Seiichi Sugiyama AIS class of 1975 sugi-01@jcom.home.ne.jp

See a previous letter from Siiechi.

July 11, 2005

Seiichi Sugiyama, AIS class of 1975

Hi Everybody!

I just received an e-mail from Magnus Kreuger after receiving your e-mail. It was almost like Miracle!

You are right. The days of India, is something like the roots of what, and where I am. There are so many things I still remember, while easy to forget other daily things nowadays.

After coming back to Tokyo in 1970, I went to a Boarding School, called Akikawa High School and were there 3 years. Then went to Sophia University (Japanese Name is Jochi University), where I majored in Chemistry (I think the reason I chose Chemistry owes much to Mrs. King, who taught us Chemistry and Periodical Table in AIS).

After graduation, I came into the company where I still work, called Morishita & Co., Ltd.

This company is a medium size trading company specialized in Chemicals and Dyestuffs, I thought I can use both my small knowledge in Chemistry and English.

After coming back to Japan, I had almost no chance in using English, the people in my company did not recognize until I started to make direct correspondent between our supplier, who were at that time an Israeli company.

In the beginning years I learned about our historical business of Pigments, then started to work for New Market Development.

Since then I had been always working for New Business Development.

I have done some works for Road Coloring of Asphalt Concrete, to make new demand for Iron Oxide Red Pigments.

I worked for Pectin, the natural food additive for Jam, Jelly, and Acidified Drink Field.

Then, with high appreciation of the Japanese Yen, my department has joined together with Export Department, to balance Export and Import.

This has changed my life, I got in charge of export, instead of domestic businesses.

1st business was with Korea. I have organized technical agreement with one Japanese Company and one Korean Company, which took me 2 yeas of preparation, but disappeared in 3 to 4 months.

It was the field of PVC Processing, to decorate PVC to make luxurious feeling. Our charge was to export the raw materials from above contract.

However, the key products were copied very quickly by others, and more over this business went to Indonesia, Vietnam and China so quickly, since it was taken as Environmentally No-good Product, owing to dioxin.

Since then, I learned a lesson, that we should not put too much weight on the field or product which maybe forecasted as decreasing or fading in future.

I then tried to find a new field in Korea (I wonder how our classmate, John Kim, is doing. I suppose his farther was working for an American Tire Manufacturer, Good Year?), something Japanese Industry is strong in growing field.

I started to handle chopped carbon fiber for plastics, which was mainly used for IC Tray. Then went into the field of Engineering Plastics, which I thought should be growing towards future.

They were successful to certain extent and we still have this business as major field in my Dept.

After Korea, I was also involved for the development of Taiwan Market, where I went into Electronics Area. Our Electronics Material Project Team has developed a product inevitable for making fine pitch circuit board, called TAB tape, and I got in charge of its development overseas. This also went good so far, but with new technology, it is now moving to some other material called COF, so now looking for next growing area, the area related with Flat Panel Displays. Currently working for developing new application for a product called Self Healing Clear, which is a very interesting coating, that a scratch will recovered after a short second, and get flat again.

As for my private life, I met my wife Kyoko, in my tennis club, married, and have one daughter called Yoko, who now 21 years old. She just finished her school called Japan Academy of Moving Images, starting to work in the field of producing movie, in a small company. I still play tennis with my wife in every week end ( !!! I started to play tennis, in India, just because I got Wilson Tennis Ball as my birthday present, from Paul ??? who were my class mate in 1968, when I was still in the 4th grade. Wow! I don' remember his family name but his name came out suddenly! ).

My father, Yoshio, was the Defense Attache in The Japanese Embassy of New Delhi when we were in India from 1967 to 1970, same as your friend Noboru. This was the reason, why I could go to India, and could meet you (I recollected another memory that there was a classmate called Glenn Walter, and I suppose his father also was a Military Attache. He shot air gun in those days, and there were some news.)

My father has passed away in March 17th 2004, by Interstitial Pneumonia, which still much of the mechanism is not yet clarified. As doctor said, it went very fast after reveal of this disease, it was 47th day after we got its explanation from our doctor. I was on business trip to Europe in the beginning of March and when I went to see him in his hospital, he said he cannot wait any more. He said he want to say goodbye to our relatives, and we got together the next day to have the ceremony. He gave a word to each person and said Goodbye! He has passed away early next mourning, while listening my favorite relaxation MD collection.

I think his life was a good life. He had been enjoying playing Golf, the game of Igo, drawing Chinese paint, and reading books, until Oct. of 2003, when he had the brain infraction. So it was only after 6 months after he lost his freedom of his life, he left this world. By watching the way he passed away, I felt, to be dead, is something very natural, and nothing to be afraid of. It was one of the greatest lesson I ever learned.

Well! I might have wrote too much.

As Mary Williamson has proposed, I shall do all my efforts to visit Washington in July 2-4, 2010 to see you guys.

Thanks again to Mary and Kinny Chopra Kapur.

TKS & Best Regards.

Your Old Friend in Japan.

Seiichi Sugiyama

See a previous letter from Siiechi.

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