Yushin America
What started out as a small company in the original owner’s garage has now morphed into a multi-million dollar leading supplier of robots which manipulate everything from biohazard bins to cell phone covers and cosmetic cases — Yushin America.
Headquartered in Cranston, and led by President Takeshi Iimura and CFO Masaaki Chida, Yushin America is a made-to-order supplier of take-out robots and automation to precision plastic injection-molders in major industries such as automotive, medical and consumer goods.
A subsidiary of Yushin Precision Equipment (YPE) of Japan — one of the world’s top three suppliers of robots for plastic injection molding machines — the company’s U.S. headquarters is located in Rhode Island and encompasses more than 50,000 square feet, employs 65 people and serves customers located throughout the Americas.
What makes Yushin so innovative? It’s their made-to-order business model. Each robot and order is unique and usually used in high volume high speed applications. In order to deliver such precision products, quick turnaround, flexibility and strong collaboration with customers are crucial. Yushin also cites the principles of lean manufacturing and 5S, not only on the shop floor but in the engineering and administrative offices as well, as an innovative catalyst.
And examples of their creativity aren’t hard to find. Whether it’s using YouTube as a cost effective marketing tool or offering customer service and Spanish website, Yushin has steadily increased profits and expanded its global customer base.
“We strive to be the best in our industry and we support our customers 24/7,” says Mike Greenhalgh, Yushin America’s Operations Manager. “We rise to engineering challenges and we use the best minds and tools available to make sure we are engaged with our partners and clients to make the right products.”
What fuels their success is not only providing precision robots, but the dedication of the employees to customers and the ties the company has with Rhode Island. Mike credits training grants in helping the company educate and retain qualified personnel. And Yushin returns the support by hiring engineering interns from local schools such as Johnson & Wales University, Roger Williams University and New England Tech.
“Training grants and internships prove mutually beneficial,” says Greenhalgh. “For example, we had an intern who designed a graphical interface for a robot that we were able to incorporate into a final product. Results like these add value to our company, clients and community.”
In fact, Yushin took the Rhode Island training grant model a step further by encouraging their customers to apply for their own grants in order to employ Yushin for training. It’s Yushin’s way of sharing knowledge and providing better customer service.
“In our business, we need to re-engineer our products every five to six years. That’s a challenge in light of increasing costs and competition,” says Greenhalgh. “By adding value wherever possible, adhering to sound manufacturing principles, maintaining a highly skilled workforce and supplying the very best robots and services for the injection molded industry - we’re expanding our expertise, speed and flexibility. We’re always going to challenge ourselves to offer the best products and services to our customers wherever they are and whatever their need.”