Japanese subsidiary to serve growing interest in the IoT

Tsuneo Tatara, an international information and communications technology (ICT) veteran who joined Kerlink in the fall of 2017 as country manager to guide the company’s ramp up in Japan, was promoted to general manager of the subsidiary, Kerlink Japan KK.

Robert Clapham, Kerlink’s assistant general manager, stated: “Japan is a very large potential market for IoT deployments in the key verticals, such as smart cities, smart industry, asset tracking and smart health, and Kerlink will help develop that potential with this expanded presence in Japan. Tsuneo Tatara has laid the groundwork for this expansion, which marks Kerlink’s commitment to help large network operators, cities and small businesses realise the benefits of LoRa low-power, wide-area networks. One of his first tasks will be increasing Kerlink’s sales staff in Japan and Asia.”

Tatara has more than 40 years of professional experience with companies whose businesses spanned Japan, Canada and India. His expertise ranges from engineering and business development to sales and marketing, working with international fixed-operators and mobile telcos, telecom vendors and Japanese multinational companies.

Tatara said: “Kerlink has become a leading global provider of turnkey solutions for deploying LoRaWAN networks, because of the reliability of its products, and focus on building long-term relationships with its customers, so they can achieve the specific goals for their IoT networks.

“Since opening a sales office in Japan last fall, we have seen growing interest among Japanese ICT companies and smart-city proponents in deploying both public and private LoRaWAN networks. With this subsidiary, Kerlink will work closely with customers in Japan and Asia to start realising the efficiency, safety and security benefits of the Internet of Things.”

As a co-founder and board member of the LoRa Alliance, an ecosystem of more than 500 diverse companies that support LoRaWAN networks, Kerlink has played a major role in spreading LoRa technology around the world. Founded in 2004, the company has installed more than 100,000 gateways, base stations and other wireless connectivity products for M2M and IoT networks for more than 330 clients in Europe, Asia and North and South America.

As it grew internationally, it diversified its IoT portfolio, augmenting its equipment with a complete range of services for designing, deploying and managing low-power, wide-area (LPWA) networks. Kerlink also specialises in critical network services, such as geolocation, an accurate, land-based tracking technology that is both less expensive and more energy efficient than satellite-dependent systems, and device management, a powerful tool for configuring, updating, and remotely managing connected LoRaWAN devices.