On 22 March, the Japanese peeler innovator Astra held an opening ceremony for its new office building. More than 100 guests were invited. According to the sales manager, Ryo Takeshita, this is the first ceremonial party Astra has held in 30 years, ‘Seeing so many guests make us realize how we were supported by all these relationships.’
“80% of the electricity in the factory is generated from the solar panel”
‘These guests are witnesses to our company’s development, from selling peelers only to local companies, to having sales covering more than 50 countries worldwide!’ Ryo said, excitingly. ‘We are glad to have them join our new building opening ceremony, where we are able to demonstrate the peelers we are proud of, and explain to the guests the mindset of innovation and our contributions to sustainability in this location.’
The new Astra building has two floors. The factory where all the peelers are manufactured is on the first floor, and the office is on the second floor. The old office building is now used for maintenance and storage purposes. “Astra is based in Fukushima, which is in the Japanese countryside. We rarely see this kind of modern and civilized building. During its construction, it had already raised great attention from the locals.” Ryo said.
“As an innovative manufacturer, along with our focus on developing peelers that can increase the efficiency of the fruit retail chain while reducing product waste, we also feel responsible to run the business in a way that consumes as few non-recyclable elements as possible,” Ryo said. “Our new building is a great example. The roof is covered with solar panels, which provide more than 80% of the electricity required at the factory. Aside from the solar panels, the factory is equipped with a power generation port for electric vehicles. Japan has strict energy conservation standards, and our new factory easily clears this.”
‘We also celebrated our sales to 50 countries’
Last month, Astra reached a record of exporting peelers to 50 countries. The company announced this news to their visitors during the ceremonial party. According to Ryo, there were many unexpected countries appearing in the top sales region list, and every region has its reasons for using an automatic peeler.
“In Central America, factories in Guatemala purchased our peeler aiming to reach a higher productivity with a reduced labor cost. Factories in Vanuatu mostly purchase the peeler with an adjustable peeling depth, for peeling lemon skins with a consistent thickness,” Ryo said. “Many may think labor costs in Africa are low, which might be true. But our clients from Africa, such as dehydrated mango factories in Uganda and Ghana, use the peeler mainly because they want to reduce the costs of product waste.”
“Our peelers can also be found in the Middle East. Ready-to-eat fruits are commonly seen in countries such as Israel, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. Our clients use Astra peelers to make their products more competitive in the market with a better appearance, less dripping and a longer shelf-life. This enables them to sell the products at a higher price.” Ryo said.
“Our innovation is driven by client’s satisfaction”
Just a few months ago, Astra launched its third generation KA-750PM peeler, which is 10kg lighter than the previous model. “There are two reasons why we found innovation in size is so important. First, the majority of our peelers are sold overseas. A lighter machine means shipping costs can be significantly reduced.” Ryo said. “Secondly, end-users always prefer a machine to be small and light, so that they can easily carry it to the sink and clean it with running water, or to be able to flexibly place the machine anywhere needed in the store.'
With the growth of its market, Astra is also putting efforts into its after-sales service point. “Though the working principle sounds complicated, the operation is actually very simple, and not much maintenance is needed. We rarely receive calls from clients who experience problems with our machines. But if our clients have any questions or need us to check something, we can easily check online. We also have several local distributors in each region. These distributors can also provide prompt support to clients whenever needed.”
Over the past 20 years, Astra has been fully dedicated to automatic peeler innovation. “Our peelers are certified with CE and NSF markings and are used in over 50 countries, in fresh-cut fruit factories, in-flight meals, schools, juice bars, luxury cruise ships and restaurants," Ryo said.
Astra Inc. expects booming opportunities in overseas markets and the company is now looking for distributors of industrial fruit processing machines in many areas.
For more information:
Mr. Ryo Takeshita
ASTRA Inc.
Tel.: +81 0245412444
Email: en.info@e-astra.co.jp
https://en.e-astra.co.jp/