Launch of a Pilot Refurbishment Program for Analytical and Measuring Instruments with Kyoto Prefectural UniversityAccelerating the Transition to a Circular Economy

Kyoto Prefectural University and Shimadzu Corporation have launched a pilot demonstration of a refurbishment business for analytical and measuring instruments to support both the realization of a sustainable society and the enhancement of research environments. Under this pilot demonstration, Shimadzu will repair and refurbish previously used high-performance liquid chromatographs (HPLC) and provide them on loan to the Laboratory of Forest Resource Circulatory System headed by Professor Hisashi Miyafuji at Kyoto Prefectural University. The university will evaluate and collect data on the validity of the data obtained, instrument durability, user experience, and operating conditions, including frequency and duration of use. Based on the feedback received, Shimadzu will evaluate the performance users require, the practicality of refurbished products, and the circular business model.

Through this demonstration program, Kyoto Prefectural University will verify how refurbished instruments can strengthen the research environment, reduce research costs, and benefit student education. In addition, as one of the concrete initiatives of the Zero-Carbon Campus Promotion Center established in 2025, the university will examine the greenhouse-gas emissions reduction effect of introducing refurbished instruments.

Shimadzu launched its new medium-term management plan in April 2026 and aims to increase corporate value while prioritizing environmental considerations with a focus on realizing a decarbonized society, advancing a circular economy, and achieving a nature-positive future. Beginning with this pilot demonstration of the refurbishment business, Shimadzu will continue contributing to a circular economy through measures such as extending product life cycles and incorporating sustainable materials into its products.

High-Performance Liquid Chromatograph System Installed at Kyoto Prefectural University

Collaborative Initiatives between Kyoto Prefectural University and Shimadzu

The university and Shimadzu have been working together under the Kyoto Model Forest Initiative, a program in which residents, businesses, and local governments cooperate to protect and nurture Kyoto's forests. At the Shimadzu Corporation Forest in Nantan City, they are conducting vegetation surveys, developing forest management plans using airborne laser surveys and drone footage, and creating new forest-management methods. Professor Hisashi Miyafuji's Laboratory of Forest Resource Circulatory System has established reaction and separation technologies for the highly efficient production and recovery of 5-HMF (5-hydroxymethylfurfural) from wood-derived cellulose and is also looking ahead to synthesizing PEF (polyethylene furanoate) from 5-HMF. PEF is regarded as a potential alternative to PET (polyethylene terephthalate), including for plastic-bottle applications. Because it can use wood and other plant-based resources instead of petroleum and be efficiently converted into chemicals and materials for circular use, it is expected to contribute to the realization of a circular economy. Targeting woody biomass, Kyoto Prefectural University will use refurbished instruments loaned by Shimadzu for research and education. The university will pursue chemical-conversion technologies aimed at producing biofuels and other valuable chemicals that can serve as alternatives to fossil resources.

Related Information

About Kyoto Prefectural University's Zero-Carbon Campus Promotion Center
As a knowledge hub located in Kyoto, the birthplace of the Kyoto Protocol, Kyoto Prefectural University is taking a leading role in efforts toward carbon neutrality through its Zero-Carbon Campus Promotion Center. Its activities include research on behavioral changes that promote energy conservation, studies on measures to enhance forest carbon absorption and carbon sequestration, and pilot projects such as this one that contribute to climate change mitigation.

About Shimadzu Environmental Management
https://www.shimadzu.com/environment/