On Sunday June 9th, Alghanim Industries and Honda announced their partnership during a celebration held at the Ice Skating Rink. With the presence of Hussain Al Jassmi, rhythmic beats of a traditional Kuwaiti folklore band and the beat of Japanese Taiko drums, they unveiled their vision of a future of mutual prosperity all while ASIMO, Honda’s new amazing robot, danced in the background.
With an ambiance that one would certainly expect from two well-established companies such as these, the event was held to celebrate the fact that Alghanim Industries has now become the new and exclusive distributor of all Honda products including vehicles, motorcycles and power products in Kuwait, for sales and service. The event itself comprised of entertaining and artistic segments meant to showcase the melding of these two worlds, with the highlight of the evening being a performance from the renowned music artist, Hussain Al Jassmi, followed by the captivating performance of Japanese taiko drummers who mesmerized the audience with their dominating beats and rhythms.
After speeches by both Mr. Omar Kutaiba Alghanim, Chief Executive Officer for Alghanim Industries, and Mr. Manabu Nishimae, the Managing Officer of Honda Motor Co. and the COO for Honda’s Regional Operations in Europe, CIS, Middle and Near East and Africa, everybody settled in for the unexpected surprise of a little treat from ASIMO—the Honda robot! Largely billed as the smartest robot in the world, ASIMO represents the culmination of two decades of humanoid robotics research by Honda engineers in Japan.
Basically, as the first robot that acts just as humans do, he is amazing to watch. He can run, walk on even slopes and surfaces, turn smoothly, climb stairs, and reach for and grasp objects. ASIMO can comprehend and respond to simple voice commands and also has the ability to recognize the face of a select group of individuals. Using its camera eyes, it can map its environment and register stationary objects. ASIMO can also avoid colliding with obstacles as it moves through its environment. The true long term goal for this robot however is to eventually have him, or others like him, help with important tasks such as assisting the elderly or disabled people, as well as performing certain tasks that are dangerous to humans including fighting fires or cleaning up toxic spills.
The announcement of the partnership between Alghanim Industries and Honda Motors concludes a long conversation between the two entities that share the same ambitious vision that is always geared to constant progression and achieving success year after year. The two corporations seem to suit one another as both occupy leading positions in their respective local market. The agreement itself gives Alghanim Motors rights for the distribution and servicing of Honda Automobiles’ range of coupes, sedans, SUVs, CUVs, and minivans. Alghanim Industries will also provide and manage Honda Automobiles facilities in Kuwait, including dedicated service centers, Honda qualified service engineers and new specialist sales outlets.
