Any organization is undoubtedly boosted by having long-term employees in its ranks. These loyal servants know the processes and values of a company inside out, which are passed down by those before them and instilled in new employees. Not only this, but their experience also keeps a company steady during periods of stress and strain.

With nearly three decades of service at KYB Asian Pacific Corporation, a global leader in the development and manufacturing of shock absorbers, suspension systems and hydraulic components for the automotive industry, Managing Director Masahiro Miwa, is well-versed in keeping everything running smoothly.

“I entered KYB in 1996, so for almost 30 years I’ve been working for the company,” he tells The CEO Magazine. “The company has become one of the biggest shock absorber and automotive parts suppliers in the world.”

Deep roots

Since its inception, KYB has been inextricably linked to R&D. It traces its roots back to 1919, with the founding of the Kayaba Research Center by 21-year-old Shiro Kayaba. Kayaba Manufacturing was launched 16 years later in 1935.

From its humble origins, today the company boasts a truly global reach. It has 32 facilities in 21 countries and a total of 24 manufacturing plants across Asia, Europe and America. It holds the impressive accolade of being the world’s largest supplier of original equipment and aftermarket shocks and struts, with annual sales exceeding US$3.2 billion.

And in mirroring KYB’s international reach, Miwa has successfully led divisions of the company across the globe. This ability to succeed in varying cultures and marketplaces is a tribute to the versatility and effectiveness of his leadership.

“From 2006 to 2011, I went to the United States as a coordinator of shock absorber design and took care of our Japanese company in the United States,” he recalls.

“Afterward, I returned to Japan, and again I took care of shock absorber design for Japanese customers. And in 2020, I moved to Thailand to take up this position and lead this department.”

Research and operational excellence

Although KYB is renowned for its excellence in manufacturing, Miwa is quick to stress that his role lies outside of this function.

“My company is not a production site – we mainly provide engineering services, part procurement and aftermarket shock absorber sales,” he explains. “In my current role, I am in charge of engineering models.”

Engineering models are used by manufacturers to prototype new parts and are increasingly designed with digital platforms. A popular technique in the automotive industry is finite element modeling, which allows R&D departments to simulate how products would react to stress, heat and vibration. These are crucial tools for safety, as well as providing cost benefits for companies, which save on creating physical prototypes.

“I want to improve this area,” Miwa says. “This will also contribute to achieving our other goals, which are to improve quality, costs, delivery and also our technology.”

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“With 28 years of experience and expertise in complex and precision manufacturing, SMP Engineers and Electricals delivers components that enhance performance. Recognized as a key partner by KYB Asian Pacific Corporation, the world leader in shock absorber technology, this partnership drives excellence to new heights.” – Ajinkya Padhye, Managing Director, SMP Engineers and Electricals

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A central principle that has defined KYB’s long-term success, as well as Miwa’s leadership success, has been a steely commitment to ensuring its products provide best-in-class performance.

“As a manufacturer of shock absorbers, of course, we aim for the high-quality functioning of our products,” Miwa reveals.

“We also have to ensure that we are providing a consistent level of quality across all the different models that we are responsible for.”

But the company isn’t satisfied with simply maintaining its high levels of quality. In keeping with the Japanese business philosophy of kaizen, it strives to make continuous improvements.

“We are not only focused on the high-quality functioning of the products, we are also focused on making innovations to give another level of performance,” he adds.

Working with partners

Continually working to improve performance with innovative new products is a principle that upholds KYB’s strong relationships with its partners, especially its original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

“For our OEMs, we are highly customer-centric,” Miwa says.

“When we are developing a new product, we always work side by side with our customers. We work together, we listen to their opinion and take direction from them, which allows us to develop new products specifically for them.

“It is important to talk to the real user, to listen to the customers and, of course, the stakeholders’ voices so that we can feed this back into the products. Working closely with partners is very important, and I think it is one of KYB’s core strengths.”

Miwa pays tribute to the company‘s network of partners and credits them as being crucial to its continued success.

“We have several business partners and suppliers that work in partnership with KYB. It is thanks to both business partners and suppliers and their cooperation that KYB is the successful company that it is,” he says.

Looking to the future, Miwa wants to keep empowering KYB’s valued partners, which include Divine Group, to make bold changes that will produce a net benefit across the entire value chain.

“What we request from them is that they try to adapt or innovate some raw material to support us,” he says. “As well as helping us run more smoothly as a business, this helps each of our customers and distributors too.”

And across his nearly 30 years of loyal service, Miwa has learned that the most valuable skill is to always be attentive to the needs of those he does business with.

“Because we are the manufacturer, it is important to listen to the needs of the customer, supplier and every stakeholder,” he notes. “By doing this, we can produce a product that works for everyone.”