Hitoshi Yamada, the second generation president and former chairman, joined TAMAYAKIN in November 1987. From the very beginning of his career, he took advantage of his experience as a pilot in the Maritime Self-Defence Force and single-handedly took on the challenge of pioneering the aircraft industry with a passion for aeroplanes.
Entering the aircraft industry was in line with the company's direction of 'high added value in small lots of a wide variety of products', but on the other hand, the door itself was not open to companies that did not understand or have a production system suitable for such manufacturing. In the absence of an information network such as the internet, Hitoshi Yamada had to use all the methods he had developed in his previous job, including personal contacts and contacts, to "do the legwork" to obtain the necessary information on quality control, equipment management systems and human resources training.
He overcame a difficult situation with his high motivation for the aircraft industry and aeroplanes, and obtained heat treatment certification from IHI Corporation just under a year after joining the company. This first step, pioneered by Hitoshi Yamada, became the foundation of TAMAYAKIN's current strength in the aircraft industry, and was passed on to the third president, Takeshi Yamada.

THE FOUNDER OF TAMAYAKIN HAS BEEN ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN TRACKING SYSTEMS, WHICH ARE NOW THE STANDARD, SINCE THE DAWN OF IT, AND IN 2001, THE INFRASTRUCTURE WAS FURTHER IMPROVED AND THE SYSTEM WAS MODIFIED TO AUTOMATE TEMPERATURE INSTRUCTIONS IN THE HEAT TREATMENT PROCESS BY QUANTIFYING CRAFTSMANSHIP, THEREBY SAVING LABOUR IN HANDLING SMALL LOTS OF VARIOUS PRODUCTS. THE SYSTEM HAS ALSO MADE THE CONTROL SYSTEM OF THE HEAT TREATMENT EQUIPMENT MORE LABOUR-SAVING. IN ADDITION, THE CONTROL SYSTEM FOR THE HEAT TREATMENT EQUIPMENT WAS RENOVATED IN-HOUSE, AN EQUIPMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM WAS BUILT AND IT TECHNOLOGY WAS INCORPORATED TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT POSSIBLE IN THE RECORDING OF HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES, THEREBY IMPROVING THE RELIABILITY OF HEAT TREATMENT, OR 'SPECIAL PROCESSES', WHOSE QUALITY IS DIFFICULT TO JUDGE FROM THE FINISHED PRODUCT. THE COMPANY'S PURSUIT OF "BETTER SERVICE FOR CUSTOMERS" AND ITS ATTITUDE OF TRYING TO SOLVE PROBLEMS WITH TECHNOLOGY WITHOUT FEAR OF REFORM IS ALSO AN EXPRESSION OF "TAMAYAKIN'S CHARACTER".

With the hollowing out of the manufacturing industry in Japan becoming an issue, TAMAYAKIN decided to expand into China in preparation for the further deterioration of the situation. Around the same time, I was approached by a previous trainee and we decided to proceed with preliminary research for a site visit and exhibition in Shanghai. In the process, we found that many companies, especially Japanese companies with their own factories in Dalian, had expressed a strong desire to have an industrial heat treatment factory in the city. We have realized many complaints there are no suitable heat treatment facilities in the area and also that there are high expectations for TAMAYAKIN. Based on the results of feasibility studies, etc. we decided that the city of Dalian would be a good match for us in terms of size, rather than a large city, then we have set up a heat treatment factory in Dalian with high expectations from many companies. Since then, with the focus on the Japanese auto industry, the business in Dalian has been growing steadily as a base for transmitting "Japanese heat treatment" from China to other countries and the size of the factory has continued to increase.

Witnessing the opening ceremony of the Dalian plant, the future general manager of the plant.
- Bai and Jin Yamada, 2nd generation

Dalian factory construction site

Dalian factory construction site

The first step taken by Dalian factory was the heat treatment of the metal molds used to cast the parts, rather than the heat treatment of parts, which was the main focus of the head office. At that time, there were no heat treatment factories in the north-eastern area, including the city of Dalian, that were advanced enough to exploit the potential of the materials, so not only parts manufacturers but also steel manufacturers were looking forward to TAMAYAKIN for help. We received top-class technical training from a major manufacturer in the industry, even though we had no expertise in the field of metal mold heat treatment and the company has grown to handle a wide range of products, from small press metal molds for casting stainless steel and steel products used in daily life, to plastic molds for casting plastic and rubber products, to technically difficult die-cast metal molds weighing up to one ton. It was a time when the foundation was steadily being built while receiving a lot of expectations and cooperation.

