An Interview with Our Container/Adaptor Developer (1st half)

“The Secret of Custom-building Products”

*This article appeared in a previous issue of Thinky’s newsletter. The contents are as of the date of publication.

Thinky’s planetary centrifugal mixers are deployed in various fields, and the reason they have received accolades is not confined to the main body of the mixers alone. We custom-build containers and adaptors to meet customer requirements, responding to their needs with utmost care. If not for the experience or know-how accumulated by our developers over the years, we would not have been able to resolve a host of issues facing our customers. We interviewed the key person in charge of container/adaptor development, who shared the secret of customizing them.
The key person is Masahiro Oikawa, advisor of the development department. He has been engaged in planetary centrifugal mixers since the initial stage of development, and currently heads the container/adaptor development team.

1. What made you get involved in the development of containers and adaptors?

Oikawa: Thinky’s mixer started with a special machine to mix alginic acid, which is used to make dental impressions at dental offices. In those days, alginic acid was the only material that we handled, so there were no problems. However, people who understood the performance of a plenary centrifugal mixer began asking, “Can’t you mix such and such materials?” and we started receiving such requests for a mixer one after another. To respond to these requests, we kept making improvements according to material or use on a case-by-case basis.

A single general-purpose machine would not suffice to handle a wide variety of materials. But customizing the main body according to use will require both cost and time. So we figured that if we use our ingenuity and develop a container or an adaptor that can accommodate the materials to be mixed in the main body, we might be able to expand its use.

2. What do you mean by a wide variety of materials?

Oikawa: Materials vary from customer to customer, and are truly wide-ranging. Depending on customer requirements, materials or mixing conditions differ in terms of viscosity, temperature, mixing time, rotation speed, or frequency of use. We have commercialized approximately 60 types of adaptors that are in high demand. With these, we can meet certain requirements, such as “Although the material is not special, we want to mix it at a high temperature,” or “We want to mix the material in a syringe.” However, we are still unable to solve all the challenges. Whenever we visited a customer’s workplace after delivering our machine, we would receive several requests, including “We want to mix materials with higher viscosity,” “We want to keep a low-temperature state,” or “We want to mix in a special container.” Against this background, we began to customize adaptors. We receive many requests for customized products and today, we design one per week. There are quite a few customers who place an order for a custom-made adaptor, saying, “At first, we used a commercially available adaptor as a substitute, but we want a more user-friendly one.”

3. How do you design a custom-made product?

Oikawa: The most important thing is to hold discussions with the customer. We have to understand what the mixing environment is, what materials are mixed, and how to use the mixed material. Unless we identify fundamental issues, we won’t be able to develop a product that satisfies our customer. The Thinky Mixer is used by universities and research institutes, not to mention manufacturers, so understanding each of these highly technical fields is next to impossible. Nevertheless, we try to collect as much information as possible and study it to a certain extent prior to discussions, so that we may be able to fully understand customer requirements.

4. After identifying customer requirements precisely, do you move on to the design phase?

Oikawa: That’s right. As long as I am able to identify customer requirements precisely, I will be able to come up with a solution, and the design will be almost complete. Because I have been engaged in container/adaptor development for more than 10 years, I have sufficient resources to meet their requirements. (laughs)

5. Don’t you think that it would not be viable?

Oikawa: Because I am an engineer, I try my best not to say, “I can’t do it.” Nevertheless, there are cases that defy simple solution. However, as I keep that issue in mind all the time, sometimes, an idea pops up accidentally while I am on a Shinkansen train or shopping with my daughter. I am constantly trying to tackle the challenge in my mind. Designing, for me, is not confined to thinking about something while seated in front of a desk.

6. What points do you particularly pay attention to in container/adaptor development?

Oikawa: There are a number of points. To cite an example, the container weight is one thing. As the weight of material that can be placed in a mixer is limited, if the container itself is heavy, the amount of placeable material ends up becoming smaller. Having said so, however, as much as 400 G is applied, so I must ensure durability. It is a conflict between the two. Because of this, I always pay attention to the latest material that is applied to a Formula 1 racecar or aircraft.

As I said earlier, clearly identifying customer requirements is the key—how our product is used in the field, and what issues customers are facing. Not only is it an opportunity for me to get feedback, it offers a trove of ideas as well. I treat customer requirements as my own, and it would be great if I could meet those requirements together with them.

To be continued in the 2nd half