is a Japanese corporation that develops and produces components and systems for the automotive industry. Aisin is a Fortune Global 500 company, ranked 359 rankings. Aisin is a member of the

Toyota Group The is a group of companies that have supplier, vendor and investment relationships with Toyota Industries and Toyota Motor vehicle manufacturing facilities. It is similar to a ''keiretsu'' in that no particular entity has outright control over ...

of companies. Aisin was founded in 1965 and supplies engine, drivetrain, body and

chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of an artificial object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...

, aftermarket, and other automotive parts for the Toyota Motor Corporation and other various major OEMs. In addition to automotive products, Aisin also offers life and amenity products (such as

sewing machine A sewing machine is a machine used to sew fabric and materials together with thread. Sewing machines were invented during the first Industrial Revolution to decrease the amount of manual sewing work performed in clothing companies. Since the inv ...

s and, from 1966 to 2020,

mattress A mattress is a large, usually rectangular pad for supporting a lying person. It is designed to be used as a bed, or on a bed frame as part of a bed. Mattresses may consist of a quilted or similarly fastened case, usually of heavy cloth, conta ...

es), cogeneration and

heat exchange Heat Exchange was a Canadian rock band who had evolved out of a late 1960s, blues quartet. They had a hit in Canada in 1972 with "Can You Tell Me". Nearly five decades later they would finally have their album released. Background They started o ...

systems, and welfare products, among others.

History

The company traces its origins to 1943, when was founded as a joint venture between the Toyota Motor Corporation and

Kawasaki Aircraft Industries is the aerospace division of Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI). It produces aircraft, space systems, simulators, jet engines, missiles, and electronic equipment. During the 1930s and 1940s, Kawasaki Aircraft Industries developed numerous types o ...

to produce aircraft engines for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service. The company was quickly renamed after it was discovered that there was a pre-existing company with the same name. After the war, Tokai renamed itself , and shifted production from aircraft parts to sewing machines and automobile parts. In 1965, Aichi Kogyo merged with auto parts manufacturer Shinkawa Kogyo 新川産業 to form . In October 2019, Aisin Seiki announced that it would merge with subsidiary Aisin AW, consolidating management and renaming the company. Effective April 1, 2021, the combined company was officially renamed Aisin Corporation.

Subsidiaries

Aisin AW

Aisin AW was Aisin Seiki's subsidiary building automatic transmissions. It was originally established in 1969 as Aisin-Warner, a joint venture with

BorgWarner BorgWarner Inc. is an American automotive supplier headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The company maintains production facilities and technical systems at 93 sites (as of June 6, 2022) in 22 countries worldwide and has around 49,000 emplo ...

. In 1981, BorgWarner reduced its equity in Aisin-Warner to 10%, and by 1987 had divested themselves of the remainder. Aisin-Warner was renamed Aisin AW in 1988, and merged with

parent company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

Aisin Seiki in 2021. Aisin AW developed the Toyota Prius transmission and the world's first speaking navigation system. Additionally, its two-axis electric continuously variable transmission has been adapted to Prius models (except the

Prius C The Toyota Prius c (''c'' stands for "city"), named the (''"aqua"'' is Latin for water) in Japan, is a full hybrid gasoline-electric subcompact/supermini hatchback manufactured and marketed by Toyota. The Prius c is the third member of the Prius ...

) from 2016 onward, the 1st-generation (2005-2007) and 2nd-generation (2008-2012) Ford Escape Hybrid, and the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid from 2017 onward. The two-axis design eliminates the second planetary gearset used in the 2010–2015 Prius and Prius c, which reduces the width and weight of the eCVT and improves its overall efficiency. Aisin AW was based in

Anjō is a city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 188,693 in 76,087 households, and a population density of 2,193 persons per km². The total area of the city was . Geography Anjō is situated in southern Aichi Pr ...

, with another major division located in

Okazaki Okazaki may refer to: *Okazaki (surname) *Okazaki, Aichi, a city in Japan *Okazaki Castle, a castle in Japan *Okazaki fragments Okazaki fragments are short sequences of DNA nucleotides (approximately 150 to 200 base pairs long in eukaryotes) w ...

. Two European divisions, AW Europe & AW Technical Center Europe, were located in Braine-l'Alleud (for

research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...

