ESG Voice 2017

QTell us about the advantages of seats you perceive through engaging with end users.

We often provide advice on seats when we talk to customers who come to our dealership to have their cars checked out, maintained, repaired or given an official motor vehicle inspection.

For example, in terms of specifications or functions, customers who enjoy long distance drives may say they want soft seats to prevent fatigue when sitting for long periods. I myself used to enjoy driving sporty cars, and I loved the snug hold you get from sports cars’ bucket seats, which cradle the passenger. I think we can make customers even more comfortable through seats that match specific objectives, such as softness or a snug hold.

Over a decade ago, there was a seat arrangement in a minivan called “restaurant mode,” where you could turn the first row of seats around to face the third row and fold the second row of seats down to make a table. It is perfect for relaxation and socializing, so if it were brought back, we could propose new ways to enjoy driving with family and friends.

QTalk about your hopes for the future.

Nowadays, cars are closely intertwined with our lifestyles. My dream is to further enrich customers’ lives through cars fitted with easy-to-use seats that don’t make you feel tired.

Response

We look at posture, body pressure, vibration, hold, heat and acoustics in our R&D to create seats where users can sit for long periods without fatigue. We create numerical values representing the ideal posture for each person; to make a product that embodies these values, we incorporate them into underlying technologies like frame construction, cushion material characteristics, surface materials, adjustment mechanisms and electrical components. Based upon customer opinions from online surveys, we also propose attractive seating arrangement technology not offered by other companies. We will continue to create wonderful seats that make customers happy through “looking, touching, sitting, driving and using.”

(Development and Testing Department)

QWhat led to your involvement with TS TECH?

We first started working with TS TECH around 30 years ago, when we helped set up a CAD^* system environment at TS TECH’s Technology Center. We recently transferred the server for the Head Office’s System Department to an IBM Japan cloud environment, and we are managing that data.

QTalk about your hopes for the future as a business partner.

When Za Lab members stayed at our training facility several years ago, I sat in on a number of meetings. They gave me a real sense of the unique ways we at IBM Japan can contribute to creating seats of the future. Seats are points of contact with passengers; as automated driving evolves and people spend less time behind the wheel, we need seats that are safer and more comfortable than ever. One of Za Lab’s research themes is sensing passengers’ biological information—blood pressure, heart rate, etc.—and sensing technology is one of our areas of expertise. Moreover, we have a long history of global expansion and a lengthy track record of diversity initiatives, including those related to female management and LGBT employees.

We hope to contribute to TS TECH not only through a cloud environment, but also by means of human resources utilization and other areas closely connected to manufacturing.

Response

We have worked with IBM Japan for many years, and we are deeply grateful for their helping our younger employees with Za Lab activities.

With efforts to develop self-driving vehicles already underway, it will be necessary for the automotive industry to monitor drivers and passengers in the future. As a department involved in seat development, we place a high level of importance on biological information, and we work strategically on its technological development, through technology from Za Lab’s presentations at Za Forum and more.

Going forward, we will continue cutting-edge technological development in the domains of safety, the environment and comfort to create high-value products.

(New Product Development Department)

• CAD (Computer-Aided Design): Design processes assisted by computers. In the automotive field, CATIA (three-dimensional CAD software) is now mainstream.

QOf the information a company discloses, what do you view as important when considering investments?

When analyzing a company’s results, financial data is the most important of all disclosed information. However, we must also examine what is going on behind the scenes at workplaces when forecasting a company’s future. When we are considering investments, we base decisions not only on routine discussions with management and plant tours inside and outside Japan, but also on non-financial information like technological development-related issues described in the TS TECH Report, descriptions of business models and corporate governance.

QWhat are your expectations for TS TECH?

There has been a lot of talk on the stock market over the past few years about how “the structure of the automaker market is approaching a tipping point” with, for example, venture companies in Silicon Valley directing funding towards efforts to promote the spread of “robo-taxis” with no steering wheels. I look forward to what TS TECH will do going forward, and I plan to keep following it to see what long-term strategies it will develop through technological developments that focus on “sitting.”

Response

We value communication with our shareholders/investors, and we proactively disclose information to ensure that we are evaluated fairly by society.

In addition to the disclosure of financial information, we will also present our competitive products and technologies to the automotive industry of the next generation through avenues such as the TS TECH Report, Za Forum and a booth at the Tokyo Motor Show.

We will work hard not only to boost our corporate value but also to help build a sustainable global society from the perspective of ESG investment^*, which is anticipated to become an even greater subject of focus going forward.

(Administration Department)

• ESG investment: Investment that selects and focuses on companies that consider the environment, social issues and governance.

QTell us a little about your career and current work.

In April 2017, I was appointed to a post at TS TECH (HONG KONG) CO., LTD., one of our regional control companies, as the first female employee of the TS TECH Group to be stationed overseas. My role as a trade specialist is to bolster trade management operations at all Chinese sites. Up until March 2017, I mainly handled overseas operations related to imports/exports at Japanese sites as a member of the Foreign Trade Management Office at the Head Office. Currently, the scope of my work is expanding, and I am working on several new policies daily.

QWhat are your aspirations for the future?

To date, I have worked only in trade-related operations at a series of companies in various fields, building up a track record in international business that includes overseas trips and deals with numerous countries. I made use of this experience after joining TS TECH and hoped to work at an overseas site. Regardless of gender or years of service, I believe that if you continually work hard to enhance your own personal strengths, the skills you need to succeed on the global stage are sure to come to you in the end. The role I have been given, where I can use the wealth of international business experience that is my personal asset, is just the opportunity I have dreamed of.

Response

Based on the TS Philosophy, we aim to be “a company that gives people job satisfaction” and “a company that is easy to work for” by ensuring that our human resources—our most valuable asset—can make the most of their individual capabilities. Going forward, we will work to show employees examples of success among their senior coworkers and to promote understanding among employees about diverse work styles so everyone recognizes that TS TECH is supported by all kinds of people in terms of gender, race and age.

(Human Resources Department)