One sunny Saturday last month, Hitachi Ltd., Japan's largest electronics maker, made headlines when it hosted a rare tour of its spanking new elevator-testing tower — the world's tallest — at its sprawling facility in Hitachinaka, Ibaraki Prefecture.
The 213.5-meter "G1 Tower," which took two years and ¥6 billion to build, houses nine elevator shafts designed for various tests. And, as Hitachi staffers explained that day, it symbolizes the firm's ambition to achieve "global No. 1" status in its elevator products and technologies.
How exactly does Hitachi intend to take that top spot?