The Hitachi Social Innovation Forum (HSIF) 2016 in Sydney was held on 1 December at Sofitel Wentworth. HSIF is a series of events held by Hitachi to introduce its activities through presentations, panel discussions, topical breakout sessions and exhibits to share perspectives and visions as part of its efforts to promote collaborative creation. The 2016 HSIF series began with HSIF-Myanmar in July, and a total of 16 events will be held in FY2016.

This event is the first of its kind in the region. The full day included an opening plenary with President and CEO of Hitachi, Ltd., Toshiaki Higashihara and Premier of New South Wales, The Hon. Mike Baird MP amongst others; followed by six breakout sessions on various topics within Social Innovation and complemented by an exhibition of eight zones. The integrated zones covered healthcare, smart agriculture, transportation, public safety, education, mining, smart cities, R&D and consumer products.

Through its Social Innovation Business, Hitachi is using advanced Information Technology (IT) and Data Analytics, combined with extensive manufacturing expertise, to drive social infrastructure innovation that will improve convenience, comfort and safety in people's everyday lives. The event keynote speeches addressed how Hitachi will contribute to resolving issues faced by Australian society and improving Australian’s quality of life, through Social Innovation and leveraging digital technologies. President Higashihara announced Hitachi’s commitment to invest $1.25 billion AUD in its Australian Social Innovation business and forecasts to triple its FY2015 revenue total in Australia to reach $3.75 billion AUD by FY2020 as a result of focusing on the growth of its mining, railway system, healthcare, security, and agriculture businesses. For more information about Hitachi’s announcement on the day, please have a look here: http://www.hitachi.com.au/about/news-releases/news-2016/161201.html

• HSIF Sydney - Extended
• HSIF Sydney - Short

Address:

• The Hon Mike Baird MP, Premier of New South Wales
• Keizo Takewaka, Consul-General, Consulate-General of Japan
• Toshiaki Higashihara, President & CEO, Hitachi, Ltd.
• Hitoshi Ishihara, Managing Director, Hitachi Australia Pty. Ltd.
• Mark Dougan, Managing Director Australia/New Zealand, Frost & Sullivan
  Mark Dougan slides (PDF)
• Tony Field, Senior Director, Social Innovation and IOT Asia Pacific, Hitachi Data Systems
  Tony Field slides (PDF)