I was appointed to the post of Chairman of the Board & CEO in April 2024. Coinciding with the start of our Medium-Term Management Plan, which will come to an end in 2026, the company has decided to adopt a new structure. Under the new structure, I, as Chairman of the Board & CEO, will be responsible for management decision-making and supervision. In addition, Mr. Uemura, the new President & COO, will be in charge of overall business execution and will execute growth strategies in existing and new business areas. As Chairman of the Board & CEO, my mission from now on is to support the next generation while continuing to pass on NHK Spring’s unique qualities.

For the past seven years since 2017, as President & CEO with a background in technology, I have worked to strengthen our manufacturing capabilities, nurturing the seeds of new businesses and aggressively investing in growth businesses by anticipating further expansion. Even in a challenging external environment characterized by the COVID-19 global pandemic, the shift to electrification of cars, which has transformed the automotive industry, and soaring raw material prices, we have always managed our business with an awareness of “profitability”.

In order to further strengthen NHK Spring's “earning potential” and continue to provide stable returns to our shareholders, we will implement the new Medium-Term Management Plan and strive to enhance corporate value in a joint effort with Mr. Uemura.

With our corporate philosophy of contributing to the development of an affluent society, we at NHK Spring continue to provide “indispensable key parts” in the fields of automobiles, information and telecommunications, industry, and lifestyle. Through manufacturing, the NHK Spring Group aims to strengthen its corporate competitiveness and management foundation, and to return the results to shareholders, as well as to solve social issues and enhance corporate value in order to realize a sustainable society. These are the core principles of NHK Spring, which I will continue to adhere to even after I take over from Mr. Kayamoto as President & COO.

The automotive industry is currently undergoing transformation due to the electrification of cars, while the information and telecommunications industry is witnessing an increase in information capacity due to the emergence of 5G, IoT, AI, big data, etc., and the advancement of semiconductors for processing such information.

Even in this changing environment, we will continue to provide numerous products that are unrivaled by other companies based on our strengths of “strong relationships of trust with customers and business partners”, “unique technologies”, and “quality first”, and aim to achieve a high market share in each industry.

In response to the electrification of cars, we produce parts for drive motors, parts for PCUs (power control units), etc. In the information and telecommunications field, we produce parts for HDDs (hard disk drives), while in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment field, we produce etching and film-forming equipment parts. We will work to establish a business foundation for the future by allocating resources to those areas where significant future growth is expected.

In our Medium-Term Management Plan, which ended in 2023, we set a target dividend payout ratio of approximately 30% and ROE of 8.0%. Together with our CEO Mr. Kayamoto, I will continue to strive to improve the ROE by enhancing capital efficiency and profitability while maintaining a strong financial constitution.