Nippon Shimpo's drill used in the previous deep drilling of the Antarctic ice sheet

Nippon Shinkan (Niiza City, Saitama Prefecture) has delivered high-precision aluminum tubes to the National Institute of Polar Research (NIPR) for their deep drilling of the Antarctic ice sheet. This is the first time in 17 years that Nippon Shintube has supplied aluminum tubes to the National Institute of Polar Research since 2002, when the company supplied them to the institute's 2003-2007 drilling project. According to the Polar Research Institute, the first drill is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year. In order not to collide with the rotary drill stored inside, a high degree of precision was achieved with a length of 5 meters and a bending accuracy of 0.3 mm or less. "There are no molds left. We had to redo everything, including the materials," said Takeo Kitazawa, general manager of the Technology Development Department, Safety & Environment Department, and Management Department. Photo taken on June 21, 2019, credit: Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun / Kyodo News Images