Komori People: Passion for Print and Saunas
Katsuyuki Itozawa, Digital Printing System Development Department
28 August 2024
![](https://www.komorisolutions.com/onpress/en/article/assets_c/2024/08/OPW_KomoriPeople_01-thumb-1100xauto-4388.jpg)
Katsuyuki Itozawa, a Manager in the Digital Printing System Development Department, talked about his work and ambitions for the future, and specifically how he delivers print technology to customers.
"After joining Komori in 2005, I became responsible for the mechanical design of offset printing machines. However, I was transferred to the digital printing system development department four years ago. Unlike mature offset technology, digital printing presses involve new discoveries and every day consists of trial and error, providing a sense of working on something new. As a designer at Komori, whether in offset or digital, I always consider how to not only make customers raise the productivity of their machines but also how to make customers feel positive about using them. And my goal is to make these ideas take shape and convey them to users. I believe this is part of print technology.
I like work that "brings change," both for myself and customers, such as launching new presses and working with customers when introducing a new machine. Currently, my favorite role is imagining what kind of machines would be best and how to create a market for digital printing machines that are still in the development stage. My future goal and ideal job would be creating new markets and striving for growth.
I developed the automatic nonstop delivery system during my years in offset press design. Seeing the machine I designed literally producing nonstop at the customer's site was very rewarding. That was the most memorable moment in my career. Continuing to accumulate such small successes (though it was very significant to me at the time) makes the job more enjoyable and increases motivation.
I am a big fan of saunas. Since elementary school, I've enjoyed going to local public baths, going back and forth between the sauna and the cold bath. After the COVID-19 pandemic started, I couldn't go to saunas as often as I wanted, so I decided to make my own tent-style sauna. The heat source is a wood stove, and I chop the wood myself. I set up my homemade sauna in my home or friends' homes and enjoy it with them and the children, and sometimes I bring it into the great outdoors with a beautiful stream and then jump into the river instead of a cold bath. It's the greatest. I'll continue to be passionate about both saunas and my job."