The father of G-Shock, Kikuo Ibe, revolutionised the world of digital watches

Shock value

Monday, Oct 21, 2013

Dylan Tan

The Business Times

KIKUO Ibe, inventor of the iconic Casio range of G-Shock timpieces, looks amused when told his biggest fan in Singapore has about 600 different models and variations of the digital watch in his collection. He has every reason to because there’s really no need to own more than one. The groundbreaking watch he created 30 years ago is virtually indestructible – it’s water-resistant; can resist drops, vibrations and G-forces; and depending on use, has been known to run for as long as 10 years without a battery change. The “G” in its name refers to “gravity” which Mr Ibe wanted to counter when he was creating the break-proof watch. Its design consists of several layers of bumpers which protect the timepiece from damage even when used in the most extreme of conditions.The G-Shock’s unique durability could potentially have turned Mr Ibe into his company’s marketing department’s worst nightmare – a remark which makes the 61-year-old smile coyly when teased about it – if not for the fact that the watches have also become highly collectible items.

A recent collaboration with haute couture fashion house Maison Martin Margiela, for instance, sold out in 15 minutes flat when it was released here in July while another limited edition model made with cult headwear makers New Era earlier this week saw collectors queuing for it way before doors to Casio’s boutiques were even opened.

Previous partnerships that have yielded now out-of-production collectible models that fetch up to a thousand dollars online include tie-ups with other designer brands like Maharishi as well as street fashion favourites such as Mastermind, A Bathing Ape and Undefeated. Closer to home, the brand also frequently works with local designers.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the G-Shock, it invited Keith Png, who has dressed international movie stars like Zhang Ziyi; and design collective duo, Andrew Loh and Kenny Lim of Depression, who are known for their signature bold monochromatic designs, to put their individual touches on two limited edition models.

The G-Shock has indeed come a long way since its humble beginnings when Mr Ibe, who joined Casio in 1976 and is now its Research and Development’s chief engineer, intended for it to be a daily beater for people in heavy industrial jobs instead of fashion-savvy watch collectors.

The inspiration to invent an everlasting watch came to him after he accidentally broke the one his father had given him. For two years, he worked on developing various shock resistant structures with his Project Team “Tough” and experimented with a metal ball wrapped with rubber bands. He threw it out of his office’s third floor toilet more than 200 times to test it and had to overcome various challenges like keeping his invention down to a size that was wearable.

The rest is history as Casio introduced its first G-Shock, the square-faced DW-5000C in 1983. For sentimental reasons, it’s the only G-Shock Mr Ibe owns and he wears it faithfully to this day.

But there’s a long list of other inventions that adds to his legacy at the company. He is also behind Casio’s first ever radio-controlled and solar powered watch, as well as its Oceanus range of radio-controlled solar powered analog watches.

The latter, along with other luxury high-end collections like the metal composite MT-G and MR-G lines, are available exclusively at the new G-Factory Premium store at Marina Bay Sands, which Sebastian Vettel, an ambassador of the Edifice line of racing watches, officiated at the opening last month. It’s the first premium boutique of its kind in the world for the brand.

Despite working at Casio for over three decades, retirement isn’t a subject that Mr Ibe is keen to discuss as he continues to dream of new products for the G-Shock family. It recently introduced a line of energy-saving Bluetooth-enabled watches that will work with iPhones and selected models of Android smartphones.

When paired, users will be alerted to incoming calls and messages, among other features. But Mr Ibe also gets a reality check every now and then when he realises not everything he tries might eventually work out. “I have tried inventing a watch for firemen that can resist heat but that has not been successful,” he humbly admits.

Still, there’s nothing to stop him from stretching his imagination. With a playful glint returning to his eyes and proving no idea is ever too far-fetched to be conceived for a G-Shock watch, he shares: “I want to invent a watch which will tell the time by popping into the wearer’s mind when he or she thinks of it!”

Casio G-SHOCK’s Kikuo Ibe never imagined it would all take off

SINGAPORE — It’s pretty funny when the man behind a timekeeping icon admits that he’s actually not a very punctual person.

BY VINCENT LEE –

26 JULY

SINGAPORE — It’s pretty funny when the man behind a timekeeping icon admits that he’s actually not a very punctual person.

“I’m not so strict with myself!” Kikuo Ibe, the man behind Casio’s G-SHOCK, said with a laugh. The 61-year-old was in town last week for the Singapore leg of the G-Shock World Tour 2013, which celebrates the iconic timepiece’s 30th birthday across major cities worldwide.

Strictness, however, is actually the only appropriate term to describe Ibe’s work ethic when it comes to creating the watch. The chief engineer, who now heads Casio’s research and development department, shared that he took two years and more than 200 tries to perfect the watch.

“I almost lost hope! But I really wanted to create this product and that was what kept me going,” he said. Ibe also regards his success in creating the very first G-SHOCK back in 1983 as the highlight of his 37-year career.

Known for its resistance to shocks, the functionality of G-SHOCK makes it a favourite among sports enthusiasts and those in the military. The watch is also wildly popular among youngsters and appeals to the trendy as an admirable fashionable accessory. Ibe, who witnessed the growing worldwide popularity and longevity of G-SHOCK, said he “never imagined that it would become what it is now”.

