Located far from the big city of Tokyo, most of the flat glass demands were in Osaka and Nagoya, causing the Futajima Plant in Fukuoka Prefecture to suffer from the high cost of shipping. Following the tour of Europe and the US in 1931, managing director Oishi decided to build another manufacturing plant in a better location.
With the agreement of Libbey-Owens- Ford Company (LOF) to increase capital, a reclaimed land in Osaka’s North Port was selected as the site for the new plant. However, the site was damaged heavily by a typhoon in 1934, prompting the search for another location. Then came an enthusiastic offer from the City of Yokkaichi in Mie Prefecture, where the plant would be built.