NOK Corporation (Headquarters: Shibadaimon, Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director, Group Chief Executive Officer: Masao Tsuru) launched “NOK Children’s Cafeteria: Manmaru Hiroba,” a monthly program at its Fukushima Plant in Fukushima City, on Monday, October 20. By opening the plant’s employee cafeteria and gymnasium to local children, the program supports healthy growth and fosters connections between children and the wider community.
This initiative is carried out in collaboration with Fukushima City Kodomo Shokudo NET (operator: NPO Beans Fukushima) and the General Incorporated Association CARNIVAL WORKS, with volunteers from the NOK Fukushima Plant managing on-site operations. The program is aimed at elementary and junior high school students and will offer free meals, study support, and time for play and physical activity in the gym. It will also provide hands-on opportunities to experience NOK’s products and technologies to spark interest in manufacturing.

Following the renovation of its employee cafeteria in August 2025, the NOK Fukushima Plant began planning and preparing a place for community engagement. As part of this effort, the newly opened NOK Children’s Cafeteria: Manmaru Hiroba will support children and local residents to connect naturally through eating, learning, and play. According to Fukushima City Kodomo Shokudo NET, this is the first initiative in Fukushima Prefecture in which a company regularly operates a children’s cafeteria using its own employee cafeteria.

About NOK Children’s Cafeteria: Manmaru Hiroba

NOK Children’s Cafeteria: Manmaru Hiroba was named through an employee vote, reflecting the hope for a space where the community comes together in a full circle. (“Manmaru Hiroba” literally means “Circle Plaza.”) Built around the idea of a place shaped by everyone, the program is designed to be an open space that nurtures new encounters and strengthens connections within the community.
The company will host the program once a month for about two and a half hours, using the employee cafeteria and gym. For elementary and junior high school students, each session includes free meals, homework and study support from student volunteers, time to enjoy games, and active play in the gym. A unique feature of the program is the chance to experience NOK’s products and technologies firsthand, including oil seals. Volunteer employees will guide simple experiments using devices they created, as well as games that incorporate NOK products, helping spark children’s curiosity and interest in manufacturing.

NOK Children’s Cafeteria: Manmaru Hiroba — First Session Overview

• Date: Monday, October 20, 2025, 4:00-6:30 p.m.
            Planned to run about once per month thereafter
• Venue: NOK Fukushima Plant, 8 Tsuzukibori, Nagaikawa Aza, Fukushima City, Fukushima Prefecture
              Locations: employee cafeteria, gymnasium, and other
• Participants: Approximately 30 people, including nearby elementary school children and their families
                      Meals are free for elementary and junior high school students
• Staff: NOK employees; student volunteers from CARNIVAL WORKS (high school and university)
• Program: Study and free time (games include: Othello, Jenga, origami), hands-on activities with NOK products and technologies, meal, and gym play (ring toss, target-throw “strikeout” game, bowling, and others)

About the NOK Fukushima Plant Cafeteria Renovation

In August 2025, the NOK Fukushima Plant renovated its employee cafeteria under the concept “Gather, Connect, Transform.” The space now functions as a hub for interaction, not only for meals but also for quick meetings, PC work, and casual conversations. The goal is to encourage communication among employees and foster an environment where open dialogue leads to new ideas.

About Fukushima City Kodomo Shokudo NET

Fukushima City Kodomo Shokudo NET is a network of children’s cafeterias in Fukushima City. It tackles common challenges, develops human resources, and strengthens peer-to-peer links to support cafeterias across the city. The network also connects different types of assistance and works to build a sustainable model for children’s cafeterias. NPO Beans Fukushima (Chair: Hiroyuki Chubachi), an organization that supports children and youth based in Fukushima City, operates the network under commission from the city.

About the General Incorporated Association CARNIVAL WORKS

General Incorporated Association CARNIVAL WORKS (Representative Director: Daisuke Etou) is a nonprofit based in Koriyama City, Fukushima Prefecture, and is devoted to community building that supports children, youth, and older adults across the whole region. Its activities in Fukushima include a free tutoring program, children’s cafeterias, a student-run charity café, and circular community projects through upcycling. Guided by the purpose, “Let’s create an interesting future together,” the organization continually creates opportunities for young people to engage with social issues and grow as the next generation of community leaders.  

Other Community Contribution Activities by the NOK Fukushima Plant

NOK Group values communication with local communities and strives to be a company that grows together with stakeholders as a trusted organization and one regarded with pride. The company focuses on activities that support the sustainable development of the communities where its sites are located and on nurturing the next generation. At the Fukushima Plant, the company works with local governments, companies, and organizations on the following:

•    Supporting Fukushima United Football Club as an official club partner (since 2018), hosting the “NOK Special Match” and soccer clinics, and providing the plant gymnasium as a practice venue in 2025.
•    Sponsoring the Fukushima City Half Marathon 2025. Employees participate as runners and volunteer to operate water stations to support participants (since 2025).
•    Registering as a “Tekishio Supporter” under Fukushima City’s salt-reduction initiative “Tekishio,” and offering reduced-salt menu items in the employee cafeteria (since 2025).
•    Taking part in Lake Inawashiro Clean Action (organized by Fukushima Prefecture and others) in 2024.