OKI and Takasago Thermal Engineering Form Alliance to Provide Integrated Networks for Information and Telecommunication and Building Energy Control
Tokyo, Japan, May 23, 2007 -- Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd. (TSE: 6703), Japan's leading company in IP(Internet Protocol) networks, and Takasago Thermal Engineering Co., Ltd. (TSE:1969), Japan's largest company specializing in heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), today announced their agreement to form an alliance in information and telecommunication equipment. Leveraging their strengths, the two companies will jointly provide solutions to the building equipment market in Japan, which is advancing and becoming more diverse.
By converging OKI's strengths in VoIP (Voice over IP) and Takasago Thermal Engineering's technologies in controlling building energy, the two companies will enable energy-saving advanced building energy control solutions as well as provide a wide range of convenient services such as developing communication systems, enhancing security through video surveillance and when entering and leaving the building, and controlling building equipment from IP phones and PCs.
"OKI is delighted to collaborate with Takasago Thermal Engineering as we can provide more convenient, 'user-friendly yet energy-saving' building equipment combining our technologies," said Katsumasa Shinozuka, CEO of Oki Electric Industry. " By leveraging our strength in VoIP and applying information and telecommunication technologies to building equipment, the equipment itself can conduct activities such as controlling, monitoring, protecting and inspecting as well as provide Ubiquitous Services to individuals by responding to their needs."
As information and communication technologies become advanced and NGN (Next Generation Network) expands full-scale, there will be increased demand building equipment that integrates communication networks, such as IP telephony, LAN and wireless, with energy controls for air conditioning and lights. The two companies will provide these solutions to building owners, architectural offices, and general contractors when equipment is being renewed. The companies aim to achieve sales of 15 billion yen by the fiscal year ending March 2010.
"As part of our three-year business plan that ends this fiscal year, we have been working to expand conventional instrumentation work for ventilation equipment as well as enhance monitoring and control systems by adapting highly-developed information and telecommunication technologies,"said Eiichi Ishida of President at Takasago Thermal Engineering. "OKI was the perfect company as we have been looking to partner with a company who had both a strong track record and advanced technologies in information and telecommunication."
Takasago Thermal Engineering has been providing central surveillance and automatic control systems that utilize open building automation(*1)and energy saving technologies, it has also recognized the need to further enhance its activities in applying information and communication technologies to building equipment as such moves have been accelerating in the market.
Since launching Japan's first VoIP system in 1996, OKI has been leading the industry as the pioneer in VoIP, providing IP telephony technologies, CTI (Computer Telephony Integration) and softswitches. OKI also has been providing solutions for NGN, such as launching a large-scale communication server in Japan with the world's top-class reliability in 2006, and has been conducting sales activities to expand its VoIP business.
Glossary
- *1 :Open building automation
By unifying the communication standards, comprehensive control of building equipment can be done through a communication network
Reference
About Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd.
Founded in 1881, Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd. is Japan's first telecommunications manufacturer, with its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. OKI provides top-quality products, technologies and solutions to its customers through its info-telecom system business, semiconductor business and printer business. All three businesses function as a collective force to create exciting new products and technologies that satisfy a spectrum of customer needs in various markets. Visit OKI's global web site at http://www.oki.com/.
About Takasago Thermal Engineering Co., Ltd.
Founded in 1923, Takasago Thermal Engineering Co., Ltd. is Japan's largest company specializing in Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC).The company's mission is to make people's lives more pleasant and contribute to society as a whole by creating comfortable environments. Building upon a solid theoretical foundation in thermal dynamics, fluid dynamics and electronics, Takasago uses its own leading-edge technology to design and construct HVAC systems that meet a broad spectrum of requirements. Takasago is continuing its R&D efforts in many fields to play a part in conserving the global environment and addressing other social issues.
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