Sonosuke Ishii has been named as the new chairman of Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas Inc. (HCMA), succeeding Masaaki Hirose, who took a new role as executive officer at HCM Japan.
Ishii is a 40-year veteran of HCM. He started in sales and progressed to sales management and leadership positions within the company. He has served as president of Hitachi Construction Machinery Eurasia sales, president of the mining group, vice president and executive officer, and senior vice president and executive officer.
In his new role, Ishii will oversee the growth of products and services, as well as strengthen the collaboration between teams in the U.S. and Japan.
"It has been the dream for many years for Hitachi Construction Machinery to explore its own business in North America and Latin America," said Ishii. "Together with our factories in Japan, HCMA and HCMA dealers — as our most important partners — will deliver viable solutions throughout the Americas."
Masaaki Hirose has served as chairman of HCMA since 2019. While he was chairman of HCMA, Hirose helped to structure the company under the HCM way of business, to increase the visibility and awareness of the Hitachi brand in the construction market and to grow market share in the Americas.
All Hitachi Construction Machinery Group employees operate under a code of conduct known as the Kenkijin Spirit. This is comprised of three ideas: taking on challenges without fear; understanding customers' needs better than they do; and taking initiative on communication, including reporting, liaising and consulting.
