History

Visionary

Feel free to read about the history of the Shimadzu Corporation and about the Shimadzu Foundation Memorial Hall, in Kyoto, Japan, on our new content Visionary.

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Visionary

History

1875 Genzo Shimadzu Sr. started the manufacture of educational physical and chemistry instruments in Kiyamachi-Nijo, Kyoto.
1877 First successful private balloon flight in Japan.
1896 Succeeded in taking radiographs.
1897 Started the manufacture of storage batteries.
1909 Built Japan's first medical X-ray device.
1915 Started manufacture of optical measuring instruments.
1917 Reorganized Shimadzu as joint-stock company, with storage battery department established as separate company.
1920 Established Dalian office.
1930 Genzo Shimadzu Jr. was invited to the Emperor's dinner party as one of the ten greatest inventors of Japan.
1933 Developed industrial X-ray device.
1934 Developed Japan's first spectrograph.
1936 Started manufacture of aircraft equipment.
1952 Developed Japan's first photoelectric spectrophotometer.
1956 Developed Japan's first gas chromatograph.
1961 Developed world's first remote-controlled fluoroscopy system.
1963 Established New York office.
Established Tokyo Research Center.
1968 Established Shimadzu (Europa) GmbH in F.R. Germany.
1975 Established Shimadzu Scientific Instruments, Inc. in U.S.
1979 Established Shimadzu Precision Instruments, Inc. in U.S.
1980 Established Shimadzu Science Foundation.
1983 Started manufacture of analytical instruments in U.S.
1987 Started manufacture of analytical instruments in Germany.
1989 Acquired Kratos Group Plc. in U.K.
1991 Established Keihanna Research Laboratory.
Established Hadano Works.
1992 Established Beijing Shimadzu Medical Equipment Co., Ltd. in China.
1994 Established Tianjin-Shimadzu Hydraulic Equipment Co., Ltd. in China.
1996 Established Shimadzu Philippines Manufacturing, Inc. in Philippines.
1997 Established Shimane Shimadzu Corporation in Japan, a manufacturing company.
Established Shimadzu Vietnam Medical Hi-Tech Co., Ltd., in Vietnam
1998 Established Shimadzu (Hong Kong) Ltd.
Established Shimadzu (Suzhou) Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in China.
1999 Developed world's fastest DNA sequencer.
2000 Established Dong-il Shimadzu Corporation in Korea.
2001 Established Life Science Research Center in Kyoto and Tsukuba.
2002 Koichi Tanaka awarded Nobel Prize in Chemistry and Japan's Order of Cultural Merit.
2003 Established Koichi Tanaka Mass Spectrometry Research Laboratory
Developed world's first diagnostic X-ray imaging system equipped with a direct-conversion flat panel detector (FPD).
2005 Strengthened measures to develop molecular imaging instruments, a next-generation medical technology.
Established Shimadzu Device Corporation to manufacture optical components.
Established Shimadzu A-tech Manufacturing Corporation to manufacture analytical and measuring instruments.
2006 Established three companies in Europe including Shimadzu UK Ltd.
Established Shimadzu Analytical (India) Pvt. Ltd. in India.
Established Shimadzu (Guangzhou) Analysis & Technology Services Co., Ltd. in China, to perform contract analysis.
2008 Took over Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' turbomolecular pump business.
2011 Established new R&D center for analytical and measuring instruments in China.
2012 Released the FOODSEYE Food Radioactivity Inspection System.
2013 Established Shimadzu Latin America S.A. in Uruguay.
Established Shimadzu Scientific Instruments (Taiwan) Co., Ltd. in Taiwan.
2014 Established Shimadzu Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. in Malaysia.
Shimadzu Corporation Celebrates Its 140th Anniversary This Year.
2015 Established SSI Innovation Center in U.S.
2016 Established Shimadzu Manufacturing Asia Sdn. Bhd. in Malaysia.
2017 Established Shimadzu Aerotech Manufacturing, Inc., in Japan.
Established Innovation Centre in Singapore.
Acquired Alsachim SAS in France.
2018 Acquired infraserv Vakuumservice GmbH in Germany.
Established Shimadzu Industrial Systems CO., Ltd in Japan.
2019 Established Innovation Center in China.
Established Healthcare R&D Center in the head office.
Established Shimadzu Scientific Korea Corporation in Korea.
Acquired Core Medical Imaging, Inc. in U.S.
2020 Established Shimadzu Vietnam Co., Ltd. in Vietnam.
Released the Ampdirect™ 2019-nCoV Detection Kit (only available in Japan).
Released the AutoAmp Genetic Analyzer (only available in Japan).
2021 Release of World’s First TOF-PET System Specialized for Head and Breast Examinations (only available in Japan).
Release of Amyloid MS CL System for Measuring Candidate Substance Potentially Causing Alzheimer’s Disease (only available in Japan).
New Hydraulic Equipment Plant Completed in China.
2022 Established Shimadzu Trustech Corporation in Japan.
Established SHIMADZU Future Collaboratory in Japan.
Making Nissui Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (current Shimadzu Diagnostics Corporation) as a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary.
2023 Established Shimadzu Tokyo Innovation Plaza in Japan.
Acquired Biomaneo SAS in France.
Established Shimadzu Nagasaki Collaboration Lab in Japan.

Shimadzu's Emblem

The corporate emblem, "the Circle Crossed" originates with Genzo Shimadzu, the founder of Shimadzu Corporation, who decided to use it as our trademark in 1912. Later, the emblem was scientifically re-designed into the present trademark.

The solid circular margin has a width of 1/8 the outer diameter of the circle while the cross bars are another 10% thicker. This design is based on scientific data used to optimize the beauty of uniformity as the dimensional ratios used correct the illusion of difference in widths leading to a pleasing perception of balance.

In late 16th century, when Yoshihiro Shimadzu, the lord of Satsuma Province, passed through Banshu Himeji to visit his land newly given to him by Hideyoshi Toyotomi, one of the three warriors who reunited Japan, Sohbei Inoue, an ancestor of Genzo Shimadzu was given a role to attend the lord. In recognition of the services of Sohbei Inoue, it is reported that Lord Yoshihiro Shimadzu allowed him to use the name of Shimadzu and the family emblem, "the Circle Crossed."

Shimadzu's Emblem