DURAG GROUP celebrates 75th anniversary

Takeshi Saito, how long have you been with DURAG GROUP and how did that start?

My previous employer was one of DURAG’s distributors at the time. When I left there in 2004, DURAG management was visiting Japan, and that’s how my story at DURAG GROUP began – going back 17 years now. I had previous business development experience in the energy industry and was head of the Instrumentation business unit including analyzers. So the task of developing the Japanese market together with DURAG was just the right job for me.

What career path did you take at DURAG GROUP and were there any particular challenges? 

I was responsible for all sales and business development activities in Japan since the beginning. The biggest challenge was the development of marine applications, mainly for LNG tankers.

What do you like about working for DURAG GROUP, how would you describe the company culture?

The business and working atmosphere at DURAG has always been passionate, working with a smile and integrity. Passion, smiles and integrity – this work style fits my own philosophy of life. Besides that motto, I also like DURAG’s “Originality and Continuity” slogan.

Has your time with the company changed or influenced you personally?

Here in Japan, we have the saying “Even a stone gets warm when a person sits on it for three years,” which means “perseverance wins”. Continuity is a key to positive business development.

Which highlights do you remember most?

I look back with pleasure on the 60^th anniversary of DURAG and the international sales meeting held in 2008. I also have fond memories of the meeting two years later with a subsequent visit to the Stuttgart folk festival “Cannstatter Wasen”.

How do you see the future of DURAG GROUP, what do you wish for?

I am convinced that DURAG GROUP will continue to grow steadily and add new, unique technologies to its portfolio. In my remaining time with the company, I will fully support my son Satoshi in the spirit of DURAG Japan’s continued growth.

How did you come to join DURAG GROUP?

In the traditional way: in the summer of 2000, I saw a job advertisement for secretary and assistant to management in the “Niendorfer Wochenblatt” newspaper, applied and luckily got the job.  

What was your start like? Did you have any previous professional experience or was it all completely new to you? 

One nice surprise was that I met some friendly colleagues right at the beginning who I already knew personally. I had previously trained as a wholesale and export merchant and had worked as such for eight years at a company in Niendorf.

How has DURAG GROUP developed over time?

In 2000, when I started, there were about 70 of us employed here at Kollaustraße. The atmosphere was a bit more informal than it is today, because you knew just about everyone personally. I remember that in the early years I even used a typewriter! At that time, a gong also sounded regularly in the building: once at 9 a.m. for the breakfast break and again at 12:30 p.m. for the lunch break. So everyone on each floor or in each department had a break together, which was always a lot of fun and sometimes very loud.

What did your workday look like then compared to now?

Until September 2019, my workplace was located directly in management’s offices. My responsibilities included for example organizing and booking events and business trips as well as general secretarial jobs. For many years, I also personally distributed mail and payslips to colleagues based here at the location – that has changed with Covid. In the meantime, I have a variety of new responsibilities, and also a change in where I work: since fall 2019, I no longer report directly to management, but to the HR department.

What were your greatest personal challenges at DURAG GROUP? 

For me, it was always particularly exciting when there was a change in management.

What made you stay with DURAG GROUP for such a long time?

My area of responsibility gives me a great deal of pleasure because it is very varied. And there’s always something new. Regular positive feedback also contributes to my satisfaction. And I like the fact that there are still many colleagues from my early days with whom I can occasionally reminisce at an event. It creates a feeling of togetherness. Over the years, DURAG GROUP has grown considerably and new departments and areas have been added. Nevertheless, it has remained clear on the whole – also thanks to colleagues who have held their positions for many years.

Has being with the company for so long changed or influenced you personally? 

It has given me many personal friendships that I still have today.

What highlights have remained in your memory in particular?

Actually, all the celebrations were very memorable. I always had a lot of fun helping to organize them. It was also great to see or get to know colleagues from other locations with whom you had already been in contact for many years, either in writing or by phone. I will also never forget how we cleared out the mechanics hall, watched the World Cup games together and turned the premises into a dance floor in the evening. It was also spectacular to have the opportunity to be on a large sailing boat at the entry parade of the Hamburg Harbor Birthday in 2015.

Where do you see the DURAG GROUP and yourself in ten years? What do you wish for? 

I hope to be enjoying my retirement in ten years. Until then, I hope that DURAG GROUP here at the Hamburg/Niendorf location continues to be so successful. I am looking forward to many more interesting tasks and conversations as well as celebrations with old and new colleagues.