Introduction

Intellectual Capital Strategy
Active participation in international standardization activities

Related material issues

Activities that create new rules and mechanisms
such as international standards and certifications
for people, products, and services

Strategic
proactive
approach

Activities that involve taking the initiative to changeor revise existing international standards, or utilizing
obtained information to expand business operations
ahead of other companies

Passivereactive
approach

Activities aimed at continuing current business
operations, such as ensuring conformity withinternational standards during product development
and design modificationindustrial robots (including collaborative robots), robot cells,and related systems.
With the expansion of the automotive and semiconductor
industries, the automation of manufacturing, and the increasein processes requiring the substitution of human labor due tothe decrease in the working population, the use of industrial
robots is increasing worldwide. In line with this, there is a needfor HMI and safety-related products to ensure the safety ofoperations involving both humans and robots. IDEC contributes
to the development and revision of standards with the productand safety knowledge it has accumulated through the supplyof various HMI and safety-related products that are effective
in increasing safety, ANSHIN, and well-being.

ISO standardization activities
IDEC has been participating in the working group for thetechnical committee on robot safety to develop the ISO 10218
series of international standards relating to the safety of various

IEC standardization activities

Shipments of IDEC enabling switches (FY2001–2024)
Japan

39%

Overseas

FY2024(10,000 units)

27

100

FY2014%260,000

FY2006

units

120,000

60units%

1480710,000

Foundation forValue Creationunits

40
Publication of internationalstandards for enabling switches

20

Revision of international standards
for enabling switches

020012005

2010

2015

2020(FY)

Data andCompany Overview

As a Japanese representative at the Advisory Committee onSafety (IEC ACOS), one of the six technical advisory committeesof the IEC, IDEC introduced Collaborative Safety (Safety 2.0) andproposed the need to develop an IEC Guide on CollaborativeSafety. Consequently, the development of the IEC Guide wasapproved in 2022, and it is expected to be officially publishedin the near future following voting by each national committee.
In addition to the aforementioned, IDEC has registered as
an expert in various international standardization committees,and participated in the development of international standards.
Through these endeavors, we have made significant
contributions, such as in the development of a standard forthree-position enabling switches, for which IDEC has a global
market share of over 90%, and in the revision of the standard

Business Strategy

28 IDEC Report 2024

Strategic
creative
approachfor emergency-stop switches. Cumulative shipments of enablingswitches have exceeded 7.1 million units by FY2024, andhave grown significantly overseas since the creation of theinternational standard. These contributions have led to improved
safety, ANSHIN, and well-being not only at manufacturing
sites but also across a wide range of industries, including theconstruction sector.

Initiatives for
Realization of Vision

IDEC has been involved in the formation of social rules formany years, through active participation in international
standardization activities. From the 1960s to the 1990s, IDEC
expanded its market mainly by utilizing existing rules. Since the1990s, IDEC has actively participated in technical committeesof the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and theInternational Organization for Standardization (ISO), proposing
and promoting international safety standards in response to
new technological developments in the global society. IDEC has
been active in shaping the rules by proposing and promoting
the development of international safety standards.
Since 2017, we have focused on activities to create rules basedon new ways of thinking, such as Vision Zero and well-being, toachieve our purpose: create the optimum environment for humans
and machines, and achieve safety, ANSHIN, and well-being forpeople around the world.
We have defined our international standardization activities in
the following three categories, and have established a dedicatedunit, the International Standardization and Collaborative Safety
Department, within our head office to promote a variety ofactivities. Among the three categories, we are particularly
focusing on “strategic creative” and “strategic proactive”
international standardization activities, which we advocate
to the world with Japanese leadership. We are also aiming toachieve further growth of our business through continuous
human resources development through OJT (on-the-job training).