) and Baudour (for the

remanufacturing Remanufacturing is "the rebuilding of a product to specifications of the original manufactured product using a combination of reused, repaired and new parts". It requires the repair or replacement of worn out or obsolete components and modules. ...

of automatic transmissions and transaxles, and the production of electronic components).

Aisin AI

Aisin AI was an Aisin Seiki subsidiary spun off in July 1991 to produce manual transmissions and transfer cases, moving its headquarters to Nishio. Until 1996, Aisin AI only client was Toyota; then DaimlerChrysler and Isuzu began using its products. The company later began supplying products to other companies worldwide. Aisin AI was consolidated into Aisin AW in 2019.

Aisin USA

Aisin constructed a factory in the United States in 1986, with production beginning in 1989. This factory in Seymour, Indiana has since been expanded and supplies components for Honda,

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

Mitsubishi The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries. Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...

Nissan , trade name, trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells ...

, and Toyota. Another factory was built in Marion, Illinois. On October 5, 2005, Aisin USA opened an testing facility near Fowlerville, Michigan. The facility, which is Aisin's first in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

and third worldwide, is officially named FT Techno of America (FTTA), but is also known as the Fowlerville Proving Ground. FTTA is Aisin's fifth group company in Michigan. In 2009, the North American division and its companies were placed under a newly created entity named Aisin World Corporation of America, which was structured so that Toyota, Mitsui, and the American branch of

Hino Hino may refer to: Places Estonia * Hino, Põlva County * Hino, Võru County ** Lake Hino Japan * Hino, Shiga * Hino, Tokyo * Hino, Tottori ** Hino District, Tottori ** Hino River Transportation * Hino Motors, a Japanese truck manufacturer o ...

have majority ownership of Aisin's North American operations.

BluE Nexus

BluE Nexus is a joint venture company established by Aisin and Denso in April 2019 to build powertrain systems for

electric vehicle An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. It can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or it can be powered autonomously by a battery (sometimes cha ...

s. Both Aisin and Denso are members of the

and the Toyota Motor Corporation has a 10% stake in the company. The main product from BluE Nexus is the e-Axle, which integrates an electric motor, gears and inverter. BluE Nexus will also market the hybrid drive systems produced by Aisin AW.

IMRA

IMRA (Institut Minoru de Recherche Avancé) is a research organization founded in 1986 in Sophia Antipolis, France. It has three entities based in Europe, US, and Japan, which have become the key power of Aisin group to conduct R&D and offer technological consulting. The American division, IMRA America, was founded in 1990 in

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

, Michigan. IMRA mainly conducts research on biomedical, battery and produces femtosecond lasers.

Sponsorship

The company sponsors the SeaHorses Mikawa, the 5-time champions of the

JBL Super League The JBL Super League was a professional basketball league in Japan. It started operations in 2001 and was disbanded in 2007, with the foundation of the Japan Basketball League. History The first season of the JBL Super League was played in 20 ...

, and has sponsored Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe since 2012.

NASCAR

Aisin AW currently sponsors Austin Hill in the NASCAR

Camping World Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...

and Xfinity Series. Hill drives the #61 Toyota Supra and #16

Toyota Tundra The Toyota Tundra is a pickup truck manufactured in the United States by the Japanese manufacturer Toyota since May 1999. The Tundra was the second full-size pickup to be built by a Japanese manufacturer (the first was the Toyota T100), but the ...

for Hattori Racing Enterprises. HRE's first win came at

Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly known Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a 1.54-mile entertainment facility in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Cup Series ...

with Brett Moffitt, whose truck was also sponsored by Aisin, in 2018. HRE and Moffitt also won the CWTS championship that same year. Aisin AW also sponsored the team in the ARCA Menards Series.

References

External links

Aisin Japanese siteAisin English siteAisin Worldwide siteAisin Europe siteAisin AW
an
Aisin Aftermarket Europe

Toyota Home Sewing - Aisin
* Wiki collection of bibliographic works on Aisin Seiki {{Authority control Auto parts suppliers of Japan Automotive transmission makers Companies based in Aichi Prefecture Manufacturing companies established in 1949 Dye-sensitized solar cells Toyota Japanese brands Japanese companies established in 1949 Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Toyota Group Multinational companies headquartered in Japan