History
Kunihiko IwadareOn 17 July 1899, Nippon Electric Company, Limited (renamed NEC Corporation, effective April, 1983, both expressed as NEC hereafter) Japan's first joint venture with foreign capital, was established by Kunihiko Iwadare in association with the U.S. firm Western Electric Company (presently Alcatel-Lucent).
The basic aim of the new company, expressed in the slogan “Better Products, Better Service,” was to carry out the promise to provide its customers with world-class products and dependable follow-up service. The notion of follow-up service didn't take root among Japanese businesses until a full half-century later, whereas NEC had from the beginning embraced a concept that developed into what we now call Customer Satisfaction (CS).
desktop-type Delville telephoneWorld and domestic firsts in technology and research development, made possible by managerial innovation and backed by establishment, improvement and reform of its various personnel systems, as well as the early mounting of environmental projects, make it possible to say that NEC's history has been marked by constant innovation for more than a hundred years. NEC is empowered by the DNA of innovation.
Chronological Table
| 1899 | Nippon Electric Company, Limited is established. |
|---|---|
| 1919 | Produces first domestic Type 1 common-battery switchboards for long-distance toll calls. |
| 1920 | Enters into capital ties with Sumitomo Electric Wire and Cable Works and transfers cable business to Sumitomo. |
| 1924 | Advances into wireless business. |
| 1927 | Delivers the first domestic-made A-Type automatic PBX to Mitsukoshi Department Store. |
| 1928 | NE-Type phototelegraphic equipment transmits scenes of Imperial Accession Ceremony of Emperor Hirohito between Kyoto to Tokyo. |
| 1929 | Produces domestic A-Type automatic switching system for the central telephone office. |
| 1937 | Succeeds in producing 50kW transmitter tubes, thereby completing the development of short-wave broadcast equipment boasting the world's highest output. |
| 1950 | Begins research into transistors. |
| 1952 | Receives Deming Application Prize (the first time for a company in the communications industry). |
| 1953 | Produces microwave PTM (Pulse Time Modulation) multiplexing equipment. |
| 1954 | Begins research into computers. |
| 1955 | Produces first domestic-made XB switching system for PBX. |
| 1956 | Produces first domestic-made XB switching system. |
| 1958 | Develops fully transistorized NEAC-2201 computer. |
| 1960 | Begins development of ICs. |
| Develops time division electronic switching system. | |
| 1961 | Introduces the business division system. |
| 1963 | Establishes Nippon Electric New York (now NEC Corporation of America) |
| Issues American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). | |
| 1964 | Trans-Pacific TV broadcasts of the 18th Olympiad in Tokyo are successfully implemented using NEC-supplied ground facilities for satellite communications. |
| 1965 | Delivers the PCM-24 digital transmission system to NTTPC. |
| Introduces ZD (Zero Defect) movement. | |
| 1970 | Produces Osumi experimental satellite. |
| Established “Pollution Prevention & Environmental Management Department.” | |
| 1972 | The “Operation Quality” program is initiated. |
| 1974 | The ACOS Series 77 mainframe computer family is announced. |
| 1977 | "C&C" or the integration of computer and communications technologies is first announced at INTELCOM ’77. |
| The NEAX 61 digital switching system is announced in the United States. | |
| 1979 | The PC-8001 personal computer is announced. |
| 1982 | The PC-9801 personal computer is announced. |
| 1985 | The SX-2 supercomputer demonstrates the world's fastest performance. |
| 1991 | The world's first notebook-sized PC with color LCD is announced. |
| A unique graphite crystal is discovered and named “carbon-nanotubes”. | |
| 1995 | The world's first prototype 1Gbit DRAM is unveiled. |
| 1997 | The Semiconductor Group is honored with the first Japan Quality Award. |
| 2002 | The Earth Simulator, the world's fastest supercomputer system for resolving global environmental problems, is completed. |
| 2003 | Constructs one of the world's largest mission-critical systems, the i-mode gateway system "CiRCUS" |
| Development of kenaf-reinforced bioplastic. | |
| An elementary circuit is realized for practical quantum computers. | |
| 2004 | Realizes world's smallest, slimmest, card-shaped, camera-equipped mobile phone utilizing ultra-thin packaging technology |
| Commences provision of UNIVERGE solutions aimed at realizing improvement of business efficiency, intellectual productivity and more | |
| The world's longest single-photon transmission record is extended to 150 km, realized through quantum cryptography system employing an optical planar circuit. | |
| 2005 | NEC develops a new ultra-thin, flexible, rechargeable battery boasting super-fast charging capability. |
| 2007 | Ultra-compact microwave communications system PASOLINK secures top global market share |
| 2008 | Unveils the NEC Group Vision 2017 and Core Values |
| Express Server becomes first domestic IA server to surpass the one-million-unit mark for cumulative shipments | |
| The programmable flow switch trial between Japan and the United States is successfully completed. | |
| 2010 | Asteroid explorer "HAYABUSA" successfully returns to Earth |
| Begins mass production of electrodes for advanced lithium-ion batteries for automotive applications |
