Masayuki Hammyo Becomes New President of NKK
Masayuki Hammyo, 61, was promoted from executive vice president to the position of president and representative director of NKK, succeeding Yoichi Shimogaichi, who became chairman and representative director on February 1. At the same time, former chairman Shunkichi Miyoshi assumed the post of honorary adviser. Mr. Hammyo joined NKK in April 1963 after graduating from the University of Tokyo with a degree in engineering. He served in a variety of positions in production management at the Keihin Works and in technology planning and coordination at the head office. He was appointed to the board of directors in 1992. Four years later, Mr. Hammyo was promoted to managing director and became general manager of the Fukuyama Works. In 1999, after taking office as executive vice president and representative director, he became actively involved in overseeing the technical side of the company, including research and development. Mr. Hammyo's sense of purpose and determination was made clear in an address delivered to employees following his inauguration. Acknowledging the weight of his responsibility as president in the lead up to the company's merger with Kawasaki Steel, Mr. Hammyo stressed the need to achieve targets, maximize profits and sharpen competitiveness. Referring to the synergistic effects of the consolidation, Mr. Hammyo said, "During the first four years, we aim to achieve combined annual savings of ¥80 billion, ¥30 billion of which may well be achieved by the end of fiscal 2002, in other words, prior to reorganization." All operations of NKK and Kawasaki Steel are scheduled to be reorganized by business segment into five companies by April 2003. To achieve targeted savings, he emphasized, "it is essential that we continue to rationalize operations and cut costs in all areas, with nothing held 'sacred.' This focus will require a strong sense of unity and harmony among the employees of the two companies, so I will actively encourage two-way interaction. I anticipate significant movement of personnel between our new East and West steelworks." He also voiced the importance of maximizing profits and fully achieving goals. "When a manufacturer fails to turn a profit, it becomes harder to make consistent investments in the development of new technology, maintenance of production equipment, and in other areas that can help strengthen operations. Without such investment, product quality, yields, productivity, and employee skills begin to stagnate and eventually decline. A parallel can be drawn to human civilization, which must always strive to develop or run the risk of falling into decline. We must consistently expand our profitability to further develop our 'civilization' of manufacturing." Mr. Hammyo stressed the need for integrating production, sales, and technology, noting that they are the individual elements of a unified process. "If we are to survive, we will need to demonstrate excellence in more than just manufacturing to surpass the competition. NKK and Kawasaki Steel offer many products for which we are either the top or only suppliers. The consolidation will combine our lineup of leading products and technologies and double supply capacity, thereby giving us the means to make meaningful improvements in our customer services," he said. Since taking up his post, Mr. Hammyo has been stressing his commitment to build on NKK's proud history, as well as energize the enormous potential and capacity of the new JFE Group. |
