WELDING (CONSTRUCTION)

We accompanied Morimitsu Kogyo Ltd, Nagasaki Prefecture, in accepting its first Filipino technical trainees.

The project started with the decision to accept technical trainees from the Philippines, as the company has a lot of experience in construction work on LNG and LPG vessel, and with an eye to future overseas business development and the labour shortage in Japan.

Morimitsu Kogyo Ltd. has wealth of experience in local construction work throughout Japan and around the world, with a focus on processing and welding work such as piping. The company made speedy management decisions and promoted on-site preparations, and accepted its first technical trainees in July 2022. Due to COVID-19 disaster, interviews were conducted online, but when it became possible to travel to the Philippines, the president himself visited the Philippines and met three apprentices who were learning Japanese. This was a great encouragement to the trainees, who were studying Japanese while commuting three hours to school every day.

In the period leading up to their arrival, the company prepared to welcome them by singing each facility in the factory in English.

Although the president made the top decision to accept technical interns in view of the current situation, some employees initially voiced their concerns. However, the president listened carefully to the opinions of each and every employee and took measures to alleviate their concerns.

One such measure was to invite a person from JICA Kyushu to the company and held a "Multiculturalism Course". All employees participated in the session to understand the feelings and positions of people living and working in foreign countries.

In addition, to ensure that the trainees have a more fruitful training experience, half a day was allocated to Japanese language study immediately after their arrival so that they can correctly understand the content of their work.
As a result of these efforts, the apprentices are acquiring welding skills earlier than planned.