Creating the Best Matching of Machines to People

March 28, 2007 (Japan) - Safety has become a priority issue, and changes in individual and corporate values have brought a growing desire for safety in all aspects of our lives. Applying its sensing and control technologies, Omron responds to the growing worldwide desire for safety by meeting society's needs.

Not so many years ago, seasoned factory workers in Japan described two of the keys to success as kan, or gut feel, and keiken, experience. In the past, these veteran workers passed on their know-how to the younger generation and helped them to avoid the risks of accidents and possible quality problems.

However, with the baby boom generation beginning to retire from 2007, it will be difficult to transmit their skills to younger workers. Also, as companies of many nations locate their plants outside their home countries and labor has become more mobile, they must confront a range of issues that make safety more important than ever before.

These include managing more ethnically diverse work forces, which have differing levels of awareness of safety issue and working practices, and dealing effectively with communication issues. That is why, more than ever, equipment and systems must be designed for safety.

At the same time, there is a worldwide trend toward higher safety standards and a growing consensus that meeting these standards should be mandatory. One of the trends bringing greater emphasis on safety is the rising appreciation of corporate social responsibility (CSR) around the world.

As a top-ranking global supplier of industrial automation equipment, Omron was one of the first to enter the industrial safety business in the 1980s and has developed a broad lineup of products that meet global safety standards.

In addition, for its customers in Japan, Omron has taken initiatives to raise the awareness of the importance of safety issues and offer them consulting services for developing optimal accident prevention systems that help them minimize time lost due to accidents. Building on the base of experience, Omron today offers solutions to meet the safety-related needs of its customer around the world in manufacturing and other industries.

Omron's President & CEO Hisao Sakuta comments, "At Omron, our corporate philosophy for more than 50 years has been based on having respect for human beings, anticipating changing social needs, and working for the benefit of society. Therefore, our approach is to draw on our original sensing and control technologies to develop smarter and safer equipment that is better matched to the skills and values of the worker base. Within the workplace, human beings must interact constantly with machines.

The most dangerous situations, where accidents are most likely to occur, are where people interface with machinery. This is why Omron has worked to analyze the full extent of dangers in the workplace and has used its sensing and control technologies to ensure the safety of people in the workplace.

Omron, for example, has developed photoelectric switches equipped with sensors that can detect the presence of human beings in restricted areas and stop machine operations automatically. More recent examples of Omron's industrial safety solutions include Safety Light Curtains.

These devices use beams of light to distinguish between machinery and humans, and cut off the electric power temporarily when they detect the presence of workers entering dangerous areas. Drawing on its control technologies, Omron has also developed the Safety Network Control (SNC) system, which boasts the highest level of safety control in the world.

Omron's business activities span more than 60 countries, including its home market of Japan as well as North America, Europe, China, and the rest of Asia. This global network enables Omron to offer high-quality products and services to its customers wherever and whenever they need them.

Building on this network, Omron has a set of goal of being the leading company in the industrial safety area. In 2006, to move closer to its goal of being No.1 Omron acquired Scientific Technologies Incorporated (STI), of the United States, a leading manufacturer of safety equipment.

As Mr. Sakuta concludes, "Today, although safety considerations are still sometimes regarded as an additional cost, Omron strongly believes that cost is not the issue. Companies have a responsibility to provide safety working conditions. Omron's long-standing philosophy, which has been the support of its activities since its founding, is that companies should contribute to society.

Based on this philosophy, Omron has worked to apply its sensing and control technologies and achieve the best matching of machines to people. This applies not only to the workplace but also to a broad range of other areas where we have worked to identify and then satisfy social needs for security, safety, the preservation of the natural environment, and health."