 “Far Eastern Y. Z. Hsu Science and Technology Memorial Foundation” was established following the example set by my late father Mr. Y. Z. Hsu, Founder of “Far Eastern Memorial Foundation” and “Far Eastern Medical Foundation” in honor of my late grandfather some thirty years ago. While “Far Eastern Memorial Foundation” has been sponsoring around a hundred of art and cultural activities each year as well as the renowned “Far Eastern Architectural Design Award” and “921 Earthquake Campus Reconstruction Special Award” during recent years, “Far Eastern Medical Foundation” helped found “Far Eastern Memorial Hospital” in 1981 which was upgraded to “Medical Center” in 2006. In addition, under Far Eastern Group there is also Yuan Ze University, recipient of National Quality Award, Oriental Institute of Technology, Far Eastern United Clinical Centers and etc. These non-profit institutions have long been providing high-quality medical care to patients and cultivating innumerable professional talents for the nation.
What makes him very special is that instead of dedicating himself to social responsibilities at senior years, Far Eastern Group (FEG) Founder Mr. Y. Z. Hsu started to be involved in the early stage of his career developments. With efficient management in mind, Founder Hsu operated these non-profit organizations same as running the enterprise. Thus he not only became a role model in corporate citizenship, but also paved solid foundation for the Goup’s current outstanding medical and educational institutions. Therefore, after his passing away it was only natural for the Group Companies, family members and friends to raise funds and establish “Far Eastern Y. Z. Hsu Science and Technology Memorial Foundation” in memory of his outstanding achievements in the industrial developments and social contributions.
After establishing the Foundation, there were also several reasons to sponsor “Y. Z. Hsu Scientific Award”. First, Founder Hsu used to focus much attention on technology innovation. Reflecting on Far Eastern Textile’s development history, in 1968 Mr. Y. Z. Hsu decided to go up-stream and to enter the new polyester fiber business. At that time, he had to choose between the more familiar dimethyl phthalate (DMT) technique or the newer and cheaper terephthalic acid (TPA) technique. Aimed to “seek for breakthrough, one must have courage to adopt the innovational technique”, with careful planning, calculating all the relevant cost and risk assessment, Founder Hsu adopted the TPA technology. With later tremendous success, Far Eastern Textile gained competitive advantage of vertical integration and TPA technology became the mainstream of polyester fiber industry. Another example occurred in 1975 when the Government was promoting the Tenth National Construction Plan and cement was in short demand. Asia Cement Corp. (ACC) decided to establish its Hualien Plant in the east of Taiwan.
During the expansion, Mr. Y. Z. Hsu also insisted on using “the most competitive new equipments since it is a new plant.” Having already cultivated a strong in-house engineer team, Asia Cement was the first company in Taiwan to install“a secondary-burning pre-calcining suspension preheater kiln and gearless cement mill”. Furthermore to ensure clean environment, ACC implemented “straight well mining portage system” plus “electro static precipitator” which accounted for as high as 10% of total investment. No wonder ACC Hualien Plant has long been outstanding in efficiency, quality and pollution control. The Plant’s picturesque landscape and revegetation efforts at remnant cliffs of mined limestone quarry have also been widely recognized as a role model in environment protection.
On the other hand, as Chairman of the Foundation I feel Taiwan’s economic development is now marching toward a crossroad where innovation and technology shall be the key to future success. So it is truly important to encourage innovation and technology via sponsoring “Y. Z. Hsu Scientific Award” which will contribute much to the sustainable growth of Taiwan‘s economy. While “Y. Z. Hsu Scientific Award” has been encouraging many distinguished scholars who have great accomplishments in research and development in the fields of nanotechnology, communication and optoelectronics as well as biotechnology, “Y. Z. Hsu Scientific Chair Professor” is set to award scholars with outstanding achievements, “Y. Z. Hsu Scientific Paper Award” is to encourage more schools to do fundamental research, and “Y. Z. Hsu Technology Invention Award” is to seek innovative inventions that enhance industrial upgrading. Through sponsoring these awards, we hope to achieve these goals and promote science and technology in Taiwan. Reflecting on the prizewinners and their accomplishments, I firmly believe their winning represents recognition of their individual and team academic research achievement, but also stands for the dedication of a hundred plus experts and scholars to the peers’ review each year.
I am particularly discreet and cautious in establishing this Memorial Foundation and sponsoring this Scientific Award in the name of my late father because Mr. Y. Z. Hsu saw himself as an industrial man always humble, thrifty, and hardworking. Also his past effort and achievement in corporate citizenship has already set an example difficult to surpass. Therefore, I have often contemplated on the Far Eastern Group’s social responsibility. Our focus of attention should never be just today’s fever but should lie on future impact to the society. It is easy to hand out resources, the major task and our main target is try to find out how to give them right, with meaning and continuous value. What we are doing now is just a beginning. We sincerely hope that more and more people will contribute and devote to Taiwan’s development so as to carry on the foundation laid by our diligent forefathers. |
