NSK company has made a vital contribution to the growth and achievement of various machinery industries throughout its history. As a comprehensive bearing manufacturer, NSK responds to the needs of a wide variety of fields.

NSK company history

• Feb. 1914, With the cooperation of Takahashi Korekiyo, Takehiko Yamaguchi founds Nippon Seiko Limited Partnership Company and begins tests of bearing production.
• Aug. 1916, NSK Bearing production is begun
• Nov. 1916, Nippon Seiko Limited Partnership Company (founded in 1914) is re-established as NSK Ltd. in Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, with 350,000 yen in capital.
• May 1931, Korekata Takahashi becomes the second president of NSK Ltd.
• Nov. 1937, The Fujisawa Plant, a bearing manufacturing facility, is established in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture. The steel ball manufacturing equipment is transferred here from the Tamagawa Plant, and a press factory is added.
• Jul. 1948, Hiroki Imazato becomes the fourth president of NSK Ltd.
• Mar. 1949, NSK Ltd. is listed on the stock exchanges in Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya.
• Nov. 1953, Nishi Nippon Seiko (now the Otsu Plant) is established as a bearing manufacturing company in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture.
• Jun. 1960, Kita Nippon Seiko (now NSK Steering Systems Co., Ltd.) is established in Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture, to manufacture automotive parts.
• Jan. 1963, NSK Automobile bearing manufacturer, NSK Torrington Co., Ltd. (now wholly owned subsidiary, NSK Needle Bearing Co., Ltd.) is established in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture, as a joint venture with Torrington Co., Ltd.(UK) and Tokyo Bearing Co.,Ltd.
• Nov. 1967, Kita Nippon Seiko is absorbed by NSK and becomes the Maebashi Plant.
• Dec. 1970, NSK Brazil Bearings (now NSK Brasil Ltda.) is established in Sao Paulo, Brazil, to manufacture and sell industrial machinery bearings.
• Apr. 1974, NSK Bearings Europe Ltd. is established in London, UK, to manufacture automotive bearings. Manufacturing sites are later established across Europe.
• Sep. 1987, Korea Precision Co., Ltd. (now NSK Korea Co., Ltd.) is established in Changwon, South Korea, through a joint venture with Marubeni Corporation and Korea General Machinery Co., Ltd., to manufacture and sell industrial machinery bearings.
• Feb. 1988, NSK Europe Ltd. is established in Berkshire, UK (near London) to oversee affiliates in Europe.
• Jul. 1995, Kunshan NSK Hongshan Co., Ltd. (now Kunshan NSK Co., Ltd.) is established in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, China, through a joint venture with Guizhou Hongshan Bearing Corp. and Nichimen Corporation, to manufacture and sell industrial machinery bearings. Manufacturing and sales sites are later established across China.
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NSK Corporate

NSK was founded in 1916 and produced the first ball bearings made in Japan. Since then, the company has spearheaded the development of bearings in Japan. NSK now offers a full range of bearings and sells them worldwide. NSK bearings have contributed greatly to the growth of many industries and to the advancement of mechanical technology. Now, the company has the largest share of the bearings market in Japan and is one of the largest bearing suppliers in the world.

NSK has used its expertise in precision machining technology, refined through years of bearing manufacturing, to diversify into:

• automotive products
• precision machinery and parts
• mechatronic products

Since the beginning of the 1960s, following the establishment of its first overseas sales office in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States, NSK has continued to set up business locations overseas and has continuously strengthened its global presence.

In the 1970s, NSK established a manufacturing subsidiary outside the city of Sao Paolo in Brazil, followed by other new manufacturing subsidiaries in North America, in the United Kingdom and Asia. In the 1990s, NSK acquired UPI, the largest bearing manufacturer in the United Kingdom, known for its RHP brand. Expanding production and sales locations in all European markets resulted in a stronger market presence for NSK in Europe.

Starting in the mid-1990s, NSK rapidly expanded its operations into markets in Asia. Particularly in fast growing markets such as China, NSK is continuously strengthening its corporate structure to carry out research and development, sales and technical services locally.