Hitachi, Ltd., a Japanese electronics and heavy industry company, is one of the largest corporations in the world. Hitachi manufactures a diverse array of products, including air conditioners, batteries, broadcasting equipment, computers, construction equipment, data storage equipment, elevators, industrial robots, lighting fixtures, medical equipment, nuclear power plant equipment, railroad cars, rubber products, semiconductors, televisions, videotapes, and washing machines. The company also provides transportation, property management, printing, and financial services.
Namihei Odaira, a Japanese businessman, founded the company in 1910 as an electrical repair shop in Hitachi, Japan. The company manufactured its first products—electric motors—that year.
Today, Hitachi, Ltd., has manufacturing operations in more than 40 countries, and it has over 1,000 subsidiaries worldwide. Its headquarters are in Tokyo.
