The founder of Omron is Kazujin Tateishi, and the founder who led the group to take off is Yoshio Tateishi.
Yoshio Tateishi is the third son of Omron founder Kazujin Tateishi and the third president of Omron. In 1963, Tateishi joined Omron, and since then he has formed a deep relationship with the company. In 1987, he was promoted to president, a position he held for 16 years. During this period, he showed extraordinary wisdom and courage, leading the Omron Group all the way forward. With a series of precise decisions and efficient management, Omron flourished, increasing its overseas turnover by an astonishing four times and successfully becoming one of the leading giants in the world’s microelectronics industry.
516TX 336A4940DNP516TX In 1990, Tateishi made a far-reaching decision to change the name of the company to Omron. This change is more than just a name change, it means that the company has taken a key step in the process of internationalization, greatly increasing its global influence.
In expanding the Chinese market, Tateishi also showed keen insight and firm determination. In 2002, when he held the opening ceremony of Shenzhen Electronic Components (Shenzhen) Co., LTD., he knew that China had become the focus of the world economy after its successful accession to the WTO. Based on this judgment, he resolutely decided to move Omron’s electronic components production base to China, and set up a China headquarters second only to the Japanese headquarters. At the same time, in the “Cross-Strait three places” successfully established 18 legal companies, determined to build a second Omron on this vast land.
Tateishi has achieved remarkable business results in the Chinese market. He transferred the production base to China, fully demonstrating the importance and firm confidence in the Chinese market. The establishment of 18 legal entities in the “three places on both sides of the Strait” in China has greatly expanded Omron’s influence in China and significantly expanded its business scale. Through this series of initiatives, Tateishi has deepened Omron’s strategic layout in the Chinese market and laid a solid foundation for its long-term and stable development in the Chinese market.
Data show that in the fiscal year 2022 (ending March 2023), Omron’s net sales from Greater China reached 211,528 billion yen. In fiscal year 2023 (ending March 2024), although net sales in Greater China decreased from the previous year to 171.932 billion yen, it still accounted for 21% of Omron’s total sales.
Omron’s net sales in Greater China in the past five years
03. Challenges encountered in the Chinese market
516TX 336A4940DNP516TX As the global market continues to evolve and competition becomes increasingly fierce, many multinational enterprises are continuously optimizing their global strategies to better adapt to the new market environment. As a world-renowned manufacturer of automation control and electronic equipment, Omron has also implemented a series of key strategic adjustments in the Chinese market.
On July 16, 2018, Omron Precision Electronics (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. announced the overall permanent shutdown and production, and at the same time started the staff placement work. This decision is not a sudden move, but Omron’s proactive response to the rapid changes in the smartphone market in recent years. With the rapid development of smart phone technology, the market demand for the backlight business has undergone a major shift, and Omron Headquarters has decided to optimize and restructure the backlight business to meet the challenges.
As one of the important production bases of Omron in China, Suzhou factory was founded in December 2003, covering an area of 30,000 square meters, with a production plant area of about 7,000 square meters, mainly producing optoelectronic devices such as LCD backlight plates. However, in the context of the rapidly changing smartphone market, the production capacity of the plant was gradually unable to meet the market demand, so Omron made the decision to close the plant.
Following the Suzhou plant, Omron has decided to suspend the backlighting business of its subsidiary Omron Precision Electronics Co., LTD., and plans to close the Dongguan production base by the end of fiscal 2019 (to March 2020). This decision is also based on a deep analysis and judgment of the market environment. Omron believes that the current market environment of the project business has changed dramatically, and it will be difficult to continue the relevant business. Therefore, in order to reduce operational risks and optimize resource allocation, Omron has decided to terminate this business.
This decision has had a certain impact on local employees and the community. According to sources, if the decision is implemented, about 765 employees will lose their jobs. However, at the same time of the closure of the factory, Omron has actively promoted employee resettlement work and strives to provide reasonable compensation and employment opportunities for affected employees.
Although Omron has closed some factories in China, it has not completely withdrawn from the Chinese market. On the contrary, Omron is still optimistic about the potential and prospects of the Chinese market, and continues to increase investment in China. At present, Omron has production bases in Dalian, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and other places in China, and has R & D bases in Shanghai and Dalian.