KAWASAKI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD. ANNOUNCES EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT CHANGES, NEW PRESIDENT FOR MOTORCYCLE & ENGINE DIVISION
IRVINE, Calif. (Feb. 18, 2015) – Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (KHI), the global parent company of Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. (KMC), has announced several changes to its executive management. The Motorcycle and Engine Company’s current President, Mr. Shigehiko “Scott” Kiyama will be succeeded by Mr. Kenji Tomida, effective April 1, 2015. Mr. Kiyama spent many years working at KMC’s Irvine headquarters where he arrived in 2002 to oversee Kawasaki’s planning, vehicle inventory and production management in the United States. He was assigned the duty as KMC’s President at the start of 2006, where he remained until his return to Japan in 2009.
Since July of 2013, the incoming president Mr. Kenji Tomida served as Senior Vice President and Executive Officer at KHI as well as General Manager of the Corporate Planning Division. His tenure with Kawasaki includes a seven-year period during the late 1980s where he worked in the finance department at KMC’s Irvine headquarters.
KHI also confirms that Mr. Hiroshi Takata, a former President of the Motorcycle & Engine Company, will retire from his current position and remain as a Director of KHI, effective April 1, 2015.
ABOUT KAWASAKI
Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (KHI) started full-scale production of motorcycles over a half century ago. The first Kawasaki motorcycle engine was designed based on technical know-how garnered from the development and production of aircraft engines, and Kawasaki’s entry into the motorcycle industry was driven by the company’s constant effort to develop new technologies. Numerous new Kawasaki models introduced over the years have helped shape the market, and in the process have created enduring legends based on their unique engineering, power, design and riding pleasure. In the future, Kawasaki’s commitment to maintaining and furthering these strengths will surely give birth to new legends.
Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. (KMC) markets and distributes Kawasaki motorcycles, ATVs, side x sides, and Jet Ski® watercraft through a network of almost 1,200 independent retailers, with close to an additional 7,400 retailers specializing in general purpose engines. KMC and its affiliates employ nearly 3,100 people in the United States, with approximately 300 of them located at KMC’s Irvine, California headquarters.
Kawasaki’s tagline, “Let the good times roll.®”, is recognized worldwide. The Kawasaki brand is synonymous with powerful, stylish and category-leading vehicles. Information about Kawasaki’s complete line of powersports products and Kawasaki affiliates can be found on the Internet at www.kawasaki.com.