During my job search, I happened to see an SNM recruiting flyer on campus. I hadn't even heard the name "Shin Nippon Machinery" before, even though SNM has a factory in Hiroshima, where I grew up. The products, however, sounded interesting: turbines and pumps.

I researched SNM on the Internet and requested further information from SNM. I learned that, although not a big company, SNM made steam turbines for power stations and had customers around the world. I knew that while the world's energy needs were increasing, new, more earth-friendly technologies were also in demand. Designing products to fulfill those needs sounded appealing, so I made my decision to apply.

I belong to the turbine engineering group, managing one project at a time from start to finish. After receiving an order from sales, I discuss the specifications with the client. I then draft a drawing, requesting detailed design elements from associates in other departments. I also visit the production department and adjust the specifications based on their input, adding peripheral equipment to the design as necessary.

From the start of design to the end of production, most SNM projects require one to two years to complete. Since each requires the cooperation of many people, managing the whole project gives me a real feeling of accomplishment. I've learned a lot about technology in my four years here, but working with a lot of people both inside and outside the company has helped me develop my people skills, too. It's satisfying to be given so much responsibility this early in my career.

Thus far, I've been responsible for customers in India, Taiwan, and other Asian countries. We're currently developing a 15 MW power station steam turbine in cooperation with a Taiwanese engineering company for the largest public company in Thailand. With operations that include natural gas field development, petroleum refining, and petrochemicals, this customer is contributing to the development of Asia, which makes the project extremely meaningful to me.

Toward the beginning of the project, I visited Taiwan for several days. Until then I had had many discussions with the customer and provided our carefully rendered drawings, but when we met in person, the customer requested quite a few drastic changes. During the negotiations, I took care not to promise anything that could change the bottom line, instead suggesting alternatives that helped us get closer to their vision. Leveraging my limited English to achieve important goals was also a key experience for me.

We supply products to the United States, Central and South America, Africa, and a wide variety of other places around the world. I’m proud of this fact and, now that I’ve been given the chance to manage entire projects, I’d like to work with overseas customers even more.

One reason I've been able to experience my dream job while still in my twenties is that SNM has only about 400 associates. Here you can take on a challenging job with lots of variety while you're still young. You communicate with clients, establish the design, and work with the actual product to adjust it. I think the chance to manage an entire project in this way would be hard to come by at a larger company. If you're a person who really wants to show what you can do, then SNM has a corporate culture I can definitely recommend. Associates of every age work together, and you have the opportunity to learn from people with world-class experience.

To work hard and well, a person needs private time to refresh. On my days off, I listen to music and play sports. I'm especially crazy about snowboarding and go about 20 times each season, taking day trips to the slopes of Hiroshima and Shimane Prefectures, or sometimes combining a weekend and paid days off for a trip to a Hokkaido resort. The freedom to use one's paid days off, as well as all the other benefits SNM offers, really provides peace of mind.

In conclusion, the exciting thing for me about SNM is making products to order and fulfilling customer needs at a much faster pace than our competitors. What supports that is our high level of technology, our initiatives for continuous improvement, and our culture of cooperation between departments. Give SNM a try and experience this amazing corporate culture for yourself.