ISOWA NEWS LETTER

ISOWA NEWS LETTER Vol.37

May 2, 2012 at 11:00 am | Posted in English version | Leave a comment

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                           ISOWA NEWS LETTER

                                                   2012/5/2     Vol. 37

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  ISOWA NEWS LETTER is a newsletter for the benefit of special customers only.

  Each month we bring you information about our company and its products

― information you won’t find on our home page or in our catalogs.

  We hope ISOWA NEWS LETTER will help you feel closer to us.

Hi, this is Hiroki Mizuno from the Export Department.

May has already arrived, which means that Golden Week (a long holiday period inJapanlasting several days starting in late April) is upon us here inJapan.

This is a fun time of year full of excitement during which many people plan trips both withinJapanand to overseas destinations.

Meanwhile, there are still quite a few people from the area around the strickenFukushimanuclear plant who still haven’t been able to return to their own homes.

And there are also a lot of people from coastal areas in Tohoku who lost their homes to the tsunami and still anxiously pass their days living in temporary housing structures.

Over a year now has passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake struck.

But it was an unforgettable tragedy that deeply affected many people all around the world, both Japanese and non-Japanese alike.

When I visit overseas customers, I still get asked questions about it, such as,
“Has the area around ISOWA been affected by the nuclear power plant disaster?”

I always reply that everything is fine here at ISOWA as we weren’t directly affected by the disaster because the area where the company is located is about 420 km (about 261 miles) away from theFukushimanuclear plant.

Even though we here at ISOWA remain unaffected, we would like to offer our continued prayers and sincerest wishes for the health, happiness, and security of those in or from the affected areas.

And now, let’s turn to Vol. 37 of the [ISOWA NEWS LETTER].

　We hope you’ll enjoy this volume.

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  The Upcoming Retirement of Veteran Salesman Mr. K 

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  Hello, everybody. This is Shingo Saegusa from the Tokyo Domestic Sales Office.

  In this issue, I’d like to share details from an interview I had with Mr. K, a veteran salesman from right here at the Tokyo Domestic Sales Office who will be retiring from ISOWA in June this year (2012). Mr. K and I sat down to discuss some of his thoughts and memories working here at ISOWA and with all the different customers he had the pleasure of working with through the years.

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Saegusa: How long have you been working in this industry, Mr. K?

Mr. K: I worked at another company for 23 years and ISOWA for 14, for a total of 37 in this industry.

Saegusa: As someone who’s worked at another company in this industry, could you tell us what you think ISOWA’s main strength is?

Mr. K: To sum it up in a single word, I’d have to say “teamwork.”

Just the way that everyone crosses over the boundaries of their own department and comes together as one across the entire company to get an installation done or to work on development of new machinery, how organized ISOWA is that way.

Saegusa: Could you give any specific examples?

Mr. K: When a certain customer implemented a “New Gap Order Change” system that we provided to help reduce loss during order changes, the Design Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Sales Departments all got together and brainstormed ways to improve the technology in order to fulfill requests to further reduce loss and succeeded in cutting down on switching loss between orders from a loss of 20 cm (around 7.9 in.) to a loss of only 5 cm (about 2 in.).

I still remember very clearly the happy and amazed looks I saw on the faces of the customers and ISOWA employees working on the installation with me when we succeeded in cutting loss down to 5 cm (about 2 in.). I was also very impressed with how the departments were able to develop new ways of handling multi-flute gap control for the doublefacers.

Saegusa: Why do you think ISOWA was able to create so many new developments, one after another in succession like that?

Mr. K: I think it’s one of the products of the corporate culture that ISOWA has implemented and continues to promote.
The areas between departments have become more open and conducive to exchange in recent years than it was before here at ISOWA.
It has become much easier for employees to share their opinions with others, which helps ISOWA as a company respond to customer needs more quickly.

Saegusa: You said that the corporate culture of the company overall has changed, but have you noticed any distinct changes in the individual employees themselves?

Mr. K: The keyword there is “Kintaro-ame.”

