In 1996, Terneyles and Sumitomo Corporation founded a joint company to manufacture and sell housing materials. It was the first JAS-certified plant in Russia and signaled an innovative approach to the forestry trade between Russia and Japan. Kosuke Yamakita, who led the project side-by-side with Tomishima, says, “We had a really tough start. We had no idea what it would be like trying to make products in 20-below temperatures.” He also reported that they received a lot of assistance from local staff and Japanese engineers, as well as from their clients. In 2000, the partners founded a second joint company, this time for the manufacture and sale of interior housing materials. The two companies enhanced their partnership through the conclusion of an exclusive contract. “Our early successes gave us confidence, which has played a big role in our current success,” Yamakita says.
During negotiations between Tomishima and Scherbakov in relation to one of the joint ventures, Tomishima asked, “What do you think is most important in managing a business?” Scherbakov gave him a simple answer: “Legal compliance.” Tomishima admits to being taken aback by these words, as few people in those days talked about compliance. “After hearing that, I was sure we could make a fantastic partnership,” he says. Scherbakov's attitude seemed a perfect match for the Sumitomo Business Spirit, which calls for “integrity and sound management.” And so it was, as the strong partnership between the two companies has since proved.
The temperature in Plastun drops to 20 to 30 degrees below zero. There wasn’t much in the way of medical facilities, or book shops, or video stores. The nearest big town is nine hours away by car. Most of the population of 7,000 is somehow connected to Terneyles. And Sumitomo’s man was the only Japanese person in town. That man, Taro Tanaka, has worked in Plastun since 2002. “It was hard mentally, rather than physically,” he says. “I was the only Japanese in town. This means that I was not only the sole representative of Sumitomo Corporation, but I was, in a sense, representing the whole country. Imagine how it feels to be constantly watched, no matter what you are doing.”
He worked hard to be accepted into the community, where Japanese and even English is barely understood. “Even off the job, I helped the locals out when they needed something, fixing their refrigerators and washing machines and so on,” Tanaka says. Tomishima, knowing the difficult circumstances Tanaka was facing, called him regularly.
Shuji Hayashida, who was sent to Plastun in 2003, says “General Director Scherbakov took good care of me, sometimes inviting me for dinner at his house.” This is the typical kind of friendly support outside business hours that made the lives of the Sumitomo employees in Plastun much more pleasant.
