Installation of ECO Cycle™ at Two Locations in Kobe-shi

GIKEN LTD. (Head Office: Kochi-shi, Kochi; President and CEO: Atsushi Ohira; hereafter “GIKEN”) has announced  that it will install two ECO Cycle™ automated parking facilities (Underground Model / total capacity: 204) in front of both Hyogo Station and Rokkomichi Station in Kobe-shi. This was proposed and accepted by a design joint venture with CPC, Inc. (Head office: Osaka-shi, President and CEO: Hiroaki Shirako), which has a track record in designing ECO Cycle™, in response to public proposals for bicycle parking lot design work conducted by the city. After completing the design in fiscal year 2024, construction is scheduled to begin sequentially in fiscal year 2025 onwards.

The installation is being carried out as part of the “Renovation Kobe” project, which the city is undertaking to further improve the quality of the city and the quality of life, thereby enhancing the city’s brand and attracting more people. ECO Cycle™ is a groundbreaking solution to the demand for bicycle parking around stations, as it can provide high convenience, safety, and ease of construction.

Kobe-shi is planning other renovations and redevelopments in front of stations as well. By demonstrating the superiority of the press-in technology and ECO Cycle™ through this project, we hope to have a ripple effect on other projects. The use of ECO Cycle™ is increasing mainly in the Kanto region, and there are currently 63 units in 26 locations nationwide. Leveraging its use in Kobe-shi, which is attracting attention as a city where people want to live, we will further intensify our proposal activities in the Kansai region and contribute to sustainable, safe, secure and comfortable urban development.

The area around Hyogo Station is a tourist destination with historical sites related to Owada no Tomari and Taira no Kiyomori, as well as temples and shrines. It is also a popular area for commuters and students due to the station being on the JR Kobe Line where rapid trains stop. The area around Rokkomichi Station has residential areas and universities in addition to the ward office and commercial facilities, and is therefore increasingly used by families with children and by students, resulting in a growing demand for bicycle parking.
The plazas in front of both stations are positioned as the face of the area, and there was a demand to create spaces where station users and visitors could stay comfortably and to meet the needs of bicycle users and improve convenience.

Construction sites are close to railroads and roads, and high safety, ease of construction, and consideration of the surrounding environment are required during construction. GIKEN’s SILENT PILER^TM pile press-in  and extraction  machine securely grasps existing piles, so in principle there is no risk of it falling over , and construction can be done without vibration or noise while saving space. The simple construction process allows for the rapid construction of ECO Cycle^TM. Other factors in the decision to use ECO Cycle^TM were its ability to handle bicycles with child seats and to meet the needs of child-raising families, and the high level of after-sales support provided based on 25 years of operation

■Profile of GIKEN Group
GIKEN developed SILENT PILER^TM, the world’s first reaction-based hydraulic pile jacking machine, installing piles without noise or vibration. GIKEN Group now actively promotes its press-in technology worldwide and contributes to the construction industry by proposing and implementing innovative solutions. The innovative press-in technology provides a unique solution and the adoption of this technology has spread to over 40 nations and regions.