Fuji Heavy Industries
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Fuji Heavy Industries, Ltd. (富士重工業株式会社 Fuji Jūkōgyō Kabushiki-gaisha?) (TYO: 7270 ), or FHI, traces its origins to the Nakajima Aircraft Company (est. 1917), which was once the leading aircraft manufacturer for Japan military in WWII. FHI was established on July 15, 1953 when five Japanese companies joined to form one of Japan's largest manufacturers of transportation equipment. Currently, FHI employs more than 15,000 people worldwide, operates nine manufacturing plants and sells products in 100 countries. It currently makes Subaru brand cars, and its aerospace division makes parts for Boeing, helicopters for the Japanese Self Defense Force, Raytheon Hawker, and Eclipse Aviation business jets.
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[edit] Shareholders
From 1968 until 1999, FHI was 20% owned by Nissan, who acquired the stake in 1968 during a period of government-ordered merging of Japanese auto industry firms in order to improve competitiveness under the administration of Prime Minister Eisaku Sato. During their ownership, Nissan was primarily interested in its bus manufacturing division and lent automaking expertise to Subaru. Upon Nissan's acquisition by Renault, its 20% stake was sold to General Motors, but GM announced on October 6, 2005 that it will sell 8.4% of the company to Toyota and will dispose of its remaining share, 11.6% of the company, on the market. [1]
[edit] Divisions
FHI has four main divisions:
- The automobile division, Subaru, has been manufacturing and selling automobiles since 1954 and now has 1,970 dealers in 100 countries.
- The aerospace division is a contractor for the Japan Defense Agency and markets and sells both commercial and defense-related aircraft, helicopters and target drones. This division used to build the Fuji FA200 Aero Subaru and is currently participating in the Airbus A380, Boeing 777, Boeing 787, and Eclipse 500 programs, and supplies parts for Boeing 767 and 2 other Boeing models.
- The industrial products division manufactures and sells equipment under the Robin brand.
- the transportation equipment division builds several types of buses, garbage trucks, and prefabricated housing.
The company's four divisions all share their technological advancements with one another, which has made FHI a leader in innovation. In particular, they apply a great deal of their aircraft technology to their automotive division, the most notable example being the horizontally-opposed boxer engines used in all modern Subaru automobiles.
[edit] Leadership
- 1953-unknown — Kenji Kita
- unknown-1985 — Eiichi Ohara
- 1985-1991 — Sadamichi Sasaki
- 1991-1998 — Isamu Kawai
- 1999-2001 — Takeshi Tanaka
- 2001-2006 — Kyoji Takenaka
- 2006-present — Ikuo Mori