Toyota Material Handling Manufacturing Sweden in Mjölby manufactures forklifts and warehouse trucks, in which hydraulics play an important role. That is why they also build their own hydraulic hoses in the right lengths and with the right connections from the outset.

The Toyota Way is about applying exceptional efficiency in material handling. That is why the hoses are also cleaned thoroughly before use to ensure that the hydraulics work flawlessly for a long time.

In the beginning of 2025 Toyota in Mjölby purchased their third washer for their industrial parts cleaning of hoses. In connection with the latest machine from Viverk, a new water based cleaner from DST-CHEMICALS was tested. The criteria for changing was that the degreaser cleaner should be more environmentally friendly, able to run a lower temperature while maintaining the same industrial cleaning results.

In line with Kaizen, the Toyota-coined term for improvement work, the results of the new water based cleaner and its various properties were examined, and the results were crystal clear. 

Low temperature cleaning in this case means that the temperature was reduced from 60°C down to 40°C resulting in nearly 40% savings on energy. And the quality of the cleaning results even improved. 

The washing machine became almost self-heating, which protects the heating elements. The low temperature cleaning also means less wear and tear on pumps and other moving parts. These are now cooled rather than heated by the liquid being pumped around. Due to the reduced evaporation Toyota now also saves water. 

However, the most important improvement is the work environment. Hot steam in the washing chambers during loading and unloading is a thing of the past. The pull-out hose shelves and hoses that are cleaned are no longer too hot to handle, but now pleasantly warm to the touch.

‘When you want optimum quality you have to get the cleaning facility’s mechanical washing programme to work in harmony with the cleaner. When the parts are really clean, they will dry easier, as the water simply runs off easier.’ Explains Fredrik Widén Area Sales Manager, DST-CHEMICALS in Sweden. 

Jens Adell, production engineer at Toyota in Mjölby contintues “Our trials with the older washing machines prove that this is indeed the case. We have three washing machines here and previously used two different chemicals, and a de-foamer. When we tested the new degreaser DST-DEGREEZ/3 in an older washing machine, we also noticed a difference in cleanliness. Even the old deposits that had built up on the inside the machine disappeared when we used the cleaner from DST-CHEMICALS”. 

Arvid Klinthäll finishes: “we have indeed found the perfect set-up and in addition we find that the bath stays cleaner for longer – which means increased bath life time and again less water consumption”.

40% energy savings, longer bath lifetime, reduced water consumption and less wear on equipment. For Toyota Material Handling in Mjölby, the switch to DST-DEGREEZ/3 delivered a measurably lower total cost of ownership, proving that better cleaning and lower costs go hand in hand. That is Pure Performance.