Refractories play an important role in a broad spectrum of industries that require heat and corrosion-resistant materials, including steel, cement, glass and petrochemicals. Over the years, Morimura has constantly supported the core development of Japanese industry as a supplier of an extensive range of minerals and synthetic materials used as raw materials for refractories, such as alumina, silicon carbide, kyanite and magnesia clinker, produced both in Japan and abroad. In procuring raw materials, we constantly strive to provide better quality at lower cost and in a timely manner. For instance, we obtain alumina produced by Almatis, which maintains production bases all over the world, and kyanite from ample deposits mined in the United States. We have gained the trust of a broad range of industries through our relationships with both producers and production centers that are recognized for quality and stable supply. We have recently moved beyond raw materials for refractories by focusing the Company's resources on exploring new product areas, such as importing aluminum hydrate from Australia as raw materials for fire retardants and artificial marble; importing magnesia produced in Israel for electrical steel sheets used in transformers; and utilizing silicon carbide as a catalyst to reduce hazardous substances in exhaust gases from diesel engines.