AOTS Journal 2019 SPRING No.14 (ENGLISH)

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JOURNAL2Why did you try to establish a robot academy in Thailand?Since the Lehman shock in 2009, the market in Japan has changed and more automobile assemblers and major parts manufacturers of this country have accelerated in shifting their operations to growing markets in emerging countries. We didn’t want to miss this trend and established our local corporation, SANMEI MECHANICAL (THAILAND) CO., LTD., in June 2011 for the production and sales-services of automation devices and equipment for die casting machinery. Previously I had joined a mission by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in 2009 and visited Thailand’s relevant industries, including the casting division of Japanese-afliated major automobile makers and large and small die-cast specializing rms, for a survey of their consciousness for automation. What I could learn then was that it was too early for them to apply robotics in the same way as we do in Japan, or it was premature, because there were no Thai robotics engineers. After all, we established our business base in Thailand to contribute to applying more robotics for the automation of our customers, Japanese-afliate aluminum die-cast fabricators. Then, all we had to do was to instruct robot teaching, a program to instruct robots to perform a motion! By nurturing systems engineers to be able to perform PLC sequencer in addition to the teaching, I thought it would enable them to apply more robotics and automation at their own workshops. Then, I thought I should involve the Thai government and visited the Ministry of Industry where the administrative vice minister agreed with me fully and we decided to work together for robotization in Thailand and bringing up capable engineers for automation.What sort of instruction did your expert give them in Thailand?We sent a young engineer, just in his seventh year since employment, to the Thai German Institute (TGI)*, a vocational training center in Thailand, as an AOTS expert for the instruction of robot teaching to four engineering staff of TGI for six months. We leased three robot units to TGI for instruction of necessary knowledge such as manual operation and sorting of robots. The expert also provided instruction in programming skills for when starting up a new robotics operation at a manufacturing site. Starting the robot teaching system was not possible before dispatching this person because there were no capable persons there but then all of the four staff members became capable of performing the work and one of them could master electric controlling of periphery equipment of a robot, too.What is the current status of TGI’s robot academy now? How do the trained personnel act there? Those TGI staff members trained by Mr. Satoh are playing a central role in the robot academy these days as instructors in A Case of Training Program for Human Resource Development by AOTSSanmei Machinery Co., Ltd.Sanmei Machinery is a smaller rm in Shizuoka prefecture engaged in consulting in the introduction of automated systems to production sites and the design and installation of facilities. In accordance with the rapid expansion of the car industry, Sanmei could enter the eld of automated systems for the production of various materials and products. The Journal interviewed Mr. Kazuo Kubota, Sanmei Machinery’s president, about the company’s human resource development achievement in 2013 when the company used our expert dispatching program, a subsidized program, to start a robot academy in Thailand to meet the future expansion of the factory automation market in the country.Head ofce: Shizuoka-city, Shizuoka-prefectureEstablished: April 1947Capital: 10 million yenEmployment: 95Overseas locations:China and ThailandSanmei MachineryTraining 300 Robot Systems Integrators (Slers) in Five Years to help build the industrial base of Thailand, a foundation of Thailand 4.0