Furuya Metal, a leading platinum-group-metal (PGM) processor, is building a new plant in Chitose, Hokkaido to produce thermal management substrates (quartz-based temperature sensors) for semiconductor manufacturing equipment such as diffusion furnaces. The plant, costing about JPY 4.5 billion and equipped with automated production systems, is scheduled for completion in July 2026, boosting capacity and supporting BCP resilience alongside its Tsukuba (Chikusei, Ibaraki) plant.