sales position

Mr. Jin Nagano

(sales division)

I’m sure if we are meeting the demands of 100% of our clients, but as far as our products are concerned I have complete confidence in our ability to provide satisfying quality and systems. As a salesperson I am always contemplating dedicating myself without fail to providing quality that exceeds expectations and thinking three steps ahead of the clients needs and wants. I am grateful to have longstanding clients on route sales, but continue to build relationships of trust and appreciate how rewarding the work is. I was told by more senior coworker that “sales is fellowship”, and as I became more experienced I realized that that was the truth. For this reason I do not shirk self-improvement and aim to be a trustworthy salesperson.

■ To those looking for a company operating in Nagasaki.

It takes time to become fully qualified, but we are a company with high team awareness and a familial atmosphere. As a member of our team together we will contribute to key industries in Nagasaki.

design position

Mr. Ono

(Design, 5 years with Kowa)

I graduated from a high school in my hometown and joined the design division as a recent graduate five years ago. I use CAD daily to design everything from single bolts to special tools. Of course I can use CAD now, but when I joined the company I was taught by my senior coworkers and became determined to commit what I learned to memory. While studying on my own as well I did my best to avoid inconveniencing my coworkers and finally after two years I was able to begin working on my own. As far as design is concerned with repetition I can improve my skills, but meetings with clients are difficult so I’m still in training. Much of my work is designing special machines, how they’ll be used, how to design them so that they’re easy to use and the difficulty of discerning what a client doesn’t understand about the plans, but I think it’s a good place to showcase my skills. I still haven’t attained full confidence in myself so I continue to learn by observing my senior coworkers. It’s not just producing the things we design, I was also taught that it’s important to understand what kind of location those products will be used and how much they will be appreciated. Depending on the situation, I make my way to the location to be used and take into account the operational details of the factory and the size of the location to augment my mental image. There are many difficult orders where I wonder how I can make a satisfactory product, but I feel that those kinds of orders are rewarding.

■ To those looking for a company operating in Nagasaki.

The things we create may be small, but to our clients they are very important. Making indispensable things from scratch is very rewarding work. I would like to tell the newcomers of my experiences from when I was a newcomer and hope they can make use of them.

technical position

Mr. Matsuo

(Grinding Division, 10 years with Kowa)

I graduated from an ordinary high school in my hometown and was assigned to my current division. When I first joined the company I didn’t know anything, I had to start by memorizing the names of the various tools. (bitter smile) Little by little my knowledge grew through the careful instruction from senior coworkers and after two years I was finally able to get my bearings. Because those two years were so demanding of my time and energy they seemed to just fly by. My current job is grinding tools and overhauling equipment. At times when we received requests for grinding of tools used exclusively in harsh environments, they were always tools that (did surprisingly well to make it this far). Grinding work is very serious work because we are working with only that kind of tough tools. It’s not just grinding and repair/ maintenance, It’s also thinking about and considering the situations and the environments the people using these tools are working in. I work hard to not compromise on quality so that clients will say with satisfaction, “Now that’s Kowa grinding!”

■ To those looking for a company operating in Nagasaki.

I’m in charge of the Grinding Division which is in the background, but it’s powerful section. Our division isn’t flashy, but if our work doesn’t progress then many other people can’t do their work. Once you become fully qualified the feeling of job satisfaction is quite different, those who like working with their hands why don’t you come and work with us?