at trade shows and other venues, I felt challenged by the difficulty of identifying market and technology needs, such as how those materials could be applied to products. I was concerned that even if we developed materials, they might not align with actual needs. That led me to think, “I want to gain experience in areas closer to customer issues”, and I joined this development project. My specialization was chemistry, and I had no knowledge of pneumatic equipment, so I did feel anxious. Even so, together with the development team, I set out to both solve customer issues and reduce environmental impact.

In particular, the flow path design needed to keep the pulse frequency within 5–15 Hz was delicate, with micron-level dimensional differences affecting operation, so we carried out multiple rounds of prototyping and verification as we searched for the optimum dimensions. In addition, a new design in which the On-Duty ratio (the proportion of ON time in one cycle) is determined by a piston and spool allowed us to consolidate the two frequency adjustment knobs into one, improving the product so that it delivers stable energy-saving performance regardless of who uses it. For the exterior design of the gun model, we took the working environment in Southeast Asia into account, designing a shape that is easy to grip even for smaller hands and a lever with a light operating force. We also added a slide-type cover to the frequency adjustment section to both prevent unintended operation and protect against damage if dropped. Through co-creation with multiple departments, including development engineering and CAE analysis, we refined the product to integrate performance, durability, safety, and environmental consideration at a high level.

The Pulsed Blow Valve BNP Series is expected to be used in a wide range of industries, including food production processes and applications around machine tools. By adopting grease for food production processes that is safe for the human body and using rubber materials with high oil resistance, we are expanding the lineup with variations that can be used safely in these environments as well. Responses at trade shows and sales performance in the market have also been positive, and the product has earned social recognition through honors such as the GOOD DESIGN AWARD and the Energy Conservation Grand Prize. Going forward, by strengthening deployment in regions where demand for compressed air is increasing, such as Asia and Africa, we hope to help reduce environmental impact across a variety of industries and regions. The Pulsed Blow Valve BNP Series is expected to be an important product for a sustainable future, simultaneously delivering energy savings and improved workability at worksites around the world. Personally, I have now returned to materials development in the Basic Technology Group, but I feel that the mindset I gained through the experience of “starting from needs” will certainly be useful in future materials development as well. I do not want to simply wait for requirements to come in. I want to be an engineer who can envision applications and worksites, combine expertise in materials and analysis, and make proposals. Understand the principles, try things, fail, and then fix them. While enjoying that steady process of repetition, I will continue taking on the challenge of developing valuable materials that are more closely aligned with the shop floor, through the kind of co-creation that defines CKD.