SANDVIK K. K.

Company Overview

Parent company headquarters:Sweden
Established:1961
Location:2-2-21, Isogami-dori, Chuo-ku, Kobe 651-0086, JAPAN
Business:Manufacture and sales of metal cutting tools, metal materials, electric resistance heating elements, and mining and construction machinery
Website:SANDVIK K. K.

Interview

SANDVIK K. K.
Mr. Takeshi Matsumoto, President

※as of November 21, 2019

SANDVIK K. K. was established in 1961 as a Japanese affiliate company of the Sandvik Group, a Swedish-based global group specialized in the development, manufacture and sales of special metals.

The long-established group founded in 1862 currently has 42,000 employees in about 160 countries around the world and boasts an annual revenue of about 100 billion Swedish Krona (about \1.13 trillion). The group provides high added-value special metal materials and various products to a wide variety of industries in the global market, such as industrial machinery, automobile, aerospace, chemical, construction, and power generation.

We visited the headquarters of SANDVIK K. K. to interview Mr. Takeshi Matsumoto, President, and Mr. Akira Inazawa, Financial Planning Group Manager, about the background to setting up the company’s operations in Kansai, attractive features of this area, selling points of the company, and its future business development.

Background to Setting Up Operations in Kansai

Mr. Matsumoto, President (left), and Mr. Inazawa,
Financial Planning Group Manager (right), who participated in the interview

The relationship between Sandvik and Japan has a long history, going back to the end of the 19th century, when Sandvik started to provide its products to the Japanese market. The first steam locomotive manufactured in Japan in the Meiji era adopted wheels made by Sandvik. In 1961, when Japan was in the midst of its high economic growth period, recognizing the potential of the Japanese market, Sandvik Far East Ltd. AB established a Japanese affiliate company, SANDVIK K. K., in Tokyo as the Sandvik Group’s first base in Asia. In 1966, SANDVIK K. K. relocated its headquarters to Kobe, where the Kobe Port, which had facilities that were leading edge at the time, and many international schools were available. This is why we are still based in Kobe City.

Attractive Features of Kansai

Cities in the Kansai area, such as Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe, have distinctive characteristics, which have acquired a good reputation among visitors from foreign countries. In addition, lower employment costs and office rent compared to Tokyo are also advantages of the business environment in Kansai. Competent human resources are also abundant in this area. We recruit employees from all over the Kansai area, not limited to Kobe. Another advantage is the closeness between our workplace (Kobe headquarters) and residences.

Selling Points

The Sandvik Group invests about 5% of its annual turnover for testing and research expenses. In the category of cutting tools, about 2,500 new products are developed every year. This product development capability is one of our advantages over our competitors.

Our products are highly evaluated all over the world. In particular, Sandvik boasts the top share in the global market of cemented carbide tools.

The products of Sandvik are manufactured at the group’s worldwide production bases. Our plants in Japan, which have been established as part of the Sandvik Group’s core production bases after those in Sweden and the USA, are ranked among the top-class plants in the group. High quality and a high yield rate are key reasons why we continue production in Japan. Our business categories in Japan are manufacture and sales of metal cutting tools, metal materials, electric resistance heating elements, and mining and construction machinery.

Future Business Development

Taking into account the trend of digitalization at manufacturing sites, which is represented by the key words “IoT” and “Industry 4.0,” we are considering entry into the fields of software and 3D printers.

Contact Information

Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Kansai Bureau
International Investment Promotion Division
Address: 1-5-44 Otemae, Chuo-ku, Osaka, 540-8535
Phone：+81-6-6966-6033
E-Mail:bzl-invest-japan-kansai[atmark]meti.go.jp
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