Copper industry

This refers to the industry of rolling copper and copper alloys (brass, bronze, nickel silver, special alloys) to manufacture copper sheets, strips, tubes, bars, wires, etc. Copper rolling has a long history in Japan, beginning with the Buddhist culture of the Nara and Heian periods, passing through a period of hand-made copper rolling and the use of water wheels, and marking the beginning of modern copper rolling as a industry with the roll rolling at the Osaka Mint in 1870 (Meiji 3).

As copper products have excellent ductility, drawing workability, weldability, corrosion resistance, and especially electrical and thermal conductivity, they have long been used in arts and crafts and building materials (roofing sheets, etc.). With the introduction of modern industry, these properties have been utilized in the mechanical industry, especially as a material for electrical and precision machinery parts. Recently, demand for electronics-related products such as terminals, connectors, and semiconductor lead frames has grown significantly.

Production volume peaked at 130,000 tons in 1944 (Showa 19) before the end of the war, but after the war, with the development of the machinery industry during the period of high economic growth and an increase in durable consumer goods, it rapidly rose to 790,000 tons in 1973 (Showa 48), making Japan the third largest producer in the world after the United States and the former Soviet Union. After the oil crisis at the end of the same year, production suddenly dropped and stagnated to the 500,000 tons range, but recovered to the 870,000 tons range from 1978 to 1979 due to increased demand for air conditioners, building materials, electronics, and exports. In the 1980s, production volume showed a downward trend due to changes in the demand structure (lighter, thinner, shorter, and smaller) caused by the second oil crisis, but since 1983, reflecting strong demand for electronics, low-voltage electrical appliances, and automobiles, production volume peaked at 880,000 tons in 1983 (1.07 million tons in the United States and 910,000 tons in the former Soviet Union), 1 million tons in 1984, and 1.25 million tons in 1991 (Heisei 3), and was not able to escape the effects of the economic downturn. However, it has gradually increased since then, and in 1996, it was second only to the United States (1.6 million tons) (1.19 million tons), followed by Germany (980,000 tons) and Italy (790,000 tons). In terms of production ratio by alloy type, copper and brass are almost equal, accounting for more than 90%, and have been increasing slightly, but as a product type, the growth of strips of each alloy used in electrical machinery, especially electronic machine parts, is remarkable. In brass products, the impact of the shift to aluminum for automobile radiators is expected to become greater in the future. Exports totaled 208,000 tons, mainly to the United States, China, and Southeast Asia (where Japanese products account for 87%), with Malaysia (55,000 tons), Hong Kong (45,000 tons), and China (33,000 tons), following in that order, followed by Taiwan. In terms of location, nearly 80% of business establishments are concentrated in the Kanto and Kansai regions, and many large companies are also located in these regions. Brass products include water faucets and gas appliances, and there are many small and medium-sized manufacturers.

[Shinichi Tonomura]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

銅および銅合金（黄銅、青銅、洋白、特殊合金）を圧延加工し、板、条、管、棒、線などの伸銅品を製造する工業をいう。日本では伸銅の歴史は長く、奈良・平安の仏教文化に始まり、手打ち伸銅から水車利用の時代を経て、1870年（明治3）の大阪造幣局のロール圧延が近代工業としての出発点である。

　伸銅品は、展延性、絞り加工、溶接性、耐食性、とくに電気・熱の伝導性に優れているため、古くから美術工芸、建築用材（屋根板など）に利用され、近代工業の導入とともに機械工業、とくに電気・精密機械の部品材料としてその特性が活用され、最近では端子、コネクター、半導体リードフレーム用などエレクトロニクス関連向け需要が大幅に伸びている。

　生産量は終戦前のピークである1944年（昭和19）の13万トンに対し、戦後、高度成長期の機械工業の発展、耐久消費財の増加によって、73年（昭和48）には79万トンに急増し、アメリカ、旧ソ連に次ぐ世界第3位の生産国となった。同年末の石油危機以降、生産は50万トン台に急減・低迷したが、78～79年にかけてクーラー、建材、エレクトロニクス、輸出などの需要の拡大によって87万トン台に回復した。80年代には、第二次石油危機に伴う需要構造の変化（軽薄短小化）によって、生産量は減少傾向をみせていたが、83年以降、エレクトロニクス、弱電、自動車などの堅調な需要を反映し、83年88万トン（アメリカ107万トン、旧ソ連91万トン）、84年には100万トン、91年（平成3）の125万トンをピークに景気後退の影響を免れなかったが、その後漸増し、96年にはアメリカ（160万トン）に次いで2位（119万トン）となり、以下ドイツ（98万トン）、イタリア（79万トン）の順である。合金種別の生産割合は、銅と黄銅がほぼ拮抗(きっこう)し、9割以上を占め、微減増しているが、品目としては電気機械、とくに電子機械部品に使用されている各合金の条の伸びが著しい。黄銅製品では自動車ラジエーターのアルミ化の影響が今後大きくなるものとみられる。輸出はおもにアメリカ、中国、東南アジア（ここでの日本製品の占める割合は87％）向けに20万8000トンで、とくにマレーシア（5万5000トン）、香港(ホンコン)（4万5000トン）、中国（3万3000トン）の順で、台湾がこれに次いでいる。立地的には関東、関西に8割近い事業所が集中し、大手企業もこの地域に多い。黄銅製品には水栓・ガス機器が含まれ、中小企業メーカーが多い。

［殿村晋一］

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