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We have this interview with Mr. Noji, President & CEO of Komatsu Ltd., on a quarterly basis.
My name is Akari Joko and I am going to interview Mr. Noji.
In the feature section of this interview program, we decide on different topics in relation to Komatsu’s strengths and future efforts.
In this feature section today, I am going to introduce Komatsu’s stance on CSR efforts by using its strengths, and update some activities in Japan and abroad.
Shall we begin, Mr. Noji?
Yes, please.
Although we introduced Komatsu’s stance on CSR in this interview program of June last year, let me briefly explain it again today.
Komatsu recognizes that its business activities are CSR efforts per se, and works to respond to social needs by focusing on these three areas.
Today we are going to update activities in the areas of Growing with Society and Developing People.
As part of its efforts in Growing with Society, Komatsu has developed bulldozer-based demining machines for anti-personnel landmines, and since 2008 Komatsu has been working on community redevelopment projects in Cambodia and Angola in cooperation with Japan Mine Action Service (JMAS), a non-profit organization of Japan, by using Komatsu-developed demining machines.
Mr. Noji, please update this community redevelopment activity, which we introduced in this program last year.
Concerning the demining project in Cambodia, we have been building roads, working on irrigation, developing farmland and building elementary schools, after removing landmines.
Our projects are completed when each community or village is redeveloped.
I see. It’s not only demining.
That’s right.
People must live there, so demining alone is not sufficient.
As Cambodia is an agricultural country, we make sure that they will be able to farm their land.
So they will need water, roads, and so forth. In this manner, we are making our contributions to recovering their village life.
We have completed redeveloping four villages and are working on the fifth project today.
We would like to continue our efforts in dialogue with the Cambodian government.
Now children can play outside safely.
Yes. Mr. Shionozuka, President of our Construction and Mining Equipment Marketing Division, has recently visited Cambodia and attended an opening ceremony of the fourth elementary school.
On that day, the children also enjoyed an athletic meet on the school grounds.
I have never heard about athletic meets at Cambodian elementary schools.
No. Japanese members of the project taught some Japanese events there, and obviously Cambodian children liked them.
Also in Angola, Komatsu is continuing its redevelopment efforts by using a demining machine.
We are planning to remove landmines in a 200- hector area and construct a new town.
We are also engaging in this project in response to a request from the Angolan government.
We are currently focusing efforts on removing landmines and installing water tanks and pumps to secure safe drinking water.
You are making an environment for people to live in.
That’s right.
Only the removal of landmines won’t be enough for people.
They need a village or town to live safely.
When we accomplish that objective, we regard a project, as completed.
Now let us move to CSR activities in Japan.
I would like to ask you about Komatsu Group’s restoration and reconstruction assistance efforts in areas destroyed by the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Before asking Mr. Noji, let me outline Komatsu Group’s efforts.
As described in this program of June this year, soon after the outbreak of this disaster, the Komatsu Group rounded up available construction and other equipment in the devastated areas from around Japan and began free-of-charge lending of them to remove debris for the first stage of assistance.
For the second stage, the Komatsu Group implemented free-of-charge lending of prefabricated structures to build clinics, schools and post offices, which were needed to reconstruct local communities.
For the third stage, Komatsu Group is getting ready to fulfill the responsibility to supply products which will be needed to relocate houses on higher areas as part of the full-scale reconstruction projects by municipal governments.
At the same time, the Komatsu Group is focusing its efforts to develop machines for use in restoration and reconstruction as well as dangerous locations in an effort to make social contributions through its business.
Mr. Noji, I understand that you have regularly visited the devastated areas.
What’s the situation today?
Well, I go there once every one month and half.
As about 800 colleagues are working there, I also thank them while I visit many places to see how well restoration and reconstruction are advancing.
Today, very unfortunately, they are still removing and disposing of debris, and full-scale reconstruction is not in sight.
As part of Komatsu Group’s assistance, I have heard that Komatsu Group has established a safety training center for construction equipment operators.
Would you tell us about it?
As when removing debris, the number of operators is still in short.
To encourage disaster-stricken people in the Tohoku region to become operators, we opened a new training center in Sendai in December last year.
As of today, some 4,000 people have received instructions.
4,000 in just one year?
Yes. We offer affordable tuition by cutting it to about half.
I also understand that Komatsu is going to fully utilize its technological portfolio to develop new machines and innovate old machines for use in a diverse range of assistance.
