The walkway along the sea at our development site

Field & Research

The sea at Kure is our test site.

Our development base is Marine Craft Kazenoko’s 2nd factory on Kurahashi Island. Right in front of it, we can run trials on the seabed, on a sandy beach and at a pier. From testing a single part to full joint research, we work out with you how to prove it at sea.

What we’ve learned by putting it in the sea

  • The brass propeller used in the trial

    Kure (Marine Craft Kazenoko)

    A treated brass propeller kept its antifouling effect for 12 months. Treated glass also held up for 12 months.

  • A treated float after 12 months in the sea at Hakodate

    Hakodate

    A treated float stayed clean for 12 months.

  • An untreated float and rope, with algae growing on themUntreated
    A treated float on a ropeTreated

    KAKEN grant 22K04725 (published report)

    On 16 mm vinylon rope and polyethylene floats, far less algae and shellfish settled for more than six months. We have also confirmed a lasting effect on 2 mm rope and on ship propellers.

  • The raft we use for trials at Kure

    Under way now

    We are continuing rope trials at Kure.

Eelgrass rooted in treated rope Setting up the eelgrass trial on the raft

Seagrass

Giving seagrass somewhere to take root.

Here the same surface treatment works in reverse. We treat rope so eelgrass can root into it, to help bring seagrass beds back. Our trial off Kurahashi Island has been running since December 2023, and in February 2024 we confirmed germination and root growth on the treated rope. We are running trials in the Ariake Sea as well.

Oyster rafts lined up off an island

Ocean Data

Telling ships where the oyster rafts are.

Hiroshima Bay is dotted with oyster rafts. Using satellite radar images, we were able to find 85% of them. Each raft carries a small beacon (IKAK), and the smartphones of passing boats pick up its signal. We don’t record which boat relayed it, and we never publish where boats or fishers have been. The raft positions we gather go back out as information that helps ships pass safely.

This is joint research under the Town & Gown initiative of Kure City and Hiroshima University, carried out with Hiroshima University, Marine Craft Kazenoko and Inet (contract signed March 2026).

Since October 2025 we have also been one of the consortium companies in Hiroshima University’s JST COI-NEXT centre for a marine cultural city built on ocean remote sensing.

What people come to us for

  • Holding up a test panel taken out of the sea

    Part testing

    We treat a part you already use and check the effect at sea.

    Talk to us
  • People on a boat beside an oyster raft

    Joint research and field trials

    We design and run sea trials together with universities, research institutes and companies.

    Talk to us
  • Checking an oyster rope pulled up from the raft

    Problems on the water

    We help fishing cooperatives, local governments and maritime companies pin down what is going wrong. The first consultation is free.

    Talk to us

Organizations we work with and receive support from

  • Hiroshima University (JST COI-NEXT participation; Town & Gown joint research)
  • Marine Craft Kazenoko
  • Inet Co., Ltd.
  • National Institute of Technology, Kure College
  • National Institute of Technology, Hakodate College
  • RIG HOUSE (Takehara, Hiroshima)
  • ReGACY Innovation Group
  • TSS TV “Hiroshima Sea Forest Project”
  • HIROSHIMA UNICORN 10
  • Microsoft for Startups
  • AWS Startups

Kensuke Kuroda supervises the technology in a personal capacity.
Representative, Nagoya Surface Technology
Specially Appointed Professor, Institute of Innovation for Future Society, Nagoya University (2020–)