Kokune Ltd. President Yasushi Kogune is not sure his 55-worker die-casting company will be able to survive until the slump brought on by the March 11 earthquake ends.

"The amount of work has continued to drop," lamented Kogune, 49, adding that he has no idea what will happen to the Hekinan, Aichi Prefecture-based business.

More than three months after the twin disasters, big name manufacturers, including hard-hit carmakers, are showing signs of recovery.

But like Kogune's firm, the small and midsize companies that depend on the big hitters' orders are still struggling to get back on their feet.

Kokune makes the mechanical parts used for attaching semiconductor chips and supplies them to Sony Corp. and its group companies. It also supplies Yamaha Motor Co.

"Orders had started increasing just before the quake thanks to the growing popularity of smartphones," said Kogune. "But the disasters hit us hard."

Following the earthquake and tsunami, companies like Sony and Yamaha Motor cut production.

In addition, carmakers that produce much of the scrap iron used in casting operations suspended production, causing the company trouble in procuring materials.

As a result, the group's monthly sales fell by half to ¥100 million. In May, sales recovered to 70 percent of the prequake level.

"We will be in the red for this fiscal year and we have to find a way to survive until demand picks up," Kogune said.

Die-casting is one of the key industries in Aichi. While the number of foundries has been on the decline amid the industry's aging workforce, Kokune has looked for a way to create new business opportunities by developing new parts for industrial machines, often converting from parts in machines made for weaving or wood processing.

Kogune's foundry still sticks to its traditional work procedure, heating up a furnace to 1,450 degrees to melt the scrap iron.

"During summer, our work uniforms get soaked with sweat and covered with dried crystallized salt. It's a tough job," he said.

What troubles Kogune most, however, are moves by major companies to diversify internationally and domestically their suppliers so they can avoid a repeat of what happened this year.

Kokune sits on the coast of Mikawa Bay, where a big earthquake is projected to strike in the near future.

"We are thinking of drawing up a plan so that we can recover at the earliest possible date to continue our business if a megaquake or tsunami hit this area," said Kogune.

"But smaller businesses are usually financially tight. We need financial aid from the government, such as subsidies or preferential taxation, in order to relocate offices to safer inland areas."

This section, appearing Saturdays, features topics and issues from the Chubu region covered by the local daily Chunichi Shimbun. The original article was published on June 14.