TSMC advance Taiwanese company executives talk about "speed" from "nemawari" January 13 16:56

``The management system of Japanese companies nemawashi

, nemawashi. Nemawashi delays time.

He is the top management of a major Taiwanese company that is responsible for the supply chain of the semiconductor manufacturer TSMC.

What did the top management of the company that decided to expand into Kumamoto Prefecture with TSMC say?

(Kumamoto Broadcasting Station Reporter Takeo Baba)

A rapidly changing town

A construction site in Kikuyo Town, about 40 minutes by car from the center of Kumamoto City.

When I drove there, the first thing that caught my eye from afar was multiple cranes towering toward the sky.

Heavy machinery moves busily as trucks come and go.

The construction work is carried out around the clock, and the lights are on all night long.

A huge factory of "JASM", a joint venture company led by Taiwan's global semiconductor manufacturer "TSMC" and also invested by Japan's "Sony Group" and "Denso", has begun to appear.

TSMC is the world's largest consignment manufacturer of semiconductors, and its technology is considered to be the world's top level.

The factory will finally be completed by the end of the year (2023), and in December next year (2024), we plan to start shipping semiconductors for image sensors used in smartphones and other devices and for automotive use.

In the area, semiconductor-related companies have expanded one after another from Japan and overseas.

The landscape of the area, which originally had a lot of farmland, is about to change.

Taiwanese companies also enter the market

"I went to the site for the first time, but it was a very good place.

" I had the opportunity to speak with

The Suetsu Group is a trading company that handles materials such as silicon wafers and resists used in the semiconductor manufacturing process, and has approximately 1,500 employees.

A well-known Taiwanese listed company in the industry, it also has a joint venture factory in Taiwan with a Japanese semiconductor material-related company.

Mr. Guo, who has been doing business with Japanese companies for more than 40 years, is fluent in Japanese.

In his interview, he spoke fluent Japanese and expressed his high hopes for Kumamoto.

Chairman Zhihui Guo:

“I believe that TSMC will further strengthen Japan-Taiwan relations in the field of science. Japan is strong in research and development. Materials, machinery, and automation.

Time is delayed by Japanese companies “nemawashi”

On the other hand, what left a strong impression on me was the warning bell about the constitution of Japanese companies.

Chairman Zhihui Guo

“When there is a problem, Japan thinks too much. It takes time. TSMC decides quickly. If you don't give a quick response, you'll be late.This is TSMC's culture.On the other hand, the management system of Japanese companies delays time by nemawashi, nemawashi.If one generation is an industry of 10 years, Japan will win. However, in the semiconductor industry, where a generation changes in the next two to three years, we cannot keep up.

” Also called "○ generation"

“Also, I have been indebted to Japanese companies for many years, but in Japan, the decision-making authority of executives is weak. At TSMC, everything is decided by the general manager class within the scope of responsibility. This is probably difficult in Japan.”

It was pointed out that “speedy management decisions” with anticipation of changes and willingness to take risks are the key to linking TSMC's advance to the revitalization of Japan's semiconductor industry.

Japanese companies used to lead the global semiconductor industry, but in response to the rapid increase in demand accompanying the spread of smartphones and other devices, they have been overtaken by Taiwanese and South Korean companies, which have embarked on huge investments.

It was around this time that I conducted the interview.

In Tokyo, it was announced that a new company would be established with the aim of domestically producing cutting-edge semiconductors through the joint efforts of the public and private sectors.

The name of the company is "Rapidus".

It is said that it means "fast" in Latin.

One of the reasons why Japan's semiconductor industry has fallen behind in the world is its sense of speed.

The words of Mr. Guo, who knows everything about Japanese business, were heavy.

Don't have "human resources"?

The issues pointed out also extended to the manufacturing system.

Chairman Guo's company is planning to build a warehouse and office in Otsu-cho, Kumamoto Prefecture in the second half of this year, and is also considering building a processing plant around the year after next (2025).

The first thing the chairman mentioned was the lack of specialists.

Chairman Zhihui Guo

"The most worrying thing is people. We don't have enough people. Even if we want to hire more than 100 people, we can't get them. That's what I'm really worried about. The factory is pretty automated, so there aren't that many people." We don't use , but we still need people.So if we can't get engineers, we're in a lot of trouble.If we can't get people, our investment policy will change.It's going to be a big deal if we don't cooperate (with the Kumamoto government). There are opportunities, such as getting better engineers to migrate and work there. International human resources and foreign elites should be concentrated in Kumamoto.”

The key to securing human resources is to prepare a system for accepting foreigners and their families.

Chairman Guo Zhihui:

“If expatriates from Taiwan come with their families, the problem of education will be serious. International elementary and junior high schools are necessary. If we do so, we will naturally attract excellent international human resources.”

The order extended to the region's infrastructure itself.

What the chairman pointed out as a problem is the "traffic congestion" in the area, which is feared to become more serious as companies expand into the area.

Chairman Zhihui Guo:

“This is why TSMC has come all the way here. We need to build a main street from Kumamoto City to the factory. The current street is a little narrow. Yesterday, I was going to go to Kumamoto Airport from there, but I gave up on the way.”

In response to these indications, local residents are now taking various measures.

Kumamoto University has announced plans to establish new faculties and departments to study semiconductors in the year after next (2024).

In order to improve traffic access, the prefecture is moving forward with a plan to increase the number of lanes on the roads around the factory, and also reviewed the development route of the "airport access railroad" that leads to Kumamoto Airport.

A school in Kumamoto City is also planning to create a new "international elementary school".

In addition, there are many other issues such as intensifying competition to secure local human resources and environmental conservation of groundwater.

“Did the black ships come?”

NHK Kumamoto Broadcasting Station's news gathering team has named the impact of the world's top companies' factory expansion "TSMC impact" and continues to transmit news in a wide range of fields.

A local bank estimates that the economic effect of the prefecture as a whole will reach 4 trillion yen in 10 years, and that 7,500 jobs will be created if related industries are included.

For regions where population decline and depopulation are accelerating, the expansion of giant companies is a positive event, and the impact of regional revitalization is immeasurable.

On the other hand, TSMC Impact has another meaning.

It can be said that Japan, which has been driving the growth of Asia centered on automobile and electronics manufacturers, will now rely on Asian capital and enjoy wisdom and ideas.

Is Japan standing at such a turning point?

A company insider described the impact of TSMC's advance as "the black ships have arrived."

“Until now, Japanese companies have expanded into Taiwan, but from now on, Taiwanese companies will expand into Japan,” said Guo.

He also hinted at the possibility of partnerships and acquisitions with Japanese companies.

Semiconductor markets are expanding to include electric vehicles, self-driving cars, robotics, 6G, and the military.

Countries around the world are calling for strengthening their economic security, and we are entering an era in which the semiconductor industry represents the strength of a nation.

Government-led efforts to support industries and large-scale investment by corporations are now commonplace, not only in the United States and China.

Therefore, the Japanese government also has high expectations for the TSMC factory in which Japanese companies are participating, and has decided to subsidize half of the 1 trillion yen investment.

Will the new factory, which will be completed by the end of the year and will start operating in December next year, be a trigger for the comeback of the Hinomaru semiconductor industry?

From now on, the true value of the “speedy” responses of Japanese companies, as well as the national and local governments, will be put to the test.

Kumamoto

Bureau Reporter

Takeo Baba

When stationed in Guangzhou, China, the confrontation between the United States and China intensified .

Covering Chinese high-tech companies such as Huawei

.