40th Anniversary of Yokogawa Europe

Anniversaries are always special occasions. The foundation stone for Yokogawa Electric Corporation was laid in Tokyo back in 1915 and in 1982, Yokogawa Europe was founded. Hence, celebrating its 40^th anniversary in 2022. Since 2003, Yokogawa has also been a member of our DJW, and our Managing Director Anne Pomsel gladly accepted the invitation to give a celebratory speech on this occasion:

 

Dear Consul General Kawahara,
dear Mayor Pesch,
dear Mr. Matsubara,
dear Mr. Pichler,
dear guests,
ladies and gentlemen,

When a person turns 40, he or she perhaps begins or even intensifies a recap of what has been experienced so far. Where am I in life? What path have I taken so far? With whom at my side? What do I still want to achieve? Perhaps even what good can I do and give back to society in the future? In any case, this person is at a point where it may well be worthwhile to take a critical look back and a daring look forward. Because it might be about shaping another 40 years, and after all, at least we assure ourselves, 40 is also the new 30.

When a company turns 40, it sometimes finds itself in a very similar position. Looking back at its own history, looking forward to the ways ahead. In the very desirable case, far more than another 40 years of company history can be written. Especially since the oldest documented companies have their homes in Japan, and many companies with more than 100 years of history - I am looking at your parent company alone - were founded in Japan. Well-cultivated tradition has high value in Japan, hardly any company would market itself as younger with its year of birth and foundation.

What people and companies unite at this point in their lives is that they have … found…, built up…, consolidated their own identity. Their identity for themselves as an individual, as a company and their identity within a structure, as part of a community and in relationships with other people, with other players. At an age of 40, people are well aware of the value of their own identity and the levels on which it can be shaped and formed. Be it in the circle of friends, in the family, be it within a team in everyday professional life, be it in familiar surroundings or in a completely different country than one's home.

Yokogawa, too, precisely took this step in 1982, setting foot in Europe and then in North-Rhine Westphalia, and has since established itself on the market.

Japan in NRW

The fact that Japanese feel at home in Düsseldorf, Ratingen and the surrounding area is also reflected in the figures: around 8,500 Japanese citizens are registered in the metropolitan area, and with 600 Japanese companies located here, the region is one of the top locations for Japanese visitors in continental Europe.

Again and again, we are asked about the background to this development, which may have benefited Yokogawa in its decision to invest in NRW, too. Well, the decisive factor after the Second World War was the proximity to the Ruhr area and thus to heavy industry. Supplies of iron and steel as well as the further processing of metals were of immense importance for the reconstruction of the destroyed cities in Japan. So much so that in 1955 the first Japanese trading company settled in Düsseldorf to handle imports and exports between Japan and Germany directly. Numerous other settlements of an economic nature were followed by the founding of important Japanese and German-Japanese institutions. In 1962 JETRO opened its office in Düsseldorf, in 1964 the Japanese Club, 65 the Japanese Consulate General, 66 the JIHK and finally in 1986 the Deutsch-Japanischer Wirtschaftskreis.

In order to offer Japanese citizens an environment of well-being, the Japanese School was opened, Japanese restaurants and bookstores, doctors and physiotherapists settled here. And so, the region, combined with its central location in Europe and its proximity to the former federal capital Bonn, became an interesting location for Japanese settlements. And the Japanese guests became an essential part of the cityscape and the community. The infrastructure is so well and stably developed that Japanese like to work in NRW and return to Japan with the experience of their stay in Germany, which often lasts 3 to 5 years, inspire others at home and, in quite a few cases, return to Germany again, both professionally and privately.

In this way, the welcoming culture helps friendships to form and economic partnerships to grow. Partnerships that also play important roles in the Japanese-German context.

Partnership of Values on the Political Stage...

The connection between our two countries is often referred to as a partnership of values, and it unites the core ideas of Western democracies of internationally applicable law, self-determination and freedom…. Partnership of values…. Personally, I always had the feeling that we were still searching for a world-changing term and an attractive description that would name our German-Japanese relationship in a pointed and memorable way. Because, yes, our two democracies are linked in multinational structures, but the appreciation took place on an international rather than bilateral stage, and the share of German-Japanese trade in our own value creation can be counted in percentages on one hand…. Partnership of values…. This sounded unglossed and yesterday's news only as long as it was taken for granted.

Only now, at a time when war is dominating everyday life in some parts of Europe, when geographically large neighbors of Japan are appearing with more than just clenched fists, when often existential decisions have to be made and when democracy as a form of government does not only have friends, only now do jointly held values - that have been taken for granted for so long - gain massive importance. A highly tangible and perceptible importance. In times like these, we like to think back to friends whose connection and encouragement were long considered normal. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's renewed trip to Japan and his official appointments tomorrow and the day after can certainly be seen as a good sign of this new, active, lived appreciation.

... and on Stages of Civil Society

Partnership of values takes place, but is not exclusive to the large political stage that is visible to all. Rather, it is the small stages that individual personalities initiate and fill with life, that organizations with their German-Japanese network develop with synergies, and that cities and regions cultivate through city partnerships. And, there are those stages that are played by companies in Germany and in Japan. Companies that also bear and assume responsibility for our global society of tomorrow. Who contribute to a healthy and wholesome environment with their services and products, who recognize the value of sustainability, and move forward with new solutions and a pioneering spirit. In this sense, when I think of your founding principles, Yokogawa has played a major role in positively shaping our bilateral partnership of values.

Partnerships and friendships live by the people who cultivate them. Through friendship, identities are created that endure across borders. And it is these identities that shape corporate cultures, form a coherent togetherness and promote joint progress. And at this point, people and companies do somehow go hand in hand when they recapitulate at 40 and ponder the future and its possibilities.

With that, on behalf of Deutsch-Japanischer Wirtschaftskreis, I would like to extend my sincere congratulations on the anniversary. I wish Yokogawa Europe much success for the coming years, a lot of strength for the tasks ahead, confidence and courage to take further pioneering steps. And at the same time, always keeping a critical eye on your own identity, be it to reflect, be it to reinvent.

Congratulations and thank you for your attention.