Hiroshi Furuta appointed CMD for Toshiba’s India transmission & distribution biz

NEW DELHI: Toshiba Transmission & Distribution Systems (India) Pvt. Ltd. (TTDI) on Monday announced the appointment of Hiroshi Furuta as chairman and managing director.With TTDI positioned as Toshiba’s global manufacturing hub for its transmission distribution (T&D) equipment business, Furuta will lead the company on the path of next level of growth in India and overseas, as per a statement.Holding a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Nagoya University of Japan, Furuta brings a rich and extensive experience of over twenty five (25) years in energy transmission & distribution industry. His experience and expertise are centered on design and system engineering especially for high voltage equipment for power & substation systems. In 2014, he was appointed senior manager of high-voltage switchgear department, and subsequently in 2020 as senior manager of power & substation systems engineering department in grid aggregation division of Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation.Furuta said, “TTDI’s advanced technology & processes, high-level background integration, state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities, massive production capacity and a highly skilled workforce yield high-quality T&D equipment that are made-in-India. TTDI will focus on continuous skill development, constant product improvement and upgrade manufacturing capability by way of automation for higher efficiency to deliver distinctive advantage with a shorter delivery time.”To boost skill development, TTDI is steadfast in improving skill levels of manpower in T&D sector through its JAPAN-INDIA-Manufacturing (JIM) skill development programme. The programme aims to develop Japanese standard shop floor leaders and engineers, focusing on areas such as kaizen and the 5S (sort, set in order, shine, standardize and sustain). The programme also imparts safety & environmental training to raise the levels in line with global standards.

In its quest towards continuous product improvement, TTDI is deploying new advanced manufacturing technologies to continuously improve quality, efficiency, reliability, and speed-to-market of a product.

“India is expected to become a high volume market as the demand from India and overseas is expected to increase substantially. TTDI aims to align its resources and expand capacity in line with the increased opportunities. Through Toshiba Group companies around the world, we will further consolidate our global footprint and grow our exports from India,” Furuta added.