(Note: Kintaro-ame is a type of traditional Japanese cut rock candy with pictures of Kintaro, a super strong hero-type character from a Japanese folk tale, in the center that is made in a long stick and cut up so that no matter where you cut, you always get a picture of Kintaro, with “ame” being the Japanese word for hard candy.)

Saegusa: Kintaro-ame? What do you mean?

Mr. K: It feels like I can expect the exact same answer from people no matter what department they work in, like everyone is on the same wavelength.
Before, for example, if I talked to Mr. A about something and then asked Mr. B about the same thing, I’d get two answers that were slightly different. That’s because Mr. A and Mr. B were heading in slightly different directions.
Nowadays, however, it seems that everyone in the company is on the same track.

Saegusa: Just like with Kintaro-ame where you get the same pattern no matter where you cut. That’s an interesting way of looking at it.

Saegusa: Would you be willing to share some stories about some of the more memorable things you experienced after so many long years of working here?

Mr. K: One was installation of a corrugator line.
One thing that made me glad I joined ISOWA was being　able to be involved in two different installations of a corrugator line.
I think the main reason I was able to do so was because ISOWA is a general manufacturer of corrugated machinery that makes all kinds of machines.
Of course, I did have some struggles, as well.
There were nights I didn’t even have time to sleep trying to get all the adjustments made at ISOWA and the adjustments needed between all the different contractors who helped us on jobs including building contractors. There were times we had to postpone installation work because it would start raining, which put a strain on installation deadlines, and I always got really worried in such cases that we wouldn’t get everything done on time.

Saegusa: How did you manage to get through those kinds of experiences?

Mr. K: I managed to somehow get everything done on time all thanks to the support and assistance of everyone at ISOWA, in particular those in the Assembly, Design Engineering, and Electrical Engineering Departments.

Saegusa: If you as a veteran employee with so much experience would be willing, is there any advice you’d like to share with the younger employees at ISOWA?

Mr. K: One thing is that I want them to do the best they can with their work while being conscious of their roles as “ISOWA people.”
If they view things not in a transient manner but rather in a more sustained manner, they should be able to more steadily and assuredly build upon their abilities and improve skills.
ISOWA is a machinery manufacturer, so there’s probably a lot of specialized technology and language that newer employees may just not be used to yet. I’m sure that it’ll be pretty hard for them those first few months after joining the company, but I hope they realize that there’s no need for them to rush and try to learn everything all at once in a big blur. They should take their time to really get to know the inner workings of the company and build up experience and skills a little bit at a time.

Saegusa: What does “sales” mean to you, Mr. K?

Mr. K: As far as sales goes, I’ve always operated under the idea that “we’re not selling machinery to customers but rather dreams.”
I just think of the machinery as one of the means customers can use to fulfill their dreams.

Saegusa: Dreams, huh? I’m sure that your approach of working to come up with ways for customers to realize their dreams has helped you obtain the trust of those customers, which is probably one thing that made you so successful.

Saegusa: In closing, if you have any last words to share with us.

Mr. K: I just want to say that I have no regrets toward my life in the corrugated machinery industry!!

Saegusa: Thank you very much for sharing your time and words of wisdom with us.

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Well, what did you think of this interview? Hope you liked it!

As one of the younger employees who has taken on the role and responsibility of continuing to work hard to sustain and further develop the relationships Mr. K has cultivated with customers based on trust, I pledge to devote myself to work to help ISOWA further grow and develop into an even better company.

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Tales of ISOWA People
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Start of the First ISOWA “Printer Slotter”

  In 1956 (Showa 31 according to the Japanese year system), the year during which ISOWA ceased all manufacturing of paper box machinery and began to focus completely on manufacturing products related solely to corrugated machinery, Japan was experiencing a strong period of growth and steadily improving economic status commonly referred to in Japan as the “Jimmu Era” of high economic growth (Jinmu was the name of the first emperor of Japan according to legend). With a strong position in the corrugated machinery industry, ISOWA steadily improved sales performance. At that time, in terms of industry ranking and considering only specialized manufacturers, ISOWA was fourth after Niwa inOsaka, Marumatsu inTokyo, and Uchida in Saitama. In August of that same year, a special stockholders’ meeting was held during which two people were appointed to the Board of Directors, Mr. Masao Yamashita who was in charge of manufacturing and Mr. Fukutaro Hattori who was in charge of materials. This was the company’s first step toward becoming a more structured organization. 

