[No. 58] Taizo Yamazaki

Having been born in Suwa, Nagano, and attending local schools through high school, the first time I made a decision about my future path on my own was when I decided to go to university. Looking back now, I am convinced that choosing Keio University without any hesitation was the right decision. One of the reasons was that I wanted to make many friends from among the numerous peers gathering from all over the country and expand my own small world into a slightly larger one.

After enrolling, I joined an all-faculty club and was truly delighted to make many friends from outside my own faculty. In addition to friends, I was also able to meet many professors whom I could truly trust, and I feel fortunate that even now, after graduating, they regularly listen to the concerns I have.

With friends from the club

I don't think I was a particularly outstanding student during my school days. I wonder why I so often found myself getting off at Hiyoshi Station and, instead of walking up the ginkgo-lined avenue to campus, disappearing into the town of Hiyoshi on the opposite side. In those days, there were no cell phones. When I left my apartment for school, I would get off at the Hiyoshi platform thinking about what classes I had and at what time... but upon leaving the station, I would coincidentally, yet as if it were a matter of course, run into friends and head into town. But I am truly grateful to my classmates and club mates for the fulfilling student life I was able to lead.

When it came time to choose my major in my third year, I chose the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering with my future in mind. The reasons were that my family's home is in a hub of the precision industry, where my father ran a precision parts manufacturing company, and I sensed he wanted me to take over the business. I also felt that since I had some natural leadership qualities, taking over the family business would be a good way to utilize them, so I thought a department where I could learn even a little about management would be a good choice. Additionally, Professor Takeshi Kawase's IE class was incredibly interesting. In the laboratory, I also made many friends among my peers and upperclassmen. There is no doubt that the many experiences I had, not just in research but in a family-like environment that was different from anything before, have become a source of strength for me today.

I have now taken over the family business and am engaged in the precision industry. Simply continuing with parts manufacturing as we have in the past is not a winning scenario against the pursuing companies from China and Asia. We have been honing our processing technology and skills to a level that other companies cannot match, while also creating a new business venture over the past nearly 20 years. This is the "medical device business field," which has been difficult to commercialize in Japan until now due to various regulations. I have found my purpose in having a rural company develop a world-class "artificial heart assist pump" originating from Japan, and I am working with my two older brothers, who are in different fields, toward the day of commercialization.

Thanks to changes in the environment surrounding medical care in Japan and the understanding and cooperation of all concerned parties, the clinical trials are progressing smoothly, and we have reached the point where we can apply for commercialization next year, which is truly wonderful. There were many challenges to get to this point. I am sincerely grateful to Professor Kawase, Professor Kanazawa, and Mr. Matsumoto (now a professor at Aoyama Gakuin University) from my laboratory, who gave me various advice from a broad perspective each time. I intend to continue my daily activities with the goal of being able to deliver good news to my professors in the near future.