History of Rengo

  • Changing times and the history of Rengo

      • Teijiro Inoue makes
        Japan's first corrugated board
      • 1909

        Corrugated board used to wrap around and protect a lamp

    • 1909
    • World War I
      Establishment of various new industrial facilities
    • Teijiro Inoue made up his mind to become an independent self-employed businessman (and later made April 12, the day of his decision, the company's Foundation Day)
      Established Sanseisha in Shinagawa, Tokyo, setting up Japan's first corrugated board business
      Coining of the Japanese term for single faced corrugated board, "danboru" which is still used today
    • 1920
    • Great Kanto Earthquake
      Taisho Democracy
    • Five companies merged to form Rengo Shiki K.K., capitalized at ¥2 million
      Acquired Nippon Seishi and renamed it the Chifune Plant
      The head office, Tokyo Plant and other facilities were destroyed by fire after the earthquake, and the head office was relocated to Osaka
      Began sale of applied products (larval silkworm raising boxes and clothing boxes)

    • 1930
    • Showa Financial Crisis Expansion of exports February 26 Incident
      World War II
    • Completed construction of the Yodogawa Plant, which employed an integrated production system, from containerboard to corrugated board
      Met a wider range of demand that included home appliances, canned foods, bottled beer, ceramics, and clothing
      Established new plants and subsidiaries in Korea, Taiwan and China
      Formed a capital tie-up with Tokyo Electric (current Toshiba)

      • From wooden boxes
        to corrugate packaging
    • 1940
    • Pacific War
      Promulgation of the Constitution of Japan
      Outbreak of the Cold War
      Production to meet military demand under wartime economic control
    • Six domestic plants were destroyed by fire during air raids, and overseas assets were lost
      Resumed production to meet consumer needs and developed new demand for corrugated boxes for frozen whale meat and canned foods
      Obtained a listing at stock exchange and increased capital to ¥10 million

      • Sudden increase in
        corrugated board production together
        with rapid economic growth
    • 1950
    • San Francisco
      Peace Treaty
      "We are no longer in
      the postwar period."

      Home electric
      appliance boom
    • Corrugated boxes were increasingly used for mandarin oranges, apples, and frozen fish.
      Modernized production equipment to meet growing demand
      Opened Research Laboratory (later, Central Laboratory)
      “Ruten” boom as Teijiro Inoue's autobiography was adapted for TV and film

      • 1909

        Advertising poster for corrugated packaging

    • 1960
    • Trade liberalization
      Tokyo Olympic
      Games
      Japan attains world's
      second largest GNP
    • Built Tonegawa Mill, as well as new corrugated plants
      Introduced technology from the United States as the functions of corrugated boxes diversified
      Developed GRAVIAN and other pre-printed corrugated boxes
    • 1970
    • Japan World
      Exposition
      Plan for the
      remodeling of the
      Japanese archipelago
      First Oil Crisis

      Second Oil Crisis
    • Rengo Shiki K.K. renamed Rengo Co., Ltd.
      Developed CORFLEX five-color pre-printed corrugated box
      Developed continuous running technology for corrugator operation
      Developed and commercialized “Fingerless Single Facer”
      Exported Rengo's technologies for producing paperboard and corrugated board

    • 1980
    • Recession caused
      by the strong yen
      Prolonged
      economic boom
      Cold War ends with
      collapse of
      the Berlin Wall
      Land and stock price boom
    • Built a series of new corrugated plants
      Expanded business to cover nonwovens and other peripheral areas
      Opened new office in Singapore for overseas expansion
    • 1990
    • End of "bubble
      economy"
      Multiple recessions
      Great Hanshin-
      Awaji Earthquake
      Creation of the
      euro currency
      “Lost Decade” and
      zero interest policy
    • Ventured into overseas business with Malaysia as a start
      Opened Packaging Technical Center
      Acquired Fukui Chemical Industry, an affiliated company
      Incorporated Howa Sangyo into Rengo Group to enter the flexible packaging business
      Acquired Settsu to reinforce the integrated paper and corrugated board production system

      • Fire-retardant corrugated board RAFEP that does not catch fire easily even though it is made from paper

        Fire-retardant corrugated board RAFEP that does not catch fire easily even though it is made from paper

    • 2000
    • "No-holds-barred
      structural reforms"
      Terrorist attacks on
      the United States
      Massive tsunami off
      Sumatra

      Beijing 2008 Olympics

      Steep rise in the
      prices of crude oil
      and other resources
      Global financial crisis

    • Made Marusan Paper Mfg. Co., Ltd. a group company
      Bolstered energy conservation equipment, including biomass incineration power plant
      Merged Kawasaki Plant with Katsushika Plant to become folding carton production location on East Japan
      Installed a photovoltaic power generation system at the Kyoto Plant
      Shin-Kyoto Division commenced integrated production of corrugated board/boxes and folding cartons after merger of the Kyoto and Katsura plants
      Rengo's 100th anniversary (April 12, 2009)
      Made Nihon Matai Co., Ltd. a group company, and entered into the heavy duty packaging business

      • 110th anniversary since
        corrugated board made
        its appearance in Japan
    • 2010
    • World Expo 2010

      Shanghai
      Great East Japan

      Earthquake

      Abenomics

    • New paper mill, a joint venture in Vietnam, begins full-scale operation

      Completed construction of the Fukushima-Yabuki Plant which uses photovoltaic power generation to supply all the plant's daytime electricity needs

      Completed construction of the Shin-Sendai Plant in about a year after its predecessor, the Sendai Plant, suffered extensive damage in the Great East Japan Earthquake

      Completed construction of the Shin-Nagoya Plant, which features one of Japan's largest seismically isolated automated warehouses

      Completed PM8 for linerboard production at Marusan Paper Mfg.

      Made Tri-Wall Holdings Limited a group company

      Completed conversion of Kanazu Mill's PM2 to produce both corrugating medium and linerboard

      Made Toppan Containers Co., Ltd. a group company (current RG Containers Co., Ltd.)

    • 2020
    • Spread of COVID-19
      Tokyo 2020 Olympics Games
    • Made Taiko Paper Mfg., Ltd. a group company , and entered into the kraft pulp and kraft paper business
      Opened Yodogawa Logistics Center as a logistics center for containerboard
      Installed biomass boiler facility for power generation at Tonegawa Division
      Relocated Matsuyama Plant and established Ehime-Toon Plant