Tokyo, Japan—Tosoh Corporation announces changes to its Board of Directors as decided during a meeting of its members held the same day, on February 2, 2016.
Implementation of the Company’s fiscal 2017 mid-term business plan will be overseen by a new management team, for the development of much stronger groundings in operations and in profits.
Details of the changes
1) President (effective March 1, 2016)
| New | Previous |
| Toshinori Yamamoto | President | Representative Managing Director |
| Kenichi Udagawa | Director and Corporate Adviser | President |
Mr. Udagawa will remain on the Company’s Board of Directors until the next general meeting of shareholders this June, after which, he will become a corporate advisor.
2) Representative Director (effective March 1, 2016)
| New | Previous |
| Sukehiro Itoh | Representative Managing Director
| Managing Director |
3) Biographies for the newly appointed president and representative director are as follows:
Toshinori Yamamoto
Toshinori Yamamoto began his career with Tosoh Corporation after graduating from Kobe University with a degree in economics in 1979. He worked at the Osaka branch of the Chlor-alkali Division from 1981 to 1986, when he moved to the Tosoh Labor Union in Tokyo. In 1990, Mr. Yamamoto was appointed to purchasing and then in 1994 to international operations.
A career in management abroad began for Mr. Yamamoto in 1995, when he was appointed managing director of Tosoh Europe B.V., and continued when in 1999 he was made controller of the Tosoh-Akzo Nobel joint venture, Delamine B.V., both in the Netherlands. On returning to Japan, he was appointed general manager for planning and business development for organic chemicals. In 2003, he became the general manager of planning and administration for the Chlor-alkali Division and began serving as the general manager of Tosoh’s subsidiary Taiyo Vinyl Corporation.
In 2006, Mr. Yamamoto was promoted to deputy senior general manager and in 2007 to senior general manager of the Chlor-alkali Division, while also remaining in charge of that division’s planning and administration. In June 2009, he was named a director of Tosoh Corporation and made deputy senior manager for polyvinyl chloride operations. In 2010, he was appointed vice president of the Chlor-alkali Group. A year later, in 2011, he was made a Tosoh Corporation managing director and became president of the Chlor-alkali Group. In 2013, while retaining the position of Chlor-alkali Group president, Mr. Yamamoto also became the senior general manager of the Purchasing and Logistics Department and was also appointed to oversee China Operations. In 2015, Mr. Yamamoto was made a representative managing director of Tosoh Corporation and still serves as president of the Company’s Chlor-alkali Group.
Sukehiro Itoh
Sukehiro Itoh graduated from Hitotsubashi University’s Department of Commerce and then joined the Industrial Bank of Japan, Limited in 1979. In 2002, that institution combined with other banks to form the Mizuho Financial Group, a principal Tosoh shareholder.
Mr. Itoh was made the deputy general manager of human resources of Mizuho Corporate Bank in 2002. In April 2003, he became the general manager of the bank’s Industrial Research Department.
He then was appointed as an operating officer and general manager of Mizuho Corporate Bank’s No. 5 Sales Department, in April 2007.
Mr. Itoh subsequently was made an operating officer and the general manager of the Finance Department of Kowa Real Estate Co. Ltd., another of the Mizuho Financial Group’s major shareholdings. In July 2009, Mr. Itoh also was appointed to Kowa’s board.
A year later, in June 2010, Mr. Itoh was appointed a director and a member of the Board of Directors of Tosoh Corporation. Also at this time, he served as an adviser to Tosoh Corporation and was appointed vice president of the Company’s Petrochemical Group.
In June 2012, while continuing to serve on Tosoh’s Board of Directors, Mr. Itoh was appointed, and currently serves as, a Tosoh managing director as well as president of the Company’s Petrochemical Group. In June 2015, Mr. Itoh was appointed as the general manager of Tosoh’s Purchasing & Logistics department, a role he serves concurrently with his present duties.
TOSOH CORPORATION
WHO WE ARE
Tosoh Corporation is the parent of the Tosoh Group, which comprises over 100 companies worldwide and a multiethnic workforce of over 11,000 people and generated net sales of ¥809.7 billion (US$6.7 billion at the year-end rate of ¥120.17 to the US dollar) in fiscal 2015, ended March 31, 2015.
WHAT WE DO
Tosoh is one of the largest chlor-alkali manufacturers in Asia. The company supplies the plastic resins and an array of the basic chemicals that support modern life. Tosoh’s petrochemical operations supply ethylene, polyethylene, and functional polymers, while its advanced materials business serves the global semiconductor, display, and solar industries. Tosoh has also pioneered sophisticated bioscience systems that are used for the monitoring of life-threatening diseases. In addition, Tosoh demonstrates its commitment to a sustainable future in part by manufacturing a variety of eco-products.
Stock Exchange Ticker Symbol: 4042
DISCLAIMER
This document may contain forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements concerning product development, objectives, goals, and commercial introductions, which involve certain risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are identified through the use of the word anticipates and other words of similar meaning. Actual results may differ significantly from the results expressed in forward-looking statements.