Four train lines － Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line, Keisei Oshiage Line, Toei Asakusa Line, and Tobu Isesaki Line － intersect at Oshiage Station. The surrounding area used to be occupied by rows of small factories, and the area with alleyways and privately owned shops had a friendly old downtown atmosphere. However, the town has changed drastically in recent years. Commercial buildings and condominiums were built at the former sites of small factories, and shops had become modern and fashionable. This change has been brought about by Tokyo Sky Tree, which is to be completed in May 2012.

Ultima Co., Ltd., a maker of adjustable wire grips, is on the second floor of a commercial building, five minutes on foot from Oshiage Station. Tokyo Sky Tree can be seen from the window of its reception room.

“In the beginning, we could see the Sky Tree getting higher. But, as it is too close, it is impossible to see the entire building now,” said President Takayuki Aoshika disappointedly as he shrugged his shoulders on the first meeting.

Takayuki Aoshika,
President, Ultima Co., Ltd.

Example of Ultima Green Line used for greening wall surfaces

Manufacturing focusing on originality

President Aoshika said, “Since the foundation of Ultima in 1986, it has been our belief that the base of manufacturing is to manufacture useful products for the society focusing on originality.” Even though venture businesses related to software attracted public attention when he founded the company at the age of 36, his attachment to manufacturing made him choose a manufacturing company.

To the question on the birth of the adjustable wire grip, U-Grip, Ultima’s first product, President Aoshika said, “I worked for a major imported furniture company after graduating from the university. While doing sales, I expanded my network of acquaintances. Through someone, I got to know about a product which became the prototype of U-Grip. That was how U-Grip was born.”

By simply inserting a wire, U-Grip can easily lock and unlock it. However, in the beginning, it had a point-grip structure (bearing-type).

“Not knowing what the product could be used for, I asked for advice from a teacher I knew at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. He suggested that it would be useful for hanging pictures. Conventionally, picture frames are hung with hooks on the wall. However, for different exhibits, the positions of the hooks have to be moved according to the size of the picture frames. Using this wire fitting, you can easily change the position of the picture frames simply by adjusting the length of the wires hanging from the rail installed on the wall,” said President Aoshika, when he explained about the development of the picture hanger.

Narrowing the target on major companies

On the company’s website, details of actual adoption of U-Grip are stated. Most of the organizations listed are major companies and public institutions, for example, city banks, home appliances makers, construction companies, and (former) post offices. In addition, it was also adopted for supporting poles of GPS. “The reason for targeting major corporations was because if we had good performance records in major organizations, it would be easier to sell to other corporations,” said President Aoshika.

Ultima was once approached by a major maker of bicycle parts to mass produce parts for the gear shift for mountain bikes. “It was probably because the result of their riding test with our product was quite excellent. However, after rounds of negotiations about the terms and conditions, we just could not accept the offered amount, which was one figure smaller than our expectations, even though it was tempting for us to receive orders one figure larger than other orders at that time.” Like this, the company has also shown its obstinacy by turning its back on unsatisfactory conditions. Later, the maker adopted Ultima’s product as a tool to test the strength of wires, and started a business relationship with the company.

Subsequently, U-Grip has been incorporated and used widely in various systems. For example, it has been used in fall-prevention equipment for furniture and fixtures, bird repellent facilities for stations and mid-to-high-rise apartments, and handrails to prevent falling from bridges and from the roofs of buildings.

Environmental contribution by greening wall surfaces

Greening of buildings is presently attracting attention and is seen as one of the measures to prevent global warming and save electricity. Some local governments have proactively promoted the greening of buildings by establishing ordinances to conserve green areas. Although the greening of building roofs has been slow to take off due to the installation of solar panels, wall surface greening is significantly increasing due to not only its effectiveness but also its appealing quality of catching people’s attention easily.

In the past, there was only one method for greening wall surfaces, which was installing nylon nets or metal wires. However, greening of wall surfaces was not simply completed just by planting plants with long trailing vines. For the original development of “PAT,” a wall greening system, we developed the “Spiral Wire,” a wire exclusively used for greening walls, after repeated experiments in cooperation with a professional landscaping firm,” said President Aoshika.

The surface of the Spiral Wire is helically twisted to allow vines to wrap around the wire naturally and easily. In addition, in order to help the plants grow and prevent them from dying due to the high temperature in summer, the wire is coated with a resin film.

While cheaper than the Spiral Wire, nylon nets are less resistant to other forms of weather such as wind, etc. and do not look good until the plants have grown. Metal wires and their installation are more expensive than the Spiral Wire. The Spiral Wire System is characterized by easy installation using the U-Grip method. A built-in spring at one end enables anyone to install it without slack.

Furthermore, pursuing functionality, the company was the first in the industry to develop an aluminum upper rail for greening which can automatically water plants. Sine water from a water supply tube in the rail goes down along the wire and acquires centrifugal force, surfaces of leaves sufficiently get wet. It promotes the growth of plants and prevents them from dying due to strong sunlight, etc.

Soon after it went on the market, the Spiral Wire was adopted mainly for public buildings, such as the Sumida City Office, Katsushika Waste Incineration Plant, schools, and kindergartens. Since then, its sales have been growing as private companies, commercial facilities, and condominiums adopt it for their use. “Greening buildings leads to improvement in corporate image,” said President Aoshika.

President Aoshika also said Ultima successfully shifted from a business of selling parts to one selling systems, and it aims to develop only one systems as its future prospective.

Developed “Spiral Wire,” exclusively used for greening wall surfaces, in order for vines to easily twine around wires

Ultima Co., Ltd.

Development and manufacturing of adjustable wire grips and peripheral systems

2nd Floor, Yutaka Building, 3-4-8, Narihira, Sumida-Ku, Tokyo
Postal Code: 130-0002
TEL: +81-3-5608-6838
FAX: +81-3-5608-6837
Capital: 14 million yen
Foundation: 1986