Which business yields Kawasaki the highest turnover?
The wider spectrum of mobility is Kawasaki’s primary business. It covers the manufacturing of rolling stock and ships, as well as motorcycles and engines for leisure (arguably what Kawasaki is mostly known for globally). However, KHI's highest revenue earning segment was aerospace systems in the fiscal year 2019.In the aircraft sector, Kawasaki primarily manufactures and develops defense and commercial airplanes, helicopters as well as jet engines. For the commercial market, the company helped to develop the Boeing 777, 777X, and 787 Dreamliner, for example. Kawasaki technology is included in turbofan engines for many Boeing and Airbus aircraft like the Rolls-Royce Trent series, the IAE V2500, or the Pratt & Whitney PW1000G. The company is reportedly considering extending its services to the promising market of jet engine maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO).
In the defense sector, the company works closely together with the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Unlike much other defense equipment built under license, the Kawasaki P-1 Maritime Patrol Aircraft and the Kawasaki C-2 Transport Aircraft were developed and manufactured in Japan. KHI engages, above all, in the spacecraft sector. It has manufactured rocket fairings as well as components for space stations and satellites.
Kawasaki's research and development focus in industrial engineering
Kawasaki constructs complete infrastructure and industrial facilities, ranging from water and waste treating sites to production and power plants (fossil fuels and renewable energy sources). Additionally, the company offers for the respective facility large- and small-scale equipment. KHI builds all sorts of large material handling systems (cranes, excavators, conveyors, etc.), but also applies its technologies to precise robots, hydraulic systems, and machinery. Prospective clients are anyone from state actors to high-tech companies.A recent focus of Kawasaki is liquified natural gas (LNG) and hydrogen. LNG is regarded as a viable fuel to bridge the technological transition to energies free from greenhouse gas emissions. As LNG is a fundamental energy source in Japan, KHI and other domestic shipbuilders are experienced with the construction of LNG carriers. They provide the necessary low temperature (-162°C) to liquefy the gas for economical transportation. Based on its complementary know-how of hydrogen liquefying (-253°C) and storage, Kawasaki plans to further develop liquified hydrogen carrying vessels. If the transported hydrogen is then produced with renewable energies, transition to carbon-free energy and mobility seems possible.
