1st Empower Data Award Winners Announced

We are very honored to have received the Empower Data Award 2026. This award is the result of each employee working on the front lines engaging in daily business improvements and the development of data utilization infrastructure to support those activities, and I would like to thank all the employees involved.

Through the production of rice crackers using domestic rice, we have been delivering safe, secure, and delicious products to our customers. In recent years, we have been promoting company-wide DX, and through data visualization, we are working on decision-making and business improvement based on data, in addition to experience and intuition. By creating an environment where everyone can utilize data generated on-site, we are leading to improvements in productivity and quality, and rapid problem solving.

As the environment surrounding companies changes significantly due to factors such as population decline and labor shortages, we believe that data is an important management asset that supports the sustainable growth of companies. We will not simply introduce systems, but will promote data utilization while fostering a corporate culture where employees can discover and improve issues themselves.

In addition, we receive from WingArc1st not only product offerings, but also opportunities for learning and inter-company exchange through the user community nest. These connections are a major driving force for generating new ideas and challenges. We will continue to work on further DX promotion so that we can connect our cherished values of rice, technique, and heart to the future through data utilization, and deliver better products and value to our customers.

Iwatsuka Confectionery Co., Ltd., Takashi Seki
Executive Officer, General Manager of Information Systems Department and General Manager of DX Promotion Office

I am very honored to receive the Excellence Award at the Empower Data Award 2026.

The shortage of dental technicians who produce dentures and artificial teeth is a serious social issue that shakes the foundation of dental care. To solve this, our company has been promoting initiatives centered on data. Our mission is not to deny intuition, but to improve the quality of decision-making by combining intuition and data, and to create an environment where dental technicians can continue to work.

This award is the result of the efforts of our employees who have steadily faced data in the field, and our partner dental laboratories who have worked with us. WingArc1st's products, including MotionBoard, have become indispensable partners in directly linking data to management decision-making. We look forward to further evolution so that we can continue to change the entire industry through the power of data.

Narita Dental Co., Ltd.
Representative Director, Daisuke Tsutsumi

I am very proud of Kazuto Shimokawa and the project members who received the Empower Data Award 2026. We sincerely appreciate your recognition of this initiative. We perceive this award not only as a result of business reform utilizing data and AI, but also as recognition of our challenge to pass on the wisdom and experience of the front lines to the next generation.

In the project that received this award, we worked on transforming production planning operations by utilizing data and AI to leverage the knowledge cultivated on the front lines over many years. As a result, we have not only improved operational efficiency and solved the problem of knowledge succession, but also made it possible to flexibly respond to production planning for new products that are becoming more complex due to the application of new technologies.

At Yanmar Construction Equipment, we believe that fusing human resources, technology, experience, and data leads to the creation of new value. We will continue to promote manufacturing where people and AI work together, striving for both productivity improvement and human resource development, and we look forward to WingArc1st creating further value as a partner that supports our data utilization.

Yanmar Holdings Co., Ltd. Executive Officer in charge of Construction Equipment Business
Yanmar Construction Equipment Co., Ltd. President and Representative Director, Ryu Kudo

I am very happy to have been selected for this prestigious award. I am not an expert in systems or data, but have spent many years working in sales. That is precisely why I have focused on automating and simplifying tedious aggregation and reporting tasks that take up valuable time for practitioners. Reducing the burden on the front lines and dedicating the time created to core tasks, such as making proposals to customers, allows an organization to grow in a healthy way. I believe this is also an important effect of data utilization. Our efforts are still just at the beginning, and we have achieved little so far. Encouraged by this award, I will continue to work closely with the front lines and move forward.

JR East Cross Station Co., Ltd., Taku Ito
Development Company, Planning Department, Business Solution Unit Leader

I am very honored to receive the prestigious title of Data Driven Meister. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who has supported me thus far.
I am very happy to receive such a title!
While I am a bit anxious about whether I can live up to expectations, I will do my best to not only promote DX at our company but also take on the role of raising the level of data utilization across the entire industry, so I look forward to your continued support.

Japan Transocean Air Co., Ltd., Shinya Kuniyoshi
Route Business Division, Route Operations Group, Manager

I am very honored to receive the prestigious Data Driven Meister award. Our efforts to date have only been possible thanks to the support of my colleagues within the company who have engaged in trial and error with me, everyone in the nest community who has provided many insights, and everyone at WingArc1st, and I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude. I believe that the essence of data utilization is not the introduction of tools, but the development of a culture where each individual thinks and acts based on data. As a Data Driven Meister, I will continue to further promote data utilization within the company, and through my activities in nest, I will share my own experience and knowledge both inside and outside the company, contributing to the development of Japanese manufacturing beyond the boundaries of Yamaha and other companies.

Yamaha Corporation, Satoshi Miyata
Musical Instruments Business Division, Production Planning Division, Manufacturing Planning Department, Manufacturing DX Group, Leader