――Now for the next question. What kind of experience do you think you have gained from your many experiences in a production department?

Ishibashi： I learned quite a bit about complaints and glitches. When the TRB-10-5 was new, the vise part was so bad that we had to tour the country to deal with complaints… When we go to customers, we inevitably receive scolding, but we also learn a lot from them in terms of usability. I still feel that it would be impossible to continue producing rebar processing machines without customer feedback. I also learned a lot from the management, who gave me a lot of guidance on what they expect us, TOYO.

――I see. So many things could be learned from complaints and glitches.

Ishibashi： Yes, it is. Especially during the commissioning phase, even if it is clear, it can be ruined if there is unexpected movement. When this happens, it is a lesson to me that I need to know more about my customers, and I am reminded of the importance of making the most of each one the next time.

――I believe that Toyo is what it is because of our customers. From the viewpoint of manufacturing, who are customers to you?

Ishibashi： There is no doubt that the customer is God in terms of receiving work from us. However, from the perspective of manufacturing, we want to be a team with our customers in the sense that when we receive difficult requests, and we can give shape to them by receiving information from them.

――It means that we grow together with our customers.

Ishibashi： There is no such thing as growth only in TOYO, because our customers can support our products by being able to secure their profits. Without this idea, a company cannot survive.

――Thank you very much. Now for my last question: what do you think Toyo’s manufacturing should be like in 5 years’ time?

Ishibashi： We are planning to make concrete progress to convert the factory into a smart factory. We are planning to increase efficiency by reducing manual work and making it more visible, and to automate and unmanned the parts of the factory that can be done.

――When we have fewer people involved, we are more efficient, and we have more time to　visit our customers and learn from them. I think it also allows us to have more time to visit our clients and study with them.

 Ishibashi： Even with reduced human involvement, each person’s time is limited, so we need to find ways to expand our production capacity somewhere. Each of us needs to think about what we can do to expand our capacity and act accordingly. “What should we do today for tomorrow?” I believe that if everyone in the production department thinks and acts accordingly, it will make a big difference soon.

――After all, it is people who matter. 

 Ishibashi： Yes, even five years from now, my first priority will still be how to “make” people. However, I believe that I need to change myself first before “making “people. This is something I keep telling myself (laughs). By telling myself this, I am raising the hurdle, but for a company to grow, each one of us must overcome the hurdle. But for a company to grow, each one of us needs to overcome the hurdles. After all, knowing the past and knowing the present leads to the machine of the future. Our past products are filled with customer feedback. I believe that we must continue to make machines based on the past.

 ――I really got the idea that Monozukuri means “people making”!  Thank you very much for your precious talk.