Fresh & Hot from Japan, 21 to 25 November 2016

Welcome to Europe-Japan Dynamics!

This is our blog page.

************************************

Please enjoy fresh & hot news from Japan with comments by Europe-Japan Dynamics.

21 Nov. “I can study in the evening!”, Light of hope in Tanzania from a venture born in University of Tokyo

The technique developed in the University of Tokyo has brought the light to African villages which there was no electricity. Digital Grid, a venture based on the technology developed in the University of Tokyo, has been running a business to rend to villagers an LED lantern which was charged with a required minutes worth of the electricity generated by solar panels. The electricity is charged by a remote charging system operated via the Internet by a branch office of Digital Grid and lanterns may be rented at village kiosks. This service is rapidly spreading in Tanzania.

Comments: Sale of the electricity like the water in a pet bottle, mobile money coupled with need for the electricity have given birth to innovation!

wassha
(Photo from Wassha corporate web site)

22 Nov. One meter of tsunami at Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, all the staff evacuated

Due to the earthquake originated in offshore of the Fukushima Prefecture in the early morning of 22nd, Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) manually stopped the operation of facilities which transferred the contaminated water pooled underground of buildings of the first Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. TEPCO said that the company stopped transportation of the water because contaminated water might leak when being  transferred in case a water pipe might be broken by the rolling of the earthquake.

Comments: It is only horrible that tsunami attacked the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant again.

23 Nov. Nobel Laureate Professor Amano to develop the next-generation technology with his senior disciple

Professor Hiroshi Amano, Nagoya University, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics of 2014 for the development of the blue light emitting diode (LED) will establish a laboratory jointly with National Institute for Materials Science to benefit from gallium nitride which he studied for as material of LED for the next-generation technology development. The representative of the two organizations announced the plan in a pressroom of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

Comments: One good work gives birth to another development.

24 Nov. A wearable terminal to stick to the skin developed, maybe disposable?

A team of researchers led by Kuniharu Takei, a Research Associate of Osaka Prefecture University, has developed a wearable terminal to stick to the skin like a thin adhesive plaster, which is used to check health conditions. They published the research results in a US science journal, Science Advances. It is said to be possible to make a product with a disposable sensor, because of a low cost.

Comments: A number of application may be possible!

wearable-terminal-for-health-check
(Photo from Mr. Takei’s web.)

25 Nov. To reduce burden on the back, a robot suit was introduced for luggage handlers of Haneda Airport Limousine bus

Ten “Robot suit HAL” developed by CYBERDYNE, a venture company of Tsukuba-shi, Ibaragi Prefecture, were adopted  by Airport Transport Service, which operats buses to and from airports. Luggage handlers working at bus terminals in Haneda Airport started wearing the robot suit around their waist when loading and unloading of the heavy baggages of customers.

Comments: CYBERDYNE is a spin-off company of Tsukuba University. It is a good example of the use of robot technologies for those needed.

  • All the news items are picked up from “Asahi Digital”, and summarized and translated by Europe-Japan Dynamics. The articles are not an official translation by the Asahi Newspaper.

Fresh & Hot from Japan, 31 October to 4 November 2016

Please enjoy fresh & hot news from Japan with comments by Europe-Japan Dynamics.

31 Oct. Cleaning, cooking, and more, four tasks of hotel business taken by one person, hotel management reform by Hoshino Resort of inns

Hoshino Resort is known as revitalizing business of ryokans (Japanese style inns). A major strength of the company is “multi-tasking” of employees who take more than two roles, while, in other hotels, those in charge of the front desk takes tasks at the front desk and those in charge of cleaning do cleaning only. With the improvement of employee productivity, Hoshino Resort opened a ryokan in Tokyo last summer and intends to develop ryokan business overseas.

Comments: Multi-tasking reduced redundant time of employees. This management may be an interesting model of hotel business.

2 Nov. A major vendor suspended sales of some routers due to a possible abuse of the use for cyber attack

I-O Data Device Inc. (Kanazawa), one of the major Japanese computer peripheral manufacturers, suspended sales of some of its products, due to a possible abuse of use of its equipment for a new means of cyber attack, that utilizes the equipment used for IoT (the Internet of Things). There are a number of cyber attack cases recently in and outside Japan in which device for IoT is infected by virus and used for “DDos” attack.

Comments: IoT could be more vulnerable than human-to-human Internet. We need wisdom to prevent this new way of cyber attack.

3 Nov. Willingness of sending by family budget worsened for the first time in three months, said the Cabinet Office

According to the  consumer behavior survey of October undertaken by the Cabinet Office, the consumer sentiment index for private households (seasonal adjustment level) that indicates willingness to spend by the family budget turned worse to be 42.3 points, down from the last month by 0.7 points for the first time in three months. The Cabinet Office concluded “the slow upward trend continued” and maintained its basic observation to be “the movement of the improvement is observed”.

Comments: Japanese economy is still fragile, while moving upwards.

4 Nov. “World Tsunami Awareness Day” is the 5th Nov., disaster drill involving 420,000 people undertaken in Wakayama

One day before the first “World Tsunami Awareness Day” on 5 Nov. established by the United Nations, a disaster drill was held in Wakayama prefecture, involving about 420,000 people who are mostly in public facilities, such as schools.

Comments: “World Tsunami Awareness Day” is a good idea to regularly alert us to be prepared for the disaster.

%e4%b8%96%e7%95%8c%e6%b4%a5%e6%b3%a2%e3%81%ae%e6%97%a5%e3%80%80tsunami

 

  • All the news items are picked up from “Asahi Digital”, and summarized and translated by Europe-Japan Dynamics. The articles are not an official translation by the Asahi Newspaper.

Europe-Japan Dynamics on the JETRO Switzerland Newsletter

JETRO Geneva, a branch of Japan External Trade Organization issues monthly Newsletter. The feature article for its November issue is Europe-Japan Dynamics.

Consultancy services doe cross cultural Management

Yoshiko Kurisaki has started a consultancy business ‘Europe-Japan Dynamics’ to help Swiss and European companies for cross-cultural management with Japan.

25 years in Europe

Business manners in Japan

Services for Swiss and Japanese companies”

JETRO  (日本貿易振興機構)ジュネーブオフィスでは、毎月ニュースレターを発行し「英語)、スイスの日本企業や、日本経済の動向などを伝えています。11月号の、企業紹介に(1ページ目)、ヨーロッパ ジャパン ダイナミクスが紹介されました