In a recent message to shareholders, Takahiro Hachigo, President and CEO of Honda, has said that the company is researching, developing, and working toward the adoption of safety technology with the aim of “realisation of a society where people do not get involved in accidents”.
Work is underway on the adoption and evolution of the “Honda Sensing” safe driving support system where 80 per cent of newly-sold vehicles in Japan now have the system equipped. Going forward, says Hachigo, the company will accelerate its adoption globally while further evolving its features in an effort to provide even more safety and security to users.
In the area of automated driving technology, Honda is striving to establish Level 3 on highways by 2020 and Level 4 for personal car use by around 2025. Tests are now being carried out on public roads to be able to take the lead in “realising a collision-free society”.
Hachigo says the company will focus on three areas: mobility, robotics, and energy solutions in order to provide people with the “joy and freedom of mobility and the joy of making their lives better”. Honda will forge partnerships with other companies in various regions to begin new mobility services that provide mobility without restraint in every aspect of life.
In North America, it has invested in the driverless rideshare service Cruise while in Japan, it is participating in Monet Technologies, which is working to “provide new value in mobility”. In its motorcycle business, the company is beginning demonstration tests sharing the Honda Mobile Power Pack replaceable battery.
According to Hachigo, work is also happening on “providing another type of value that can be shared and enjoyed in daily life” by using safe and secure clean energy through mobility products and services.
In the motorcycle business, Honda is starting demonstration tests in the Philippines that use mobile power packs as an energy source for daily life. In Japan, initiatives have kicked off with Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha to standardise detachable batteries.
In the automobile business, Honda has begun demonstration tests of flexible energy management systems by connecting battery EVs to the power grid and providing electricity from the vehicle in Europe and the US. “Through such initiatives, seamlessly connecting movement and daily life through mobility, we will aim to change customers lives to make them more convenient in the future,” says Hachigo.
The CEO has reiterated that the company will use its long product line-up ranging from motorcycles and cars to power products and HondaJet in order to provide optimal products and services to everyone. This will be done keeping in mind “their wide variety of cultures and values, whether they live in developed or emerging nations”.
At present, global models have grown to represent 60 per cent of Honda’s automobile sales while regional models are also playing a critical role as a driving force in various regions. To further increase the competitiveness of these models, the company is working on structural strengthening in various areas.
As part of this drive, Honda is making steady progress in optimising production capacity in all regions. When this is complete, it expects global capacity utilisation rate to be at full capacity by 2022.