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The Tokio
Marine and Fire Insurance Company and The Nichido
Fire and Marine Insurance Company, Limited merged
on October 1, 2004 to form a new property and casualty
(P&C) insurance company called Tokio Marine
& Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. The merger
was approved by the board of directors of the two
companies and Millea Holdings, Inc., after detailed
study and discussion by and among the companies
with regard to the reorganization of the core P&C
insurance business of the Millea Group, of which
the two companies are members.
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Since integrating their management in April
2002 under Millea Holdings, the two companies have
worked to integrate their products, back office
and IT systems and to consolidate their sales and
claims investigation offices. These moves are aimed
at concentrating strengths in response to a new
business environment marked by deregulation, increasing
foreign competition and fundamental changes in the
economy. After further study, the companies determined
that a merger would both enhance the value of the
Millea Group and further their goal of the developing
new products and services from the perspective of
their customers.
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In
China and other rapidly growing economies, cement
is the lifeblood of economic development. Without
this essential infrastructure component, few projects
of any importance have a chance of reaching completion.
In April 2003, Mitsubishi Materials and Mitsubishi
Corporation founded cement-manufacturing firm
Qingdao Mitsubishi Cement Company Ltd., to reinforce
domestic sales of cement in China. Construction
of the company's complex, including cement silos
and mixing facilities, was completed in June 2004.
The new plant, which consists of one 15,000
ton silo, three 1,000 ton silos and one 300 ton
silo, was completed at an investment cost of ¥300
million. The plant will combine locally procured
fly ash (a by-product of coal-fired power generating
plants) with cement produced both in China and
in Japan to meet Chinese product specifications.
Cement from Japan will mainly be supplied by Mitsubishi
Materials' Kyushu plant. Annual sales for the
new company are targeted at 400 thousand tons.
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Choosing
just the right wedding presents is never an easy
task, all the more so when the newlywed couple is
royalty. But Casper Schultz, Managing Director of
Mitsubishi Motor Sales Danmark (MMSD), found the
perfect gift for the recent wedding of Danish Crown
Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary: his and
hers Mitsubishi cars.
At an informal ceremony a few days before
the actual wedding, Crown Prince Frederik was presented
with a brand new Lancer Evolution VIII sports sedan,
while bride-to-be Mary was offered an Outlander
SUV. The presentation ceremony took place at romantic
Fredensborg Castle in Zealand.
The Crown Prince was visibly delighted with
his gift, and wasted no time in opening the hood,
the better to admire the powerful turbocharged two-liter
engine that resides beneath. Likewise, Crown Princess
Mary, a known fan of horseback riding, was looking
forward to taking her new steed out to the fields
and marshes near their castle in Graasten in southern
Jutland.
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| Crown Prince
Frederik and Crown Princess Mary admire their
wedding gifts. |
The gifts are part of a long-standing
relationship between Mitsubishi Motors and the Danish
royal family. Previously, it was Prince Henrik who
received a Pajero SUV and an L200 pickup truck for
use during the pursuit of his favored hobbies of
hunting and sailing.
Future purchasers of wedding gifts may wish
to emulate the generosity of MMSD's Schultz and
offer a Mitsubishi car as a token of appreciation.
The Danish royal family would likely approve of
such a selection.
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Kirin
Brewery's Pharmaceutical Division, which is developing
therapeutic products for renal disease, cancer and
immunological disorders, entered into collaboration
in June 2004 with Merix Bioscience of the U.S.A.
for developing cell therapies using dendritic cells.
The two will jointly develop and commercialize dendritic
cell vaccines in all applicable areas, including
cancer, infectious diseases, autoimmune disorders
and transplantation, with the initial focus on cancer
and HIV. Merix will commercialize in the United
States and Canada; Kirin in Asia; and opportunities
in other regions will be decided jointly. Profits
will be split 50:50 worldwide.
"We believe our collective expertise
in the field of cell therapy will provide patients
with superior immunotherapy treatments," said
Clint (Skip) Dederick, chairman of the Board, CEO
and president of Merix. "Our RNA-loaded technology
creates a unique opportunity to personalize treatment
for an individual patient and invoke the broadest
possible immune response to fight disease."
Merix is sponsoring a Phase I/II clinical
trial in the U.S.A. and Canada for renal (kidney)
cancer. The companies will utilize Merix's platform
technology for RNA-loaded dendritic cell technology.
This "total tumor RNA" approach is completely
unique in that it uses RNA from all of the patient's
tumor antigens.
New personalized dendritic cell vaccines
are expected to treat patients that current therapies
and medicine cannot. |
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Mitsubishi
Electric America Foundation (MEAF) granted funds
to support the visit of the Japanese weaving group,
"SAORI," to the 2004 International VSA
arts Festival (held every five years at select cities
around the globe by VSA arts, an international nonprofit
organization that provides opportunities in the
arts for people with disabilities). SAORI pioneered
a form of weaving that is simple enough for people
with severe mental disabilities to learn to use.
The
SAORI weaving technique has been
adopted by countries around the world, enabling
disabled people to develop creative skills and earn
money through the sale of their products (very beautiful!).
The founders of the group are Misao Jo and her son
Kenzo, based in Osaka. I have been good friends
with the Jo family for many years; Mitsubishi Electric
has given them some funds in the past. You can learn
more about this amazing group at
http://www.dinf.ne.jp/doc/english/other/wz_saori_e.htm
Rayna Aylward
Executive Director
Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation
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NYK
Line has a long history of implementing high safety
and environmental standards. The company does
not actively seek recognition, but it was no surprise
to industry observers that on April 29, 2004,
Ford Motor Company presented its coveted "World
Excellence Award" to NYK Line for environmental
leadership. More than 150 vendors attended the
awards ceremony and NYK was the only logistics
company, out of 42 suppliers receiving awards,
to achieve the special environmental award, which
recognizes a supplier's demonstrated environmental
achievement and innovation.
NYK has applied its proprietary NAV9000
system for safe operation and environmental protection
not only to NYK-owned vessels but also to chartered
ones since 1998, and will continue to use and
improve the system in the future. NYK is also
the world's first maritime transportation group
to obtain ISO 14001 certification covering all
marine transportation services for its fleet of
more than 500 owned and chartered ships.
In the words of Chairman and CEO, Bill
Ford, "I believe the distinction between
a good company and a great company is that a good
company provides quality products and services;
a great one provides quality products and services
and strives to make the world a better place."
Tony Brown, Ford Vice President, Global
Purchasing, similarly commended NYK for achieving
the highest level of performance.
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