Facilities in Dalian factory

Facilities in Dalian factory

Dalian's main mass production results

Dalian's main mass production results

In order to enter a new era, we discontinued the salt bath heat treatment process that had been in operation since our foundation. Secured a place to set up a system to meet the needs of the industry at an early stage. The decision was made to build a heat treatment facility which has been gradually arranged for the next generation of main aircraft parts on the former salt bath site since 2011. Since then, the new factory has been used to produce engine and control components for new passenger aircraft.

The dismantling of the salt bath factory（2007）

Musashino Plant

"AMATERAS" is a "consortium of aerospace component manufacturing companies" with advanced technology in the Tokyo area, initiated by Tokyo as a corporate unit that will play a leading role in the next generation of the aerospace industry.
When the project began as a study group, as many as 300 to 400 companies participated, and 10 of them were selected as members of the AMATERAS unit.
TAMAYAKIN was selected as one of the best in the heat treatment division, among many leading companies in the industry, and made a new start as one of the leading members of the aerospace industry.
Through these activities, TAMAYAKIN has built a strong network of contacts and networks that it has never had before. Since then, through various encounters, we have steered the company to acquire JIS Q 9100 certification and Nadcap, and have been steadily advancing as a core company in the aviation industry.

In addition to heat treatment of moulds and electronic, electrical and mechanical parts, since 2009 the Dalian plant has also been involved in the heat treatment of automotive parts, which are also highly challenging in terms of quality assurance management. In fact, here, too, the strong expectations and support from the major manufacturers have been the catalyst for a new step forward.
Thereafter, in 2010, the plant acquired the international quality management standard TS16949 (later IATF16949) for the automotive industry, and entered the automotive industry in earnest. At the same time, the number of cars manufactured in China is growing rapidly, and the increase in demand for TAMAY metallurgy follows the same curve and steadily expands until 2017, when the annual domestic production of 29.94 million vehicles was recorded. This was a time when the Dalian plant built a solid foundation along with the development of the Chinese economy.

A second plant completed within five years of the opening of the Dalian plant.

A second plant completed within five years of the opening of the Dalian plant.

"JIS Q 9100", an international standard for quality management systems specialized in the aerospace and defense industries, has been adopted as a global standard for parts procurement by the aerospace and defense industries around the world. This is a management system standard for ensuring the safety and improving the reliability of products and services in the aerospace and defense industries. Since it is extremely difficult to acquire such certification, only a few companies in Japan were initially certified. In this situation, TAMAYAKIN will continue to focus on all aspects of the innovation process, including strengthening the internal organization, making business processes more visible and ensuring compliance with the requirements of the JIS Q 9100 quality management system and the Nadcap international process certification program for the aerospace industry. On the other hand, it was not easy to break away from the "factory in the town" and the employees began to voice their opposition to the idea of working in a different way, but this gradually changed to a sense of challenging the company to do a job that no one else could do, fostering professional pride, dignity and strong teamwork.

The main focus of the Dalian factory continues to be the manufacture of auto body parts　and while the factory is continuously investing in equipment, the path chosen by the representative Mr. Pak as a starting point for the next era is the aerospace field, which the Tokyo head office has already achieved the results. In 2019, they successfully acquired AS9100 certification, which is comparable to JIS Q 9100, which is considered difficult to acquire even in Japan, followed by NADCAP certification in the following year. Everyone at the Tokyo Head Office could not hide their surprise at the rapid progress made in such a short period of time. Although domestic demand is the mainstream for auto parts, the needs for aircraft are expanding globally. At present there is only a small amount of work on the aircraft equipment orders, but we are confident that this one step will open up a new chapter in the history of the Dalian factory's possibility.

Acquiring advanced certifications and contributing to local industries.

Tsuyoshi Yamada, who took over as the third-generation president of the company on August 2017, utilized his experience as an expatriate in China during his previous career and demonstrated his ability to manage the company. Since he was a child, he had grown up watching the back of his father, Hitoshi Yamada, the current chairman of the company, and his interest in business was the strongest of all, so he wanted to join a small-to-medium sized company instead of a large company.

With 'TAMAYAKIN' on the verge of becoming a '100-year company', the third-generation president is looking to 'the future beyond that'. And the newly built South Plant has an important role to play in laying the foundations for this.
Firstly, the plant aims to become a plant that is involved not only in heat treatment, but also in all product processes. This will establish a new business line, with heat treatment at its core, capable of handling everything from materials to final form. Second, the plant will support the manufacturing industry of the future, which has yet to be seen. The plant aims to support the manufacturing industry on an unprecedented scale, including the new 'flying car', wind power generation, medical care and the environment, in addition to selecting equipment with a view to an era in which carbon neutrality will become mainstream. The story of TAMAYAKIN, as envisioned by the third president, is about to begin.

Plans for the completion of the South Plant.