Murata opens Minato MIRAI Innovation Center, largest R&D hub in Kanto region

Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (hereinafter, Murata) is announcing the opening of its Minato MIRAI Innovation Center, becoming the Kanto region’s largest research and development hub.

At the Minato MIRAI Innovation Center, located in the Minatomirai 21 district in Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Murata intends to bolster its design and planning capacities, as well as basic product research for new markets like energy, healthcare, and IoT, in addition to its core business in the communications and automobile markets. In particular, the company plans to increase its share of the healthcare and energy markets by strengthening collaborations with clients and industry participants using its geographical advantage. In its business related to the automobile market, Murata will increase its competitiveness by installing a large anechoic chamber for vehicles, accumulating further design expertise and gaining rapid and continuous feedback for its product design.
Along with reinforcing the coordination with other Murata R&D hubs such as the Yasu and Yokohama Divisions, Murata will also increase its collaboration with external partners, such as via technology exchanges. By promoting open innovation the company will continue to offer leading innovative products and technology for each of our core market segments.

Murata’s first facility dedicated to automotive business (scheduled to open in April 2021)

By creating and comprehensively operating three different facilities – an exhibition room showcasing Murata’s automotive business, a “pit facility” to help increase our understanding of vehicles and carry out various experiments, and a large anechoic chamber that will permit experiments and tests while simulating driving conditions – Murata will accelerate revenue growth in its automotive business. 

Exhibition room

Pit facility

Large anechoic chamber

The Murata Interactive Communication Space for co-creation will generate new possibilities (scheduled to open in April 2021)

Based on the concept of “a space in which diverse things will be brought together and combined to generate new possibilities,” this facility will serve multiple roles, such as the holding of events and creating new business via collaborations with diverse clients regardless of industry type, as well as technology exchanges between Murata departments and with external partners. The facility will also feature an exhibition area in which visitors can directly experience Murata technology.

 
Murata Interactive Communication Space

Open collaboration space for promoting health management and inter-department exchange (scheduled to open in April 2021)

This space will feature areas devoted to exhibiting medical devices, carrying out events based on health management plans coordinated between the health management office and the medical and medical equipment division, and other activities.

Office space for achieving creativity and synergy

The spatial design stimulates the synergy of team members with varying backgrounds and work styles by introducing flow lines leading from the entrance to the exchange area. Furniture such as round tables and partition curtains will allow the space to be flexibly adapted to the size of the gathering or the confidentiality of the information exchanged.

Office and meeting space 

A cafeteria that contributes to creating innovation and positive work environment by allowing the free selection of workspaces

The cafeteria not only serves as a place for meals and refreshments, but is also designed for a variety of office-related uses such as a provisional meeting space. In addition, a cafe area includes a space that allows for the serving of alcohol after hours and will be operated as a place for deepening the dialogue and camaraderie among employees.

 
Cafeteria environment conducive to creativity, camaraderie and wellness

The interactive facility “Mulabo!” will allow children to learn about science in a fun way (open to the general public from December 16, 2020)

Based on the concept of “a space that can give birth to new engineers,” this facility will contribute to developing STEM education and culture focused on the theme of “science,” and closely tied to Murata’s business operations. The facility is planned as a new landmark of Yokohama’s Minatomirai area by providing a space for children to encounter the joys and wonders of science.

Mulabo! website: https://mulabo.murata.com/

CASBEE certification for design gentle to humans and considerate of the environment

Including the greening of roofs and walls, the facility achieves an overall greening rate of over 20%. Moreover, by using various environmentally friendly technologies such as solar panels and recycled rainwater, the center has been given the CASBEE* S-rank designation as an environmental design facility gentle to humans.

^{*CASBEE stands for “Comprehensive Assessment System for Built Environment Efficiency” and is an evaluation method for the environmental friendliness of structures, assessing not only environmental considerations such as the use of energy-saving technology or materials with a small environmental footprint, but also comprehensively evaluating building quality including pleasant interiors and attention paid to scenery.}

Facility overview

Murata in Brief