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| 05/26/08 |
Auto Industry Locating Design and Development Centers in Kyushu |
Daihatsu Kyushu (Nakatsu, Oita Prefecture) announced it will locate its new vehicle design and development center in Fukuoka City, near the Ito campus of Kyushu University. They plan to begin operations of the center in April 2010. Toyota Motors Kyushu (Wakamiya, Fukuoka Prefecture) also announced they would locate a development center in the region sometime in mid-2010.
These are signs that the automobile industry in Kyushu is entering a new phase by focusing on the brains of automobile production in addition to building labor-intensive production plants.
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| 05/26/08 |
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Calls to Boost Kyushu's Share of Japanese GDP to 10% |
The Kyushu Bureau of Economy, Trade, and Industry released on May 2 the New Kyushu Economic Vitalization Plan that focuses on the regional economy 10 years in the future. It incorporates calls to boost industrial competitiveness, primarily through the auto and semiconductor industries, and to strengthen ties with Asia. They also call for the expansion of Kyushu's share of Japanese gross domestic product from 8.7% in 2005 to 10% by 2020.
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| 05/26/08 |
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Guidebook Created for Foreign Residents |
The Fukuoka Prefecture International Exchange Center in Fukuoka City has created the Fukuoka Prefecture Foreign Language Guide for Daily Life in the hope that foreign residents of the prefecture will find it useful. It is the first detailed guide for daily life created for the prefecture's foreign residents. The prefecture created the English-language edition, Chinese-language edition, and the Korean edition.
The center conducted a questionnaire survey in May 2007 of about 730 foreigners in the prefecture, including students and language teachers, to find out what information they sought. They reportedly were very interested in information about changes in the rules for living and working in the prefecture, attending university, and medical information.
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| 04/22/08 |
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Toyo Roki to Build New Plant in Ukiha |
Hamamatsu-based Toyo Roki Mfg. Co. (Hiromitsu Shimada, President) signed an agreement on April 8 with Ukiha, Fukuoka Prefecture, to build a new plant in that city. The provisionally named Kyushu Plant will be located in the city's Miharu Industrial Park to meet the needs resulting from the growing integration of the auto industry in northern Kyushu. Plans call for construction to begin in December, with operations to start in September 2009. The company will invest roughly 3 billion yen in the plant, and they project about 6 billion in sales for the year ending March 2011.
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| 04/22/08 |
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Yaskawa Electric in Tie-Up to Train Robot Technicians |
The Kitakyushu based-Kitakyushu College of Technology, Yaskawa Electric, the Nishinippon Institute of Technology (Kanda-machi, Fukuoka Prefecture), and other entities have launched a collaborative effort to train robot technicians.
A specialized curriculum is being offered in school year 2008 to students at the Kitakyushu College of Technology. Some courses are being taught by technicians working at Yaskawa Electric. There will be lectures in control technology and other aspects of basic theory, as well as practical programming training. The ties between leading companies and institutions of higher learning are expected to enhance the competitiveness of robot development as a core regional industry.
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