Q: What made you want to take on the role of president and CEO of Yokogawa Corporation of America?
A: I believe that the North American process and energy industry markets are demanding new business models that will present unique requirements for process plant operations. The new business model required of automation suppliers is combining product expertise with applications and service capabilities to solve user business problems that provide a return on assets, safety, environmental compliance, and eliminating waste.
Leading Yokogawa Corporation of America presents me with the opportunity to build such a professional service-focused business at a leading process instrumentation, analyzers and controls company for the North American market by leveraging Yokogawa’s portfolio of instruments, analyzers, control system products, and automation services. The products and services will be delivered through a direct and a well-developed North American sales representative channel for a company that also has leadership in the high growth Asia and Middle East markets where many of our U.S. customers are expanding to.
Q: What do you see as the core strengths/areas of experience you will be able to leverage to position Yokogawa for growth in the United States going forward?
A: Yokogawa Corporation of America has unique core strengths and capabilities to leverage for growth in the U.S. market, such as:
• An experienced (over 20 years) instruments, analyzers and control products representative channel for sales and service to North American markets that has 4,000-plus end-user customers
• Yokogawa’s True Peak Tunable Diode Laser Gas Analyzer technology provides the fastest O2 measurement to optimize combustion processes.
• U.S.-based instrument manufacturing and modification capabilities in Newnan, GA.
• A Houston-based Engineering Project Management and Engineering Facility capable of staging and integrating any size automation project
Q: What is your five-year plan for Yokogawa? How will Yokogawa be a better company in 2016?
A: Our five-year growth plan includes:
• Expanding our Vigilant Plant Consulting, Field Services and Life Cycle Effectiveness Automation Services.
• Recruiting and training newly graduated engineers for careers in instrumentation and process controls.
• New product offerings in sensing and measurement technologies and industry-specific application software solutions through partnering and acquisitions.
• New process industry offerings addressing specific applications, such as CombustionONE process fired heater solutions.
Q: What application segments do you see as particularly attractive target markets for Yokogawa going forward?
A: Application segments that we have identified as attractive markets are:
• True Peak Tunable Diode Laser Spectroscopy for fast, precise measurements on near-infrared absorbing gases in harsh environments in the oil and gas and HPI markets.
• Upstream Oil and Gas onshore and offshore production operations for measurement and control applications from wellhead to gathering and processing.
• Wireless sensing and measurements integrated to network-based controls and monitoring applications.
• Measurement, control, connectivity, communication technologies and applications to enable Deepwater Subsea oil and gas production and processing.
• Process plant operations productivity software applications
Q: Regarding technology specifically, what do you see as the most attractive product lines/segments in the Yokogawa solution set, both from a sales and marketing perspective and a research and development perspective?
A: Technology segments:
• Composition analysis and detection for gases, liquids and solids.
• Laser Spectroscopy
• OPGD (Open Path Gas Detection)
• Chemometrics
• Downhole Oil & Gas well measurements
• Wireless sensing technologies above ground, underground, underwater, through and under ice to obtain difficult measurements.
• Sensing technologies for unconventional measurements such as corrosion, stress, friction, cracks, and thicknesses and parameters that can be inferred.
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