04 January 2023
-CEO Takahashi Gives New Year Address following the Launch of Resonac-
On January 1, 2023, Showa Denko K.K. (SDK) and Showa Denko Materials Co., Ltd. (SDMC, former Hitachi Chemical Company, Ltd.) merged and transformed themselves into two new companies, namely a holding company named “Resonac Holdings Corporation,” and a manufacturing company named “Resonac Corporation” (hereinafter collectively called “Resonac”). Hidehito Takahashi continues leading both companies as President and CEO. The Resonac Group has defined its purpose as “Change society through the power of chemistry,” aiming to become a leading functional chemical manufacturer in the world. The Group will reform its business portfolio and start to tackle the new challenges. Hidehito Takahashi, President and CEO of Resonac, made a new year address to declare the launch of the new Resonac Group. “The birth of Resonac is its second foundation. We will reform the Group by raising talent who can take positive actions autonomously and creatively,” he told the whole staff of the Group.
Hidehito Takahashi, President & CEO
Resonac Holdings Corporation
Resonac, a global top semiconductor/electronic materials manufacturer
Resonac’s annual sales of semiconductor and electronic materials amount to about 400 billion yen, while the Group’s annual net sales amount to about 1.4 trillion yen. Resonac is the global top manufacturer of semiconductor materials having overwhelming share of the market for materials used in downstream of semiconductor production process, which has been attracting people’s attention.
As a result of the integration of former SDK and former SDMC, we now have a combination of former SDK’s stable-earnings businesses including petrochemicals, graphite electrodes, and basic chemicals businesses, and former SDMC’s semiconductor and electronic materials business, which is a growth driver. Following the announcement of the decision to integrate former SDK, which has strength in production of midstream materials, and former SDMC, which has strength in production of downstream materials, the two companies started to work collaboratively, and produced excellent results in R&D and production processes of various products including CMP slurries and copper-clad laminates.
To contribute to sustainable development of society through solution of technical problems as a chemical company, it is very important for Resonac to promote collaboration and cooperation with other companies and other industries. The Resonac Group aims to be a “Co-creative Chemical Company” that creates value through co-creation.
Outline of CEO Takahashi’s new year address
Newly launched Resonac aims to be a leading functional chemical manufacturer in the world. To this end, the most important thing for Resonac is to cultivate corporate culture that brings on autonomous and creative people.
I want to reform Resonac to be a company about which other companies’ people say “We want to employ people like those working at Resonac.” I aim to accomplish this reform because bringing on talent who can execute strategy will be a decisive factor that gives competitiveness to a company.
Last year, to spread Resonac’s Purpose and Values among the staff of the Group, the management including me visited the Group’s business bases, and exchanged views with the staff face-to-face. This year, we will have workshops in which we will discuss problems and find actions to solve them together, execute personnel evaluation system based on Values, have programs to share practice cases of Values beyond boundaries between organizations, and commend practice cases of Values.
Social circumstances including the situation in Ukraine and confrontation between the United States and China are expected to be tense in medium to long term. To cope with such social circumstances, it is very important for Resonac to practice not only “human resource development” which I mentioned before, but also “sustainability,” “DX” (digital transformation), and “marketing.” The entire staff of Resonac must work to put these four important measures into practice.
Practice of sustainability is a necessary condition for Resonac to become a leading functional chemical manufacturer in the world. To achieve the Group’s sustainable growth, Resonac must contribute to avoidance of global environmental crisis. Resonac will update its activities to achieve carbon neutrality, introduce the viewpoint of sustainability into the Group’s business portfolio management and development of new businesses and technologies, thereby strengthening its relationship with stakeholders.
To win through in the global competition, Resonac must promote DX. In the processes of product development and manufacturing, artificial intelligence (AI) and materials informatics (MI) are replacing human experience and intuition. Improvement in customer relations and sales promotion also requires DX. This year, Resonac will develop human resources for DX, aiming to lay the solid foundation of DX and make a leap forward in the Group’s performance.
To survive the age of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA), it is necessary for Resonac to remove the barriers between organizations, grasp customers’ needs, and develop required materials. We will strengthen cooperation between R&D section and marketing section, push ahead fusion of “Chemistry to synthesize” and “Chemistry to formulate” further, and promote co-creation inside and outside the company.
Co-creation requires each member of Resonac to work autonomously and cross-sectionally as a professional. Each member of Resonac is the true leader who change society and drive this company.
The birth of Resonac is the second foundation of the company. This is not our goal, but rather, this is our start. Everybody in the Resonac Group! Let’s go forward together!
[Reference]
1. New company names
The new corporate group has a holding company structure. Names of holding company and manufacturing company are as follows.
Holding company
Resonac Holdings Corporation
Manufacturing company
Resonac Corporation
2. Our hope put into the new trade name and corporate logotype
The Newly Integrated Company Resonac defines its purpose as “Change society through the power of chemistry.” To achieve technological innovation for solving various social issues, it is essential for us to make wide-ranging co-creative efforts with partners. As a “Co-creative Chemical Company,” Resonac will aim at ensuring sustainable growth and enhancing enterprise value through such co-creative efforts.
The name “Resonac” was created as a combination of the word “Resonate” and “C” as the first letter of “Chemistry.” We put into this name our hope that the Group’s wide-ranging and flexible advanced material technologies will be connected and resonate with our partners’ various technologies and ideas to realize bright future, and the resonance will spread further to meet new partners, thereby creating a powerful surge that changes society.