Types of international standardization activities at IDEC

Safety, ANSHIN, and well-being

Value Creation Story

Resolving societal issues
through social rulemaking

Productivity improvement

Message

In addition to market globalization, the development of new technologies such as ICT and collaborative robots is also
progressing, and creating a safe working environment where no one is left behind has become a new societal issue. By
resolving societal issues through social rulemaking, such as in international standardization activities, IDEC will continue
to contribute to the realization of a sustainable society based on safety, ANSHIN, and well-being.

Introduction

Intellectual Capital Strategy

Human Resource Development

OPEN & CLOSE Strategy

R&D

Robot manufacturers and users

Internationalstandardization

BCVSVSVSIntellectualproperty

Video introducing IDEC’s international standardization activities

Results of an internal survey on
the types of international standardization activities inwhich employees would like to participate in the futureA
Leading the world in the creation of international standards
through collaboration between standard-setting authorities
and developers, and active participation in international
standards activities.

B
10%

Manager / leader

10%

40%

50%

18%

35%

37%Developing distinctive technologies and fosteringdevelopment focused on achieving a substantial market
share through proprietary technologies, while considering
standardization prospects.

Foundation forValue Creation

Executive / officer

Other manufacturers and users (machinery, etc.)

C
Regular employees

24%

29 IDEC Report 2024

Reactive

Proactive

25%

Creative

31%Intellectual property personnel analyze standardization
trends and construct patent maps, and apply for intensive
strategic patents for the creation of international standards.

Ichimura Prize in Industry for Excellent Achievement Award

Data andCompany Overview

None20%Business StrategyVSInitiatives for
Realization of Vision

AIDEC experienced a bitter loss of market share bothin Japan and overseas, because the creation of theinternational standard for switches—one of its main
products— was spearheaded by overseas manufacturers,
resulting in the exclusion of a typical Japanese round-holepanel mounting size for switches at that time. From thisexperience, Dr. Toshihiro Fujita, Chief Safety, Health andWell-being Officer, recognized the criticality of conducting
international standardization activities from Japan. He
has since taken a leading role in Japan-led international
standardization activities, by facilitating communicationand cooperation between numerous European andUS companies, standardization organizations, andcertification bodies.
In recognition of his activities, Fujita received the Prime
Minister’s Commendation for Industrial Standardizationfrom Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in 2022.
In addition, Takao Fukui, Masaki Nobuhiro, and Fujita
received the highly prestigious Ichimura Prize in Industry forExcellent Achievement Award, which recognizes technology
developers who have contributed to the advancement ofscience and technology and the development of industry inJapan. The presentation ceremony, attended by Princess
Akiko, was held in April 2024.

Value Creation Story

As part of our intellectual capital strategy, we are engaged inbusiness activities based on the OPEN & CLOSE Strategy.
In addition to international standardization, we operate adevelopment promotion system in which R&D and intellectual
property are integrated with international standardization asa trinity.
This trinity includes the following kinds of activities.

In recognition of our activities, we arehonored to receive the Prime Minister’sCommendation and the Ichimura Prize
Message

IDEC considers international standardization activities to be an
essential strategy for surviving in the global market. We are also
focused on employee training and education. We distribute a
variety of information via our intranet and company newsletters,
and also stream videos explaining our activities to date.
As a result of these efforts, there is a high level of internal
awareness of our activities. In a questionnaire on the types ofinternational standardization activities in which they would liketo be involved in the future, the majority of regular employees
answered that they would like to be involved in “proactive”
and “creative” activities.

The OPEN & CLOSE Strategy essentially means keeping aclosed area of the company’s core technology that generates
profits, while leaving other technologies in the open domain.
Instead of competing in an area where many companies arecompeting, it is important to build barriers to entry throughintellectual property (IP) and international standardization inareas where we can be a unique entity.
For example, in the case of enabling switches, we have
not only obtained patents for key technologies, but also
actively participated in international standardization efforts.
Consequently, our enabling switches have been adopted bymany robotics and machinery manufacturers in Japan andoverseas, resulting in a global market share of over 90%. Thisapproach has led to an unparalleled market dominance andremarkable profitability.