Trust is the cornerstone to success in the security industry, and Japan’s Kumahira has been providing its customers with “Anzen (safety) and Anshin (peace of mind)” through its high-performance security products for over 120 years. From its initial focus on vaults and safes, Kumahira has expanded its mission to protect society through its wide range of security products, including fully-automated safe deposit systems, security gates, and liquid scanners, to meet the needs of the times. We sat down with president, Akinobu Kumahira, to learn more about the company its high-quality security solutions.
The Japanese manufacturing philosophy, known as monozukuri, is traditionally about the relentless pursuit of perfection, with an extreme attention to detail. Today, however, it involves so much more than that, as it is more about responding to customer requests, providing that added value in the final product delivered. Can you tell us what monozukuri is to you?
It has been around since the establishment of Kumahira, protecting people’s property, which is the mission of the company. In a broad sense, everything we do has to have a purpose. Monozukuri is a part of our actions that we do in everyday life. Everything that we do as a human being, or as a company has to have a purpose. For that reason, protecting the customer’s valuable assets and managing their properties is what we have tried to follow since the establishment of the company. Safety related products are just some of the security systems that we provide and are not tailored to one specific individual but have the wider purpose of protecting society. Reaching for high satisfaction is also part of the monozukuri philosophy.
Up to 55% of all sensor-based technology worldwide comes from Japan. Why is Japan such a leader in this regard?
It comes from the desire to serve the best quality products to the customers, which is the view that preceded monitoring technology in Japan. As you know, Japan is widely known for having high-quality production systems that are used by many companies. If you want to have good quality, then you must have several steps for screening and censoring to see if it is actually a good product. A cultural base also has to be drawn to that aspect, as Japanese craftsmen are widely known for their handwork and preciseness, as well as the high quality in their work. This desire for good products precedes technology. Another thing is that Japan is known to be slow to adopt technologies that have been already introduced and widely used in America or Europe, for example, so Japanese companies look to technologies and fields, like sensor net, that maybe a European or American company hasn’t adopted yet.
Your company was established in 1898, with a focus on vaults and safes initially, but now you have adapted to be a total security company, adding security systems, key management systems and detection systems to your product line. Among all these divisions, what is the main focus and what is the best-selling product?
Access control systems, security gates, key management systems and surveillance camera systems all belong to the division of “security systems”, which is something that Kumahira is strong at, and is also our strongest division in terms of sales. Following that are our safe deposit boxes that are fully automated. The third major product that we also sell is physical protection doors, such as watertight doors, which we provide to a range of clients, a power plant operator being an example. These special doors are unique in the market, and are only something that Kumahira can provide, as stated by many of our clients. Furthermore, we have a long track-record of introducing physical protection products into the market, making it part of our DNA, and that builds trust with our customers and has created a strong foundation for us.
An increasing concern in the modern world is that of cyber-security. More than half of all devices connected to the internet are vulnerable to a cyber-attack, and many of your products, such as the entry and exit gates, utilize the internet. How do you ensure that you can detect and prevent a cyber-security attack?
The company doesn’t have this kind of security protection at this moment in time, however we are aiming to do so, as we realise that the world is changing. Payment has changed from cash to electronic money and information transmission has been changed from paper-based to electronic media, which are just some of the reasons why we have to think about cyber-security. Right now, the company specialises in physical security products such as walls, recording systems and surveillance systems, among a whole range of others. We are flexible and open-minded to customer needs, so in the future, if clients have a desire to not only have physical security options, like safe deposit boxes, but also cyber security systems, that can be added to our catalogue.
Recently you partnered with Panasonic for face-recognition and safe storage systems. What role does co-creation play in your business and are you currently looking for co-creation partners overseas?
A strong partnership with a reliable partner is always something that we are thinking about and we sometimes might need to rely on the technology that some other companies have. In the example of Panasonic, it’s not just combining the best aspects of both R&D departments, but also sales-wise, by ‘bonding’ with such a company it allows us to promote our own products and vice versa.
It will be inevitable for us to have this kind of partnership when we do eventually go into cyber-security solutions, as there are many companies out there who solely specialise in cyber-security who we would like to partner with in the future and create something new. Open innovation is a method we use to reach our goals of having feasible partnerships. We don’t only partner with other business operations, but also with academic institutions too. We have partnered with some universities in Japan for open innovation, using their R&D centres, so that they can also create something new with us.
Japan is well-known for the level of spending on R & D, with 3% of the annual GDP being spent on it. Kumahira also isn’t afraid to invest greatly into this area, so could you tell us more about your R&D strategy, what are you currently working on and what are you excited about?
Co-creation and co-R&D are, in most cases, inevitable and crucial for us. Japan is an island nation, and the thinking of the Japanese people needs to be open-minded and flexible in order for creativity to be introduced here and adapt technologies. We are always in constant pursuit of new ideas. There are so many ideas and bright people in the world, it’s just a matter of connecting with them and implementing these ideas into the real world. Ideas are an engine that moves people and businesses.
Your company has more than 120 years of history, turning into a total security company during that time. What would you say are your main competitive advantages as a company?
Our main strength is qualifying into the most senior specifications, and function wise, our products are differentiated in comparison to similar product line-ups from other companies by their functionality and the variety of different functions inside of them. Focusing on one particular thing and polishing our best features has been present since the establishment of this company.
“20-Year Security” is our promise to customers and our policy. In other manufacturers, new models that are incompatible with the existing models are occasionally released. In such cases, it is difficult for the users to expand the existing system and partially replace to continue to use it as long as possible, and at the end some users have no choice but to replace the entire system at a high cost.
To avoid this unexpected situation, Kumahira upgrades with compatibility between earlier versions and new products. Therefore, our customers can expand the existing system with a new system and replace partially and furthermore they can reduce lifetime system costs and continue to use our system without worrying.
On the international aspect of your business, there are two products which you are particularly interested in expanding sales overseas: the inspection detection system, the LSR-M2, and the security gate. Can you tell us where you are looking to sell these products and what methods are you employing in order to increase their sales?
There are no region limitations; a worldwide consumer base can be built with our products. Our concealed object detection or liquid detection systems have been introduced to most Japanese airports, so foreign airports would be a key target for sales, but not only just airports: military stations and police stations could also be potential customers. Currently, only the security gate body has been exported and the access control system has been locally arranged. In order to meet the specification requirements from our customers, we have been providing security gates where an access control system suitable for local operations can be installed.
You established a production base in Singapore in 1988 and a sales office in Hong Kong in 1994. You make use of a lot of distributors as part of your business model, but moving forward, what strategies are you going to employ to further increase your sales abroad?
Singapore’s production base has closed down, with production only taking place in Hiroshima. It would be beneficial for the company to increase distribution channels, likewise, sales distribution partners are always welcome.
This is a family business with a 120 history of meeting the needs of the customer. If we come back in three to four years, what would you like to tell us? What is your dream for your company and what goals would you like to accomplish by then?
Our dream is that we contribute to society as a Japanese professional security product manufacturer and then our brand “Kumahira” will come to be recognized widely even on the global stage eventually.
In order to make our dream come true, Kumahira continues to offer high-value added products and services in line with the expectations of our customers. We are looking for business partners who understand our philosophy of security and who can cooperate with us to expand the business together around the world. We believe that partnership is the key to a better future.
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