Housing

Housing Equipment

Housing Equipment


We will help
make water sections
more comfortable.

Housing Equipment


We will help
make water sections
more comfortable.
About Housing Equipment Department


The bath, toilet, and kitchen are the most familiar and intimate living spaces.
The housing equipment department mainly handles parts for the water section. The bath, toilet, and kitchen are the most familiar in our daily life and are the spaces where we can relax. Eto helps make this water section equipment more comfortable and provides them with higher quality, and along with the review of the construction methods we are proposing a new total solution.

Case Study : Mirror fixing parts in the bathroom

Re-design and development of components
in pursuit of workability.


“The standard tactics of construction methods in the housing equipment have been formed by the know-how that engineers have accumulated. However, we aim to produce a great effect by eliminating the small inconvenience to which we have turned a blind eye.”

Case Study
Mirror fixing parts in the bathroom
Re-design and development of components in pursuit of workability.

“The standard tactics of construction methods in the housing equipment have been formed by the know-how that engineers have accumulated. However, we aim to produce a great effect by eliminating the small inconvenience to which we have turned a blind eye.”
Client’s Problem
The bad workability of the fastener can cause a variety of problems.

When viewing from the technical point, the housing equipment business is not a field where new technology is constantly announced, if anything, the reality is that the common sense of the business is widely accepted and is hardly overturned. As the result, inconvenience in the construction is conventionalized over the course of time, and the construction workers have remained silent while feeling stress. The consultation from the client was about “mirror stop parts in the bathroom.” Originally, the mirror was fixed with metal and rubber, but the workability in the site was poor, and because the rubber quality was lower at the time, there was anxiety about aging degradation. The poor workability will increase the amount of work, and of course raise the total cost. It was customary to fix the mirror with “metal and rubber.” Although it had been considered to change to high-quality rubber, the development of more convenient and reliable construction methods was not progressing.

Proposal

To simplify the construction
as much as possible.

When the man-hours of the construction increase, the product becomes complicated. Complex products always have a possibility to become a “fragile product” as well as to increase the work difficulty and working time. That is the reason why the workability improvement means “shortening of the working time,” “cost reduction,” and “ensuring the quality.” Since all of the problems stem from the “poor workability,” Eto proposed to focus on “making the construction as simple as possible.” We would like to explain the specific actions for it.
Selection of manufacturing partners

In order to fundamentally solve the problem, it was necessary to select a manufacturing partner of a different field.
For the simplification of the workability, reviewing the fixing with multiple parts, we found that it was best to complete the fixing with one part. Movable mechanism components were required for it, however, there were few housing equipment manufacturers that specialize in such mechanism parts, the selection by standard tactics was difficult. With that, Eto selected a manufacturer with proven records in the design and processing of automobiles. Because the manufacturers in the field of vehicles are more familiar with movable mechanism parts and they are good at it. Then, selecting this manufacturer as a manufacturing partner, we started to manufacture the “Mirror fixing parts in the bathroom.”

The reason that can select the best supplier >

Automobile field suppliers
Development and consideration of the product

We and the cooperation manufacturer aimed at “1 Action” as the target.
Selecting a manufacturer who has expertise for the automotive parts as a partner, we targeted “1 Action” while holding meetings several times. It is the idea that a lot of problems are fixed when the construction is simplified as much as possible. For a builder to complete fixing in 1 shot is the utmost simplification of construction and shortening of the working time when considering the fact that until then the multiple components had been sequentially constructed. For this end, we considered the fixing method.
Devising a mountain-shaped wire spring
The point was an upper bracket on the fastener. The upper bracket may have a function to be installed and removed at one time by allowing it to move up-and-down. By using the “mountain-shaped wire spring,” a concept to allow vertical movement was solidified.
Devising a mountain-shaped wire spring
The point was an upper bracket on the fastener. The upper bracket may have a function to be installed and removed at one time by allowing it to move up-and-down. By using the “mountain-shaped wire spring,” a concept to allow vertical movement was solidified.
Complete form of the upper bracket
Simultaneously with the determination of the form of a mountain-shaped wire spring, we could solve the concern of the aging degradation by changing the part that had until then been rubber with PVC coating, and could arrive at the complete form as one part.
Complete form of the upper bracket
Simultaneously with the determination of the form of a mountain-shaped wire spring, we could solve the concern of the aging degradation by changing the part that had until then been rubber with PVC coating, and could arrive at the complete form as one part.
Verification test

It is most important for a verification of the product to be checked under the same environment as the actual use environment.
Since the product specifications had been determined, it was necessary to verify the workability and quality. Thus, by using the network, which is the strength of Eto, we implemented a verification test for a year at a cooperating hot spring inn. Implementing not in a laboratory but in a situation that meets the actual use environment was more important than anything for a verification test.

Looking at the Deployment Power of Eto >

verification test period

Results of proposed

The improvement of workability has led us to a number of achievements.

Starting from the “selection of a manufacturer in a different field,” followed by “development and consideration of the product,” Eto implemented the verification test. All of them were processes aimed at clear goals of the “pursuit of workability” and the “improvement of quality” for the aim of the “1 Action.” We will show the achievement acquired from the results.

Fractional shortening of working time

Reduction of the total cost

No need of maintenance

Summary

Casting doubt on the technology
that was taken for granted

In this business, the general technology and the method of construction are likely to be continuously used without change even if there exists some inconvenience. As in the case study of the “improvement of the mirror fixing parts,” many cases in which a small improvement proposal appears as a firm result remain without being limited to the field of housing equipment. Eto thinks that casting doubt on commonplace technology and construction methods and implementing improvement lead to new progress.


At Eto we offer various other solutions in addition to the above examples. If you are having trouble with your housing equipment, please consult with us.
Contact