, formerly , is a Japanese company which manufactures electronic materials, electronic components, and recording and data-storage media, and markets them globally. Their motto is "Contribute to culture and industry through creativity".

History

TDK was founded in Japan on 7 December 1935 to manufacture iron-based magnetic material ferrite, which had been recently invented by Yogoro Kato and Takeshi Takei. In 1952 they began production of magnetic tapes, with compact cassette tapes following in 1966; it is for these that the company is most widely noted. Industry trends see the company moving into new forms of media; in 2004 TDK was the first media-manufacturer to join the companies developing Blu-Ray post-DVD technology.

Operations in the USA began in 1965 with a New York office, and European operations began in 1970 with an office in Frankfurt, West Germany.

The company operates a museum dedicated to the technologies with which it is involved, at its Hirasawa plant in Japan.

Since June 1998, Hajime Sawabe has been president, having been nominated by his predecessor, Hiroshi Sato, who retired.

Financial

External links

• Global website (in English, with links to other language editions)
• The TDK history museum

References and notes

Electronics companies | Electronics companies of Japan | Companies without an unabbreviated name | 1935 establishments

TDK | TDK | TDK | TDK