Muran Contest Winner
Date: 2003-03-21

BATTLE CREEK—Jeff Wetters, a senior systems analyst in Information Systems at DENSO Manufacturing Michigan, Inc., placed third last year for his invention of spokeless bicycle wheels in DENSO’s biennial Muran Contest. The contest was held at DENSO’s Takatana plant in Anjo, Aichi, Japan.

The Muran Contest provides the opportunity for DENSO associates worldwide to compete for awards for inventions that display creativity and initiative. The term, muran, is a combination of two Japanese words, mu (dream) and ran(egg), and means “the combination of an egg and a dream. The egg projects "unexpectedness" and growth and a love of dreaming is of great importance,” according to information from the Muran committee. Inventions must fit into one of the following categories: living, environmental conservation/competition, welfare/social contribution and fun.

Prize money is awarded to winners. As the 3rd place winner, Jeff received $900. Wetters, a DMMI associate since 1996, raced bicycles, both mountain and road bikes, for fun in college. He says: “The idea came to me one day when I was rebuilding the set of hubs on a wheel set. I took apart the hubs, both of which had two bearings. As I was cleaning the bearings, the idea of increasing the bearings to 600 cm came to mind. This would replace the hub at the center of the wheel and eliminate the need for spokes which account for 25% to 40% of all wind resistance that a bicycle generates.”

Jeff’s first invention and first-time entry in the Muran Contest took about 400 hours to accomplish. DENSO, a leading supplier of advanced automotive technology, systems and components for all the world's major carmakers, operates in 30 countries with 87,000 associates. Global consolidated sales totaled US$18.1 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2002, an irregular 15-month reporting period. In North America, DENSO employs 14,000 people at 26 locations. Consolidated sales for North America totaled US$4.7 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2002.

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