Sure. In addition to deploying our machine for radioactive decontamination in Fukushima Prefecture among others, our most recent effort involved an amphibious bulldozer which was originally developed 40 years ago.
We restored one unit made 19 years ago by replacing most parts with new ones.
You actually found the unit.
Yes. Our people at the Osaka Plant and suppliers worked very hard to restore one unit.
Last month we tested it and confirmed that it could work.
So it is removing debris from marine life farms which was washed away from land by the tsunami.
We need to remove the debris to shallow water.
That's right. First the debris must be removed.
That's why we are using the restored amphibious bulldozer.
I would love to see it on sight as soon as possible.
Our service department is taking care of this project.
They have filmed the amphibious bulldozer in operation in a video format and the video has been shown in the concerned community.
Another focused CSR area is developing people.
Please describe what Komatsu is doing in this regard.
While developing people extends to a very wide range, we are developing people again through our business operation.
In Africa, for example, demand for construction equipment accounts for 5% or smaller of global demand today.
We would like to develop markets there.
According to our business stance, we must first ensure a service engineer is available, even when we sell one machine.
Even in such a market with very small sales, the most important aspect is human resources.
To train service engineers, we have opened training centers in Senegal and Kenya, where we offer general service skill programs.
When participants complete the programs, they will be able to repair cars and other machines.
Although demand for construction equipment is very small, we are diligently promoting human resource development in Africa, for example.
Naturally, training programs differ depending upon regions.
Recently in Japan, we have built the KOMATSU Way Global Institute on the former site of the Komatsu Plant in Ishikawa Prefecture in order to train all service engineers and instructors of the Komatsu Group from around the world.
Needless to say, training instructors requires advanced programs.
Our retirees conduct science classes for local school children at Komatsu Green Park, also located on the same site.
Those classes are so popular that there is a waiting list.
In this way, we are working to foster the growth of children together with local communities.
In addition to technical training, do you have other programs designed to teach something like leadership, for example?
As KOMATSU Way Global Institute is a comprehensive training facility, we offer not only technical training but also leadership and other programs, such as KOMATSU Way training.
Many training programs are also designed for different positions, departments and divisions.
We are concentrating all training programs and large-scale meetings at this facility.
Does the establishment of the KOMTASU Way Global Institute reflect Komatsu’s commitment or determination for CSR?
In the past, we used to hold training programs at the Oyama Plant, Tokyo Head Office and other locations in Japan.
By concentrating all these training programs at this new facility, we understand we have been making contributions to Komatsu City, the original home to Komatsu, and neighboring communities.
Local hotels and restaurants are almost always busy, for example, with Komatsu-related people using the KOMATSU Way Global Institute.
So, to answer your question, we have built this facility specifically to redistribute profits to the local community by concentrating all our training programs, as far as Japan is concerned.
We are also engaged in academia-industrial collaborations.
In Russia, we have joint programs at universities in Yaroslavl, Vladivostok and Khabarovsk.
In Turkmenistan, we have a service training institution.
In China, as I have already described a few times in this program, we have been training service engineers jointly with a university in Shandong.
Most recently, Komatsu Forest, our subsidiary in Umea, Sweden, celebrated its 50th anniversary.
As the company wanted to do something for the community, it had discussions with local residents and decided to make a donation to a local high school.
The high school then opened the Komatsu Technical Center, where students are receiving occupational training.
Komatsu’s CSR activities are found around the world.
Thank you.
Local needs or our targets differ depending upon regions.
Even if you succeed in one thing in a certain region, you won’t be able to apply that worldwide.
Ways of carrying out activities also differ.
In Africa, we need to adopt African ways, and similarly, Japanese ways in Japan and so forth.
In Myanmar, many foreign companies are entering its market today.
We have engaged in business there for some years, and have already generated a considerable amount of sales.
We have recently delivered a number of large construction equipment, so repair will become necessary soon.
We have opened a special course of construction equipment in collaboration with a local university in order to first train instructors who will be training service engineers later.
This course has already begun.
Maybe to your surprise, we have a long history in many foreign countries, engaging in business while working for communities.
It is very important to develop human resources locally, because those people will play a vital role of rooting the Komatsu brand five or ten years later, which will then lead to a wider acceptance and appreciation of local communities.
Thank you, Mr. Noji.