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Original article published in Newsweek on February 9th, 2024. Written by the WorldfolioFlood control pioneer TAKUWA Corporation
targets overseas markets for growth
A conqueror of the domestic market, the company is concentrating expansion efforts further afield.
Although Japan is a narrowcountry accounting for just
0.25% of the world’s land area,
due to its geographical conditions, it repeatedly suffersfrom various natural disasters
and is often prone to flooding
due to typhoons and torrential
rains, earthquakes, tsunamis,
and volcanic eruptions.
However, for centuries theJapanese have been successful in facing these disasters
and overcoming the difficulties thanks to the unique flood
control culture and technology
cultivated throughout its history. This has resulted in theestablishment of extremely highflood control standards thatare unparalleled worldwide, andTAKUWA Corporation is oneof the country’s true pioneers
in this area, having become regarded as one of Japan’s leading
companies in flood control anddisaster prevention.
“For more than 50 years, wehave continued to provide technologies and solutions specialized in Japan’s flood control
and disaster countermeasures,”says Shinji Okuda, Presidentof TAKUWA Corporation. The
company holds a 60% domestic
market share in water level
gauges, thanks to products
such as the quartz type waterlevel gauge developed in 1978,
and its predecessor, the reedswitch type water level gauge,
which was developed in 1968.
It has gone on to pioneer othersensor-based gauge technologies, including the small waterlevel observation buoy (whichuses drones and underwatercommunication technology
to observe the water level ofnatural dams created whenriver channels are blocked bylandslides) and a laser scanning
type water level gauge.
“While other companies
may offer similar water level
gauges, our competitive advantage also extends to ourprompt maintenance service
and low failure rates. This trackrecord reflects confidence in“For more than
50 years, we havecontinued to provide
technologies andsolutions specializedin Japan’s flood
control and disastercountermeasures.”Shinji Okuda, President,
TAKUWA Corporation

Laser scanning typewater level gauge

Small water level observation buoy

Quartz type water level gauge

our sensors not only throughquality, but also through overall
effectiveness,” says Mr. Okuda.
Th o u g h t h e c o m p a ny i s
not well-known overseas, theTAKUWA president explainsthat it is the organization’s policy to develop overseas markets
going forward, and as part ofthis international focus it has
ensured it is accredited by internationally-recognised standards, including four ISO Certifications: ISO 9001 (Quality),
ISO 14001 (Environment), ISO
45001 (Occupational Healthand Safety) and ISO 27001(Information Security).
“Companies are required bysociety to meet these four andthey will enable us to gain atleast a minimum level of trustfrom overseas customers who

are not familiar with our company and facilitate our sales
activities,” stresses Mr. Okuda.
Another area of focus for thecompany has been to place increasing importance on risk assessment. “In today’s uncertain
times, when the future is uncertain and society is in turmoil,
the only way for a company tosurvive is to always take onrisks and take on challenges.
Risk assessment is a way ofestimating how much risk you
can tolerate when taking on any
new challenge,” he says.
Such challenges in the market exist both at home andoverseas when it comes toTAKUWA Corporation’s growthstrategy. With natural disasters now occurring more frequently on a global scale due

to climate change, the company
is considering the export of its
technology as a business opportunity, but at the same time,
keeping a close eye on Japan’s
evolving domestic situation.
“Since our current main
customer base is almost exclusively national and local
governments, we believe thatoverseas expansion is a must,”
says Mr. Okuda. “While global
demographics are on the rise,Japan’s population has been
declining since 2008, andwith the aging of the population and declining birthrate,
the government’s tax revenue
is also declining. Therefore,
the government’s budget has
a direct impact on our sales.
As a disaster-prone country,
disaster countermeasures forland preservation are important, but now we are forced toallocate much of our budget
to medical care, long-termcare, and social security; infact, the national budget isalmost half of what it was 20years ago. To overcome thesechanges in the situation, we
need to explore opportunities not only in the domestic
market but also aggressively
seek opportunities in the private market and expand ourpresence overseas.”
Mr. Okuda adds: “We are
currently concentrating ourglobal business in Thailand
and Korea. In Thailand, we
are working with a consulting
firm to challenge ourselves
to build strong ties with theThai government, and in Korea we are aiming to develop
the market by participating inprojects related to major river
systems that are determinedby national policy.”“My dream is for TAKUWA
Corporation to become a company that contributes to people
and society around the world,”
concludes Mr. Okuda.

www.takuwa.co.jp/en