Goichi Sato
President
Airman Corporation
Leveraging Our Corporate Name Change to Accelerate Global Growth
On April 1, 2025, we changed our corporate name from Hokuetsu Industries Co., Ltd. to Airman Corporation. AIRMAN, the brand under which we operate, was named by my grandfather, our fifth president, with the hope of nurturing people who can take flight on the global stage. By adopting this brand name as our corporate name, we aim to enhance our brand recognition—and to demonstrate our commitment to pursuing further growth in global markets.
Now, operating under the name Airman Corporation, we are more determined than ever to strengthen our global presence and grow as a globally competitive company. Guided by this aspiration, we will continue to act with integrity and boldness, striving to deliver results that meet the expectations of all our stakeholders.
In addition, as outlined in the proposals for this year’s General Meeting of Shareholders, we intend to further refine our governance structure by placing greater emphasis on diversity and clearly defined roles. This includes welcoming a highly qualified female outside director with relevant expertise. These changes are designed to strengthen our ability to attract outstanding talent and to further enhance the management approach we have long valued—the integration of top-down and bottom-up approaches.
By advancing transformation at the management level and making it easier for frontline perspectives to be reflected in decision-making, we aim to enable flexible and agile management and cultivate an environment in which new ideas and innovation can flourish. At the same time, we will continue to promote workstyle reform and proactively improve work–life balance, thereby enhancing employee motivation and engagement.
Delivering Solid Results While Investing for the Future Amid a Challenging Business Environment
In fiscal 2024, despite a challenging business environment marked by rising raw material costs due to inflation and heightened global uncertainty, both net sales and operating profit exceeded the previous fiscal year’s results and reached record highs. We view this achievement as clear evidence of the Airman Group’s overall strength.
Meanwhile, ordinary profit amounted to ¥6.8 billion, falling short of our target of ¥7.4 billion, making fiscal 2024 a year in which certain challenges also became clear. Nevertheless, we believe that our ability to deliver steady results even under difficult conditions was made possible by the tireless efforts of our employees and the unwavering trust of our customers.
In this business environment, one of our key priorities has been investment in the future. A central initiative has been the introduction of a new human resources system. Guided by the concept of becoming a future-oriented, fair, and rewarding place to work, we clarified the talent profile we seek. We shared it across the organization, while also enhancing employee benefits based on four core principles—Challenge, Career, Diversity, and Fair.
We will continue to develop systems and workplace environments that enable employees to work with confidence and ensure that individual efforts and achievements are properly recognized and rewarded.
Another key initiative has been advancing decarbonization products. As a new challenge that showcases our technological capabilities, we have been developing the world’s first 100% hydrogen-dedicated combustion engine compressor.
In conjunction with this effort, we will establish a dedicated Hydrogen Technology Test Facility at our headquarters and manufacturing site in fiscal 2025 to create a more precise and safer development environment. Alongside expanding our capabilities in alternative energy sources such as biofuels, we aim to build a portfolio of products that contribute to a sustainable society.
A Pathway to Sustainable Growth Grounded in Our Medium- and Long-Term Vision
Fiscal 2024 also marked the final year of our medium-term management plan, Medium-Term Vision 2024. Over the past three years, while the weaker yen provided a favorable tailwind, the rapid growth of our North American operations was the primary driver of our performance and contributed significantly to our results.
In addition, as a result of initiatives to expand sales of motor compressors, positioned as a core growth business in the domestic market, we steadily achieved our target product share of 15%. Through these efforts, we believe we have established a solid foundation for future growth.
Fiscal 2025 marks the first year of our new medium-term management plan, Medium-Term Vision 2027, building on the business foundation we have established to date. We position the next three years as a period of reform aimed at achieving our next phase of growth. During this time, we will focus on restructuring our business portfolio while strengthening our organizational framework and earnings capacity to support sustained long-term growth.
Looking further ahead, our long-term vision, AIRMAN VISION 2030, which builds on the outcomes of these three years of initiatives, sets forth four growth strategies: focused allocation of management resources through portfolio restructuring; development and market introduction of sustainable products aimed at cultivating potential growth areas; strategic business alliances and M&A with a long-term perspective; and strengthening of our management foundation through investment in human capital and enhanced governance.
In addition, we are advancing a framework that classifies each product into high-potential, core growth, and stable business areas, enabling the optimal allocation of our limited management resources. We will mobilize the full capabilities of the Airman Group to execute key priority initiatives, including capital investment in the development of decarbonization products that will serve as future growth drivers, expansion of the motor compressor business, and the strengthening of overseas production capacity.
Becoming a Globally Trusted Company Through People and Technology
Sustainable growth requires not only technological excellence but also the strength of our people. At Airman, we deliver products that meet the needs of customers around the world by leveraging a diverse range of technologies—from the compressed air technologies for compressors that have been cultivated since our founding to generators, aerial work platforms, and other equipment.
We are also actively engaged in the development of new technologies required to create products that contribute to the realization of a sustainable society over the long term.
These technological capabilities are supported by the passion and spirit of challenge of each employee. It is this commitment to reliable manufacturing grounded in trust that forms the foundation of Airman’s competitiveness.
To enhance corporate value and further reinforce stakeholder trust, we are taking additional steps to strengthen our governance framework. By leveraging the expertise of our outside directors to incorporate diverse perspectives, while enhancing functions such as internal audit and corporate planning, we will continue to improve the quality of decision-making across the organization.
At Airman, we regard shareholder returns as one of our most important management priorities. By maintaining an appropriate balance between annual dividends and share repurchases executed at suitable times, we aim to provide comprehensive returns to our shareholders.
Going forward, we will continue to provide stable dividends while proactively implementing shareholder return measures, including timely and appropriate share repurchases. With all employees working together, we will strive to generate sustained profits and enhance corporate value, so that our shareholders may hold Airman shares with confidence over the long term.
We sincerely appreciate your continued support.
February 9, 2026
Goichi Sato
President
Airman Corporation