NOK selling automation rollers business

Tokyo – NOK Corp. has concluded a share transfer agreement to sell its subsidiary, Shinji Tech Group, and its subsidiaries which manufacture roller products for office automation (OA) machineries.

Under the agreement, NOK will transfer all the shares of Shinji Tech Group to SMBC Capital Partners Co. Ltd, an investment-focused subsidiary of the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. Group, the rubber products maker said 8 Oct.

Tokyo-based NOK said the decision to divest was due to “significant changes” in the OA machinery market, amid a shift towards paperless.

Meanwhile, it added, the business environment has become “more severe” due to slower demand and business restructuring at the customer level.

The buyer, NOK said, possesses “highly values the high technological capabilities and strong product base of our roll product business.”

NOK's rollers business comprises Shinji Tech and its seven wholly-owned domestic and overseas subsidiaries, which are engaged in the rotary components supply.

Employing over 1,700 people, the business manufactures roll products for printers and other OA equipment.

The unit generated sales of Yen22,898 million (€130 million) and operating income of Yen1,831 million in the previous fiscal year ended 31 March.