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 of companies.
Aisin was founded in 1965
and supplies
engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy.
Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gene ...
,
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
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
and other various major
OEMs.
In addition to automotive products, Aisin also offers life and amenity products (such as
sewing machines 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, cont ...
es),
cogeneration
Cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP) is the use of a heat engine or power station to generate electricity and useful heat at the same time.
Cogeneration is a more efficient use of fuel or heat, because otherwise- wasted heat from elec ...
and
heat exchange 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
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
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 Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF; ja, 大日本帝國陸軍航空部隊, Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kōkūbutai, lit=Greater Japan Empire Army Air Corps) was the aviation force of the Im ...
. 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 transmission
An automatic transmission (sometimes abbreviated to auto or AT) is a multi-speed transmission used in internal combustion engine-based motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving co ...
s. 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 employ ...
. 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 Aisin Seiki in 2021.
Aisin AW developed the
Toyota Prius
The is a car built by Toyota which has a hybrid drivetrain, combining an internal combustion engine with an electric motor. Initially offered as a four-door sedan, it has been produced only as a five-door liftback since 2003.
In 2007, th ...
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 Pri ...
) from 2016 onward, the 1st-generation (2005-2007) and 2nd-generation (2008-2012)
Ford Escape
The Ford Escape is a compact crossover SUV sold by Ford since 2000 over four generations. The first generation was jointly developed with Mazda which also created the Mazda Tribute and Mercury Mariner as the twin model. Second generations of t ...
Hybrid, and the
Chrysler Pacifica Chrysler Pacifica is a nameplate used by Chrysler for a variety of vehicles.
The name was first used on a luxury minivan concept vehicle in 1999, and later a crossover concept in 2002.
From 2004 to 2008, it was used on a mid-size crossover, an ...
Hybrid from 2017 onward. The two-axis design eliminates the second
planetary gearset
An epicyclic gear train (also known as a planetary gearset) consists of two gears mounted so that the center of one gear revolves around the center of the other. A carrier connects the centers of the two gears and rotates the planet and sun gea ...
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 P ...
, with another major division located in
Okazaki. Two European divisions, AW Europe & AW Technical Center Europe, were located in
Braine-l'Alleud
Braine-l'Alleud (; nl, Eigenbrakel ; wa, Brinne-l'-Alou) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium, about south of Brussels.
The municipality consists of the following districts: Braine-l'Alleud (includ ...
(for
research and development) and
Baudour
Baudour is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Saint-Ghislain, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwes ...
(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,
Mitsubishi,
Nissan, and
Toyota. Another factory was built in
Marion, Illinois. On October 5, 2005, Aisin USA opened an
testing facility near
Fowlerville, Michigan
Fowlerville is a village in Livingston County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in the northeast portion of Handy Township, but is politically independent from the township. The population was 2,886 at the time of the 2010 census.
...
. The facility, which is Aisin's first in
North America 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
is one of the largest ''keiretsu'' in Japan and one of the largest corporate groups in the world.
The major companies of the group include Mitsui & Co. ( general trading company), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Nippon Paper Industrie ...
, and the American branch of
Hino 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 ch ...
s. Both Aisin and Denso are members of the
Toyota Group and the
Toyota Motor Corporation
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
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
(wisdom), gr, (Ἀντίπολις, antipolis) ("opposite city" from its position on the opposite side of the Var estuary from Nice, also former name of Antibes, part of the technology park)
, postal_code = 06220 (Vallauris), 06250 (Mo ...
,
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. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie.
Anne is sometimes used as a male name in th ...
,
Michigan.
IMRA mainly conducts research on biomedical, battery and produces
femtosecond laser
Mode locking is a technique in optics by which a laser can be made to produce pulses of light of extremely short duration, on the order of picoseconds (10−12 s) or femtoseconds (10−15 s). A laser operated in this way is sometimes r ...
s.
Sponsorship
The company sponsors the
SeaHorses Mikawa
Seahorses Mikawa is a Japanese professional basketball team located in Kariya and sponsored by Aisin. The team was founded in 1947. The team played in the National Basketball League. In July 2015 it was announced that the team will compete in ...
, 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 2001� ...
, and has sponsored
Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe
Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe GmbH (TGR-E), formerly Andersson Motorsport GmbH and Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG), is a fully-owned and controlled entity of Toyota Motor Corporation, based in Cologne, Germany, which provides motorsport and automoti ...
since 2012.
NASCAR
Aisin AW currently sponsors
Austin Hill
Austin Edward Hill (born April 21, 1994) is an American professional stock car racing driver and former team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing and part-time ...
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 ...
and
Xfinity Series. Hill drives the #61
Toyota Supra
is a sports car and grand tourer manufactured by the Toyota Motor Corporation beginning in 1978. The name " supra" is derived from the Latin prefix, meaning "above", "to surpass" or "go beyond".
The initial four generations of the Supra were p ...
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 th ...
for
Hattori Racing Enterprises
Hattori Racing Enterprises (HRE) is a Japanese-American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Owned by former NASCAR and open-wheel driver Shigeaki Hattori they compete with the No. 16 ...
. 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 s ...
with
Brett Moffitt
Brett B. Moffitt (born August 7, 1992) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 25 Ford Mustang for AM Racing.
He won Rookie of the Year Honors in 2015 in the NASCAR ...
, 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
The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...
.
See also
*
List of Aisin transmissions
*
Toyota Group
*
1997 Aisin fire The 1997 Aisin fire was a fire which shut down one of the production facilities of the Toyota-subsidiary Aisin Seiki Co. on February 1, 1997, a Saturday. The event was notable as the factory was the main supplier of a motor part for Toyota cars. Du ...
References
External links
Aisin Japanese siteAisin English siteAisin Worldwide siteAisin Europe siteAisin AW an
Aisin Aftermarket EuropeToyota 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