“(My) original target was people who do very hard work, so having these young people all so in favour of my watches, I feel nothing but thankfulness and appreciation to these people,” he said.

Interestingly, as the man behind designing timepieces, Ibe doesn’t have an interest in collecting watches. His pastimes are growing vegetables and learning languages, and he only has two watches at the moment, one of which is the first model of G-SHOCK that he still wears because of its “sentimental value”. Ibe also keeps the original prototype in his office.

Having been with Casio since 1976, retirement is something that Ibe has thought about, though it wouldn’t be happening just yet. “It’s not something that I would decide. It’s something that the company decides,” he smiled.

“Before I retire, I want to develop more of the low-end models like the core models, not really G-Shock,” he added and shared that he would like to continue his stay at Casio to nurture the younger generations of watchmakers.

Q: Tell us the story behind creating G-SHOCK.

A: I received a watch from my father when I entered high school. I wore the watch all this while and took care of it, even when I started working for Casio. But one day, when I dropped it on the floor — just a normal drop — it broke into many pieces. That had a lasting impression on me and fuelled my inspiration to create G-SHOCK.

Q: What’s the story behind the name?

A: A designer who was working with me took the G from the word, gravity. We took the G thinking of Newton’s apple, which is to survive the (shock).

Q: What’s your design philosophy for these timepieces? Do you have a creation process?

A: I always keep a tough image in my mind, such as car bumpers and hammers, when I make these watches. It’s always about producing an indestructible watch.

Q: Hammers? That’s interesting. Was any hammering involved in making sure that the G-SHOCK was indeed truly indestructible?

A: Not really. When we did the initial testing for the creation of the first G-SHOCK, we used something like a metal ball that was wrapped with rubber bands. And I threw the ball out of the window to see if it would resist the fall. After this test, I came up with another concept to have five levels of shock resistance, and I worked to make the size of the product into the size that you see now. The initial product was very big and I was determined to make a smaller size because that’s (what) people would wear. Such a small size also posed another problem because if one part of the mechanism was too strong, it would affect the other parts.

Also, one day, I saw a kid bouncing a ball. When I saw the ball floating in the air, I took this idea and added it to the five levels of shock resistance (to) make the mechanism of the watch float in a “space”. In order to test the strength of the watch, I used the same metal ball during the creation process and dropped it from the third floor of our building.

Q: What’s the relevance of timepieces in the age where people don’t really need a watch to tell time? How necessary are these timepieces now?

A: I understand that a lot of young people have stopped wearing watches due to the rise of smart phones. However, I feel that there’s still a need for watches, and I want to develop a technology that allows you — by having both the watch and the phone — to access things that you can’t do before. So, new technologies, new things that would enhance your lifestyles. For example, our Bluetooth watch. By having this watch and your handphone, you can experience a new enhanced feature that you won’t have before, like if your phone rings, your watch will be able to tell you that your phone is ringing. Or if you have a new e-mail, the watch would beep.

Q: We’re all aware that the Japanese have an intense working culture. Is this true for Casio as well?

A: In the past, we used to have long working hours but we’ve now progressed. We have this policy which states that one should use the time after 5pm for leisure, and to have more work-life balance. It’s not just Casio, it’s in all of Japan. All of the companies are applying this policy now, probably because the mind-sets of the young people have changed, and companies have to change as well.

Q: What do you do to unwind then?

A: My hobby, apart from work, is agriculture. I like to grow vegetables like white radish and carrots. They’re all organic. I managed to borrow a piece of land from a farmer that’s five minutes by bicycle from my house.

Q: Do you only eat organic?

A: No, no, no, no, no. (Laughs)

Q: Apart from growing vegetables, do you do anything else after 5pm?

A: I’m learning languages outside of my work time, like on the weekends. It’s because G-SHOCK has a lot of events around the world so I want to be able to speak in their language. I’m having like a nervous breakdown (from learning the languages)!

Q: What kind of languages are you learning now?

A: English, Thai, Malay, Indonesian, Spanish, Hindu, Dutch, French and Italian.

Q: All at the same time?

A: Not really. I have done about ten different languages but it’s not for conversation purposes. They’re to be used in my speeches, so I usually take about four months to learn one speech.

Q: Being in this business for so long, what do you understand by the phrase “Time may change me, but I can’t trace time”?

A: I feel that time has been allocated equally to everyone. Everyone has their own time. In regards to the use of this time, there are people who will just do whatever they want with their time and not use it fruitfully. There are also those who would use it fruitfully. Well, I feel that we should all use our time fruitfully.

Q: Do you think that your journey has been a fruitful one?

A: If I were to look back on my life now and see which category I belong in, I would say that I’m in those who didn’t use their time fruitfully. Because I feel that I could’ve done more and that the time wasn’t used as well as it should have been. So from now on, I’ll make sure that this time is used to the maximum!

Q: What’s the biggest lesson you have picked up?

A: That you’ll come across many obstacles in life, but you can overcome them with hard work.