Number

129thIssue date

30-Sep-21

The direction of the SS Japan （this section has been quoted from President Komaba's message.）
Prime Minister Suga, who has been unable to steer the SS Japan since last year, has resigned from hispost, and Fumio Kishida, the former Chairman of the Policy Affairs Research Council, was appointed in
his place on September 29th as a result of an internal leadership selection race within the ruling party.
The SS Japan has been drifting without steerage for the past year under the direction of Captain Suga,
although the main reason for his resignation has been attributed to the effects of the expanding COVID19 pandemic, and we are all exhausted worrying over when we would be shipwrecked. I will now standback and watch to see if the new Prime Minister is able to effectively take the helm and regain the trustof the people of Japan.
The number of people infected with the novel coronavirus is at last decreasing after peaking at 25,000
on August 25th, when a state of emergency was instituted for twenty-one prefectures, with numbers
dropping to less than 2,000 people per day since September 20th.
There are naturally many opinions as to the reason for this, but the greatest reason appears to be an
acceleration in the vaccination program, which grew by 17% within a single month for people receiving
their second vaccination, from 41.2% of the population at the end of August to 58.0% as of September
28th. The government cancelled the state of emergency from September 30th, although I get the feelingthat we should have continued this for a little longer.
Hospital bed occupancy for COVID-19 patients stands at an average of 30%, although certain regions arerecording more than 50% occupancy, and more than 30,000 people nationwide are quarantined at home.
The people who managed to recover during home quarantine have all stated that they experienced
severe coughing, difficulty breathing, almost losing consciousness, and blood oxygen saturation levels ofaround 90%, as well as repeatedly calling the COVID emergency contact number and being told that
there were no hospital beds available because there were people in worse condition than themselves.
These people were forced to quarantine at home without being hospitalized and spent many sleeplessnights fearing death, and they are all both physically and mentally exhausted. There are also people whohave not regained their sense of taste, etc., and the possibility remains of people who have received two
shots of the vaccine being infected by the Delta variant, which has no limits to the damage it can cause,
so for this reason I believe that (in my personal opinion) the state of emergency should be continued toAutomotive area (Europe’s largest Motor Show, COVID-19 countermeasures, and similarities in theshift across to Evs)
“I want this year’s Motor Show to be an in-person event.” The Munich International Motor Show,
Europe’s largest automotive fair, was held in Germany from September 6th. I spoke to an acquaintanceinvolved in public relations for the organizing committee in April, and despite the fact that leaving andarriving in Europe was still restricted at that time due to the spread of COVID-19, he spoke of his desire
to make it an in-person event. Travel restrictions were relaxed in the summer, and the large-scale event
was able to be held on an in-person basis.
It has been speculated that the reason for insisting on an in-person event was because holding Europe’s
largest trade fair was supposed to symbolize the fact that the economy was back on the rails. Anotherreason was apparently due to the fact that Germany’s international motor show represented a turning
point as it was transferred to Munich from Frankfurt for the first time in seventy years. In addition, it wasalso hoped that the event would provide a forum for emphasizing the appeal of new electric vehicle (EV)models. The European Commission has proposed that sales of all new gas-engine vehicles be banned inthe year 2035, and the shift across to EVs is accelerating. Local sales of EVs are also on the increase, andEuropean manufacturers are frantically scrambling for a part of this new market.
Having entered 2021, European manufactures are announcing their strategies for shifting across to EVs
in quick succession. However, most of these have been announced online, and there have been very few
opportunities for engaging in real communications through other mediums. Holding the show hasenabled them to reveal the actual vehicles, thereby providing visitors with the chance to touch them andsit in them. The festivities were launched by Daimler of Germany. They hosted a pre-event party the day
before on press day, at which they revealed all of their new EV models. Daimler’s luxury car division,