  The following year, the economy entered a downturn, but the corrugated machinery industry was one of the few “bright spots” that remained relatively unaffected by the weakening economy. One thing that each of the corrugated machinery manufacturers was in a rush to accomplish was advancing technology for printer slotters, the machine that was, along with corrugators, attracting the most attention at the time. There were still only about 10 printer slotter machines in operation throughout all of Japan at that time, and ISOWA was still only producing the most basic type of machine starting from around 1955 (Showa 30) in response to customer requests under the name, Two-color Standard Transverse Printer with Attached Slotter. This was the company’s very first foray into making printer slotters.

  From around 1957 (Showa 32), ISOWA began working on developing a printer slotter with a new design. With the cooperation and assistance of the Ohashi Design Office, which had broken off from the engineering department of Okuma Machinery Works, a company that had a close relationship with ISOWA, and established itself as a separate entity, Eiichi worked himself on the design of the new machinery and helped to complete two new printer slotters, models 6R and 7R. Starting from early 1958 (Showa 33), the first model 6R was installed at Tokaishiki in Nagoya, the first model 7R at the Miyahara Plant of Tokan Kogyo, the second model 7R at Toyo Danball in Osaka, and the third model 7R at the Yokohama Tsunashima Plant of Toyo Wood Products (now known as Tomoku). At the time, these companies were all businesses that were growing at top speed in the industry. It was these very types of companies that ISOWA, a local manufacturer in theNagoyaarea at the time, was able to score orders from, beating out other manufacturers in the market.

  In fall of 1959 (Showa 34), the model 7R became the first ISOWA printer slotter to be exported when it left Japan via Nomura Trading in Osaka bound for its overseas destination in the Philippines. Ruby Corp., the company that had ordered the machine, was ahead of any other company in the world in highly praising the 7R for its excellent balance between price and quality saying that it was ahead of any other company in the world. Unfortunately, something unforeseen occurred that hampered efforts at shipping the machine. Just before the 7R was to be loaded at the Port of Nagoya, Super Typhoon Vera, known as Isewan Typhoon in Japan and one of the strongest typhoons ever known to have hit Japan, struck Ise Bay near Nagoya. Due to the gale force winds, strong rains, high waves, and high tide, the 7R machine sitting in storage at the Port was inundated with salt water.

  Later on looking back on that time, Eiichi had the comments below to say about what had happened.

 “We had to hurry up and do something to save the machine. About 10 of us loaded into the back of a truck and raced through streets washed out by the typhoon, trying to navigate the ravaged city, and finally somehow managed to arrive at thePortofNagoya. We tore off the packing around the machine and took the machine apart, each of us doing whatever we could to wipe up the salt water inside. We weren’t able to finish in just one day but had to keep going back several more times. Even now, I can recall quite vividly when we were finally able to repack up the machine and get it shipped out.”

  With the strength and assistance of a great many ISOWA People, Eiichi was able to overcome this difficulty and even went to thePhilippineshimself to help with the machine and offer his support and technical guidance to get the 7R up and running. This trip that he made was the very first overseas business trip made by anyone at ISOWA.

 

A printer-slotter in operation at the Tomoku Tsunashima Works plant after it was installed.

Damage from Super Typhoon Vera, known inJapanas the Isewan Typhoon, one of the strongest typhoons to have ever hitJapan, which caused major damage in the Ise Bay area nearNagoya,AichiPrefecture, in September 1959.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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  We thank you for reading through the ISOWA NEWS LETTER.

  How did you like our press letter?  If you have an interest in a

particular subject, please kindly inform us. We are willing to bring

your subject to the press.

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  “Quickness and Interaction”

   1) Take the Initiative – Accepting challenges is the highest of virtues

   2) Extend a hand – Nurturing mutual trust and communication among people

   3) Brighten the atmosphere – Creating a frank and open working environment

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