AGC’s Glass Used for All Vehicles of New Hokuriku Shinkansen Line
AGC’s Glass Used for All Vehicles of New Hokuriku Shinkansen Line
Date: Mar 16, 2015
Source: Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.
Tokyo, March 16, 2015—AGC (Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.; Head Office: Tokyo; President & CEO: Takuya Shimamura) announces that its safety glass for railroad cars is installed in all vehicles of the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line, which started operation in Japan on March 14, 2015. In addition to the safety glass, all other glass components used in the vehicles have also been supplied by AGC.
The Hokuriku Shinkansen Line, which connects Tokyo and Kanazawa, was opened as an extension of the Nagano Shinkansen Line linking Tokyo and Nagano. The newly opened section of the line, which is an extension beyond Nagano to Kanazawa, has many tunnels because of high altitudes and rugged topography. Shinkansen vehicles travel at high speeds that peak at 260 kilometers an hour in very severe weather conditions during winter. Therefore, various functions, including safety, as well as high levels of sound- and thermal-insulating properties, are required of the window glass of the Shinkansen.
AGC’s glass used for the windshield at the driver’s cabin ensures high visibility while achieving a streamlined, stylish design; the window glass of train cars has high thermal- and sound-insulating properties, offering a safe and comfortable ride for passengers. Glass used for front lamp covers, glass for destination display boards, and interior glass are also the products of AGC.
AGC has 50 years of experience of safety glass for high-speed railways, including Shinkansen bullet trains. The AGC Group will continue to develop and provide high value-added products that support safe and comfortable transportation equipment by leveraging its diverse array of materials and technologies.
Media Contact
Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.
Junichi Kobayashi, General Manager, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations
Contact: Kenichi Ishibashi; Tel: +81-3-3218-5603; E-mail: info-pr@agc.com
About Hokuriku Shinkansen
The Hokuriku Shinkansen is a high-speed shinkansen railway line jointly operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West), connecting Tokyo with Kanazawa in the Hokuriku region of Japan. The first section, between Takasaki and Nagano in Nagano Prefecture, opened on 1 October 1997, originally called the Nagano Shinkansen (Takasaki is linked to Tokyo by the Joetsu Shinkansen). The extension to Toyama in Toyama Prefecture and Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture opened on 14 March 2015.[1] Construction of a further section onward to Fukui and Tsuruga in Fukui Prefecture commenced in 2012, with proposed completion in 2025. The options for the route of the final section to ultimately connect to the Tokaido Shinkansen are being studied, with three alignments being considered, that would connect at Maibara, Kyoto, or Shin-Osaka.