sit in them. The festivities were launched by Daimler of Germany. They hosted a pre-event party the day
before on press day, at which they revealed all of their new EV models. Daimler’s luxury car division,
Mercedes Benz, has already indicated that it may specialize in EV cars by 2030. President Ola Kallenius
has continually repeated his famous phrase, “From EVs first to EVs only.” The company has placed thepriority on the new EQE model. Its lineup of gas-engine vehicles includes the luxury S class and the Eclass. The EV equivalent of the S class has already been released on sale as the EQS, and an EV version of
the E class was announced at the motor show. The front is low-slung like a sports car, and it left animpression of being different to the conventional E class. A single battery charge will provide a maximum
traveling distance of 660km when the battery capacity is at 90 kilowatts.
The G class has a square design and has many fans throughout the world,
and it is also very popular among celebrities, etc., in Japan.
This square design has been inherited by the EQG. Although no details
were provided, the presentation video emphasized the fact that itprovided an off-road style of driving and was capable of climbing steep
unpaved inclines. The scenes inside the show site were typical of theCOVID crisis. Although the managers removed their facemasks during
presentations, they wore them in the same way as all visitors when they
were out on the floor. All of the visitors wore facemasks as theysurrounded President Kallenius. There were various opportunities tostand and chat, but the masks made it difficult to hear what people wereSource: Nikkei BusinessKeihin Seimitsu Kogyo (Customer operations and plans for recovery)
We have received information to say that customer plants will remain offline during October after
shutdowns in September due to COVID-19, a lockdown in Vietnam, a fire in an Asian company, and otherissues, but despite this, we have also received several plans for recovery lasting from November throughto March.
Our customers have been experiencing drastic breakdowns in the balance of supply against demand, andthe sense of urgency that is apparent to ensure that the supply and demand balance is restored as soon
as possible is clear from these plans.
There are many models that won’t be able to be delivered until next spring despite the fact that ourcustomers, who are automobile manufacturers, have already received orders from consumers for bothpassenger cars and commercial vehicles, and, in particular, popular models will take more than one year
to deliver.
Although KSK is also facing difficulties with regard to production, we have been able to cover deficiencies
caused by customer plants shutting down with partial production and components that are in stock, andwe are moving ahead under the understanding that we will be able to get through this period (forcustomer orders).
Post-editorial Notes: (Thoughts on the Paralympics)“Don’t worry about what you have lost. Just make the most of what you haveleft.”
This is a quote by Dr. Ludwig Guttmann, who is known as the “Father of the Paralympics,” and it is said
to sum up the spirit of the Paralympics. It is said that the start of the Paralympics was advocated by Dr.
Ludwig Guttmann in 1948, and the first event was an archery tournament held at Stoke Mandeville
Hospital, London. They were launched as a form of rehabilitation for soldiers who had received mainly
spinal injuries during World War II, and this later turned into an international tournament (1952), andwas then expanded into a larger event held after the Olympic Games from the Seoul Games in 1988.
This year’s Tokyo Paralympics were held between August 24th (Tuesday) and September 5th (Sunday),and I’m sure the shock that the athletes experienced when they first received or realized that they hadcongenital or acquired disabilities was unimaginable. Despite this, they all overcame these difficulties totake part in the Games, which included many extremely moving situations displaying the amazing smilingfaces of the athletes who had gone on to win medals and the athletes who lost but gave their best.
An example of this was the blind athlete taking part in the 100m track final for the blind and the visually
impaired who sat down on the course and cried when the tether connected to the guide, who ran
together with her due to total blindness, broke. This wouldn’t have happened if only she could see… She
must have experienced a rage that nobody else could… Seeing this caused the corners of my eyes to heatup.
Throwing oneself wholeheartedly into something and having to accept the results of the game(regardless of whether the scream that builds up from inside is caused by regret or delight) while thetears flow naturally is something that I have experienced many times as I battled through my school life,and nothing can replace the pure and refreshing emotions that flow through one at that time.
Although this may sound strange coming from somebody who enjoys full physical health, watching theParalympics reminded me of a song by Yumi Arai that I used to like, which goes “Someday time will be agenerous friend, who will turn the past yesterday into a story.” We humans have been gifted withamazing functions, and even when things are so bad that we wish for death, there comes a time when
we can forget the pain and observe ourselves objectively and say, “Oh yes, I remember that time, but
someday I will be able to laugh it off and talk about it.” This thought process has helped me out
countless times in the past. I have been through the mill many times, such as failing at junior high andseeing my father weep as a result of this, losing my father when I was in high school, and being at risk ofa fail mark at university, but I am now able to dine out on these stories to raise a smile in others.
In particular, I have a nostalgic feeling for the time that I was at risk of a fail mark → I opened my 1styear report and saw “Repeat Year.” What on earth…? I took another look again and concentrated on theword “repeat”… Repeat? A fail mark?... The credit column for one subject was blank… I went straight tomy teacher’s home… He showed me my exam paper, and not only was the column for writing thestudent’s name blank, the marks received were only 5 out of 100 → As I hung my head in shame, theteacher turned to me and said, “You didn’t pass, but I guess that means that you will fail… But, didn’t youstudent’s name blank, the marks received were only 5 out of 100 → As I hung my head in shame, theteacher turned to me and said, “You didn’t pass, but I guess that means that you will fail… But, didn’t you
represent the school at the Athletic Tournament?... Right, I’ve made my decision! Out of respect for you
actually having the courage to come to my home, I’ll give you a pass mark! Only this once, though! (lol)”→ Having received a special credit, I returned to my room and shared three “banzai” cheers with mycolleagues while we all laughed out loud… It was a great era, I had a great teacher, and it was a great
university… When I think back on this… the memory warms the cockles of my heart.
I hope to continue creating as many warm memories that I can laugh at and talk about from the start as
possible for the rest of my life.