Daikin Applied restructures US leadership
2nd July 2026
USA: In a number of leadership changes at Daikin Applied Americas, chief operating officer Yu Nishiwaki has been named as its new president and CEO.
The appointment marks a return to the leadership structure that existed prior to the departure of the previous CEO and president, Jeff Drees, in 2023.
Nishiwaki has been with Daikin since 2000 and was at one time vice president of McQuay International. During his career with Daikin, he also served as general manager for Daikin Air Conditioning Italy before being appointed COO in 2023.
James Moe takes over the role of COO with Hirokazu Hirao as COO of manufacturing.
Moe has held a number of sakes and service managerial roles since joining Daikin Applied in 2016. In this new role, he will unite Daikin’s air handling, chiller and applied terminal systems business units and its custom air handling equipment company Alliance Air Products.
Hirokazu Hirao has been with Daikin Industries for more than 37 years, most recently serving as the general manager of the company’s global applied solutions business division.
Daikin says that the new leadership structure reinforces its commitment to advancing solutions for mission-critical environments.
