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Mr. Uchida’s speech at the opening ceremony for the 12-storey building in Bedok
Your Excellency, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you for making time in your busy schedules to join us for the ceremony to open this new building.
On behalf of everyone at Yokogawa, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our guests here for your continuous support.
Three years and four months ago, on March 4th 2004, we celebrated the 30th Anniversary of Yokogawa in Singapore.
At that opportunity, I shared with you briefly two key decisions at Yokogawa from the viewpoint of our globalization.
The first key decision was made in 1973, one year before the establishment of Yokogawa Electric Singapore.
This was to establish our first foothold outside Japan so that Yokogawa could be prepared for the globalization that, we believed, was surely to come.
As a young project leader, I thought of how the globalization of Yokogawa would progress over the next 20 years or 30 years.
And after investigating several countries, I arrived at Singapore, and I instinctively and also logically decided to recommend Singapore over America and Europe.
- The Singapore Government was led by Lee Kuan Yew, a very strong and visionary leader who was consistent in both speech and action.
- Singapore had a geographical advantage as the navel of the ASEAN countries.
- The local population spoke English.
- And social infrastructure was all either well established, or on the way to being established.
I still remember vividly the presentation I received from the young officers of EDB.
- They talked about the future of Singapore, their eyes shinning with an eagerness to create their own future.
- They explained the future of Singapore with drawings, maps, and some hand-made cardboard mock-ups.
The eagerness of the young officers made me feel that I was actually visualizing the future of Singapore in their explanations.
Now, the Republic of Singapore enjoys a reliable social system which has been prudently built-in over the course of the country’s development.
I am very happy to know that the decision I made 34 years ago was absolutely right.
The second key decision for Yokogawa’s globalization was the resolution to become an invincible global leader in the industrial automation business.
I announced at the 30th anniversary of Yokogawa in Singapore that Yokogawa was targeting to achieve the global number one position in the industrial automation business by 2010.
For that objective, I stressed that the Singapore operation would play an important role in the Yokogawa Group.
Since the establishment of Yokogawa Electric Singapore in 1974, Yokogawa has been enhancing the Singapore operation surely and steadily.
- The Yokogawa culture is based on “Quality First.”
- Therefore, I started the Singapore operation by teaching the concept of MONOZUKURI, or Manufacturing Excellence, to Singaporeans, from the first stage to the master level, by bringing the most difficult-to-manufacture products, analogue meters, to Singapore.
- I also built a fully integrated factory, thinking 20 years and 30 years ahead.
During the last thirty some years, Singapore in itself has undergone an astounding evolution.
- The major industries of Singapore have been shifted from being labor intensive to being knowledge intensive.
- Recently, the Singapore Government has been promoting an evolution into next generation industries like Life Science.
In order to take early advantage of this evolution, we have been evolving our own operations in Singapore.
In 1986, we opened Yokogawa Engineering Center Pte. Ltd.
In 1987, we started the production of CENTUM distributed control systems in Bedok, and received the EDB Pioneer Certificate for our DCS.
Together with the expansion of the Singapore operation, we have also expanded our operations in Europe, North America, China, India, the Middle East and the ASEAN countries.
All of our customers have given a very positive welcome to our expansion, and have also provided a lot of instructive support and suggestions.
In August, 2004, we decided on three actions that would reinforce our Singapore operation.
- One, the establishment of the Singapore Development Center to develop packaged application software for our CENTUM system,
- Two, the establishment of a marketing function for our future businesses that would cultivate Leading Edge Technology in such Life Science related areasas Pharmaceuticals, New medicines development, Fine chemicals, Biochemical, in accordance with the future plans of the Singapore Government.
- Three, the establishment of certain Intellectual Property functions.
We have absolute trust in Singapore’s reliable social system.
Therefore, in April 2005, we decided to establish Yokogawa Electric International Pte. Ltd. as the headquarters for our global industrial automation business, by bringing together all the Yokogawa Group’s know-how in Singapore.
Now, Yokogawa Electric International supports approximately 60% of Yokogawa’s sales, and manages from Singapore approximately 8,800 employees throughout the Yokogawa Group.
In August 2005, we decided to build this 12-story building in Bedok to serve the growing needs of our customers by enhancing our ability to perform Staging, Engineering, Software Development, Manufacturing, and around the clock Service.
On a personal level, for the last 34 years, I think, I have been working very hard, perhaps to further materialize the excitement I experienced in Singapore.
As a result, I became the CEO of Yokogawa in 1999.
For me, Singapore is a good-luck charm.
I am grateful for this opportunity to express my deep gratitude for the energy and the efforts of the Singaporeans, who have created the current prosperity.
And I would like to express my deep gratitude to the leaders of the Singapore Government, who have been supporting Yokogawa continuously.
What are the next steps?
Now, we are steadily advancing towards the global number one position in the industrial automation business.
Then, we will maintain the leading position to keep our commitment to customers for many years to come.
In addition to the industrial automation business, we will be aiming for the global number one position in such fields as Test & Measurement, Life Science, Photonics Communication, and Micro Reactors.
I would like to develop our bases for all these fields, while working for the prosperity of Singapore.
After this opening ceremony, we would like to take you through the exhibition showing some of our pioneering technologies for the future.
I hope you will find many items that interest you.
Thank you.
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