ISHIMOK, Japan’s leading innovative prefabricated door manufacturer which has won the hearts of almost all medical centers across the country, has recently celebrated its 70th anniversary. Today is a great opportunity for us to uncover the reasons why this Japanese brand of doors managed to win the hearts of customers in the healthcare sector for years through the story behind the innovation from Khun Supasej Kiattiwat, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), ISHIMOK (Thailand) Co., Ltd., who will lead us to know more about ISHIMOK.
“Presenting Japanese technology, materials and products.”
From a wooden furniture factory in Kyushu to a brand of interior innovative doors, which has been imported in Thailand since 2017, “Ishimok” began to be known as a brand of prefabricated doors imported from Japan.
ISHIMOK with a target customer thatexceeds expectations
From wooden furniture packed with care, traveled across the ocean to Thailand, the brand can proudly say that ISHIMOK has successfully gained a foothold among the hearts of healthcare customers within a short period of time.
ISHIMOK’s success to penetrate up to 80% of the healthcare market, both in Japan and in Thailand, has a secret. Khun Supasej has given us a brief overview that by providing a turnkey system management or “complete from design, manufacturing to installation”, ISHIMOK has become a well-matched brand with outstanding products for selection in a variety of interior design applications. ISHIMOK can provide a complete service which saves customers’ time.
“We focus on serving customers from start to finish and most importantly, we have innovations from the ISHIMOK brand, the essence of which include high-quality products, with neat, beautiful and lightweight workpieces of high-quality standard. Every piece of ISHIMOK products, including all models of equipment, look modern and are durable, providing maximum safety,” said Khun Supasej.
Superior product quality establishes ISHIMOK as a leading brand among healthcare customers
“Developing or choosing products depends on the customers, such as what type of doors they want for use in which room. And the most important thing is the meticulousness. The error of our doors is only 0.1 mm.” Such is the strength of ISHIMOK in maintaining product quality and always developing new innovations.
In addition, Khun Supasej also mentioned more about door fittings, hardware system and door preservation.
“A complete set of products come from passion and the purpose of the customer’s use as a design element to ensure the customers have what they wished for by focusing on the satisfaction of users (sometimes the user may not be the same as the customer).”
Emphasize care to upgrade products thatimpress medical centers
The fact that ISHIMOK focuses on product development for the main target group such as medical facilities means that attention to detail is required in the selection of materials and technology. For example, in the case of hospitals, the most important issue is the material surface, which can be linked to unpleasant odors, chemicals from the paint, paint peeling and burr. All of which are the issues SHIMOK attempts to tackle with in order to deliver reliable products to customers.
In addition, ISHIMOK has promoted the use of the rail system and soft-close in order to maximize the satisfaction of consumers. In other words, as Khun Supasej revealed, “Product development is not just the product itself, but also learning to understand each other among the product – the buyer – the user and the manufacturer and seller.”
“Product development is not just the product itself, but also learning to understand each other.”
Certainly, product design or various products often have trend issues involved, for ISHIMOK, however, the design is mainly based on customer behavior as the brand believes that lifestyle affects design a lot. Therefore, understanding customers means being able to cope with new trends, as Khun Supasej has brought up sustainability in hospitals, which can be summed up as:
Sustainability has quite an impact on hospitals. It can be observed from the changing choice of furniture. ISHIMOK’s products ensure that product quality goes hand in hand with sustainability whether having high resistance to humidity, no chemical additives, a long service life and being 90% recyclable. Even though sustainability plays a major role in hospitals, such does not affect ISHIMOK’s product development, as every production and design process has been well-tested and controlled according to the customer’s requirements, resulting in products which can always support changes and new trends.
More importantly, ISHIMOK is currently doing research on products from recycled materials, while also paying attention to the existing products, by focusing on reducing costs to achieve a lower price by increasing the number of production based in Thailand. This is to reduce the cost of importing products from Japan, so that Thai customers can easily access to products at a more affordable price.
New products that you haven’t tried at Architect’23
For Architect’23, ISHIMOK is ready to showcase new products like innovative doors that hospitals in Thailand have never used before. For residential housing, be prepared to see products which encapsulate the Japanese style, which will create a new experience from the very first time you use them. Khun Supasej also revealed that the brand may launch new products manufactured in Thailand!
Anyone who wants to get their hands on the latest innovation from ISHIMOK, just visit Architect’23, you will receive both superior quality products and new experiences.
“Products and consumers” must go together.
As a consumer, Khun Supasej gave his perspective on hospitals regarding the importance of selecting products that respond to the needs of consumers.
“If taking in the same viewpoint of end-user, I see that presently, hospitals have developed rapidly in many areas. So the image of the hospital is one of the first benchmarks for comparison, which has been a lot more competitive since the pre-COVID-19 era. Doors are therefore one of the most important elements which should be selected appropriately by taking into account the consumer behavior principle.”
“Understanding customer’s needs is another important factor. We have a duty to clarify every question and welcome feedback from customers for further product development. In such cases, the customers may refer to users, designers, and project owners.”
Before the interview came to an end, Khun Supasej invites us to stop by and experience door innovations trusted by several hospitals in Thailand. He also invited architects, designers and engineers to get to know sustainable innovations under the ISHIMOK brand.
What is a product deciphered from consumer behavior? Find out the answer at Architect’23.
Because consumers affect the development and selection of new products, this is an opportunity for ISHIMOK, a brand of innovative door imported from Japan, to express its goodwill to consumers from production to installation and after-sales service. ISHIMOK is waiting for you at booth No. F309 at Architect’23, the 35th ASEAN’s Largest Building Technology Exposition during 25- 30 April, 2023 at Challenger Hall, IMPACT Muang Thong Thani.
