Seiko

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This article is about the watch company. For other uses, see Seiko (disambiguation).

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Seiko Holdings Corporation
セイコーホールディングス株式会社
Public
Traded as TYO: 8050
Industry Retail-Jewelry, Precision Instruments and Machinery
Founded Chūō, Tokyo, Japan (1881)
(incorporated in 1917)
Headquarters Minato, Tokyo, Japan
(Officially registered in Chūō, Tokyo, Japan)
Key people
 Shinji Hattori, President[1]
Products Watches, clocks, printers, semiconductors, mechatronics devices, machine tools, optical glass materials, jewellery, eyeglasses, etc.
Revenue Green Arrow Up.svg ¥213.73 billion (FY2005, consolidated)
Number of employees
 6,699 (March 31, 2006, consolidated)
Parent Seiko Group
Website Seiko Holdings Corporation
A Gaetano Faillace 1945 image of Ginza 4chome and the Hattori Tokei-ten building

Seiko Holdings Corporation (セイコーホールディングス株式会社 Seikō Hōrudingusu Kabushiki-gaisha?) (TYO: 8050), more commonly known simply as Seiko (/ˈseɪkoʊ/ SAY-koh), is a Japanese company that manufactures and sells watches, clocks, electronic devices, semiconductors and optical products.

History and ongoing developments

The company was founded in 1881, when Kintarō Hattori opened a watch and jewelry shop called "K. Hattori" (服部時計店 Hattori Tokeiten?) in the Ginza area of Tokyo, Japan. Eleven years later, in 1892, he began to produce clocks under the name Seikosha (精工舎 Seikōsha?), meaning roughly "House of Exquisite Workmanship". According to Seiko's official company history, titled "A Journey In Time: The Remarkable Story of Seiko" (2003), Seiko is a Japanese word meaning "exquisite" or "success" ("exquisite" is usually written 精巧 from Chinese jīngqiǎo, while the meaning "success" is usually written 成功 from Chinese chénggōng)

The first watches produced under the Seiko brand appeared in 1924. In 1969, Seiko introduced the Astron, the world's first production quartz watch; when it was introduced, it cost the same as a medium-sized car. Seiko later went on to introduce the first quartz chronograph. In 1985, Orient and Seiko established a joint factory.

The company was incorporated (K. Hattori & Co., Ltd.) in 1917 and was renamed Hattori Seiko Co., Ltd. in 1983 and Seiko Corporation in 1990. After reconstructing and creating its operating subsidiaries (such as Seiko Watch Corporation and Seiko Clock Inc.), it became a holding company in 2001 and was renamed Seiko Holdings Corporation as of July 1, 2007.

Seiko is perhaps best known for its wristwatches, all of which were at one time produced entirely in-house. This includes not only major items such as microgears, motors, hands, crystal oscillators, batteries, sensors, LCDs but also minor items such as the oils used in lubricating the watches and the luminous compounds used on the hands and the dials. Currently watch movements are made in Shizukuishi, Iwate (SII Morioka Seiko Instruments), Ninohe, Iwate (SII Ninohe Tokei Kogyo), Shiojiri, Nagano (Seiko Epson) and their subsidiaries in China, Malaysia and Singapore. The fully integrated in-house production system is still practised for luxury watches in Japan.

Models

A 'Seiko Automatic-Chronograph' Cal. 6139, the „Pogue Seiko“, the first automatic chronograph in space[2][3]
Seiko Grand Quartz 9940-8010 (Twin Quartz), 1979.
Seiko SKX007 automatic diver's wristwatch.
A 'Grand Seiko' Automatic Hi-Beat 5646-7000.
A King Seiko Automatic Special Hi-Beat 5246-6000 Chronometer Officially Certified.
Seiko Flyback-Automatic-Chronograph Cal. 7016, the so-called „Seiko-Monaco“ (1976).

Seiko produces both quartz and mechanical watches of varying prices. The least expensive are around ¥4,000 (US$45) (sold under the brand Alba); the most expensive (Credor JURI GBBX998) costs ¥50,000,000 (US$554,000).[4]

'Seiko Quartz Automatic Generating System' (A.G.S. = early Kinetic), Perpetuum Nobile (produced in 1989), Cal. 7M45, No. 246 of 700.
'Seiko Marinemaster Professional' SBDX001 Diver's 300 m mechanical watch for mixed-gas diving.

Seiko mechanical watches are highly prized by collectors: from the Seiko "5" series (the 5 reflects five key features of the watch, namely automatic winding, day and date display in a single window—rare at the time, water resistant, recessed crown at the 4 o’clock position and durable case and bracelet—i.e. steel),[5] which is the most common, to the highly prized luxury "Credor," "King Seiko," and "Grand Seiko" lines. The A359 5040 Sports 100 Chronograph, released in 1981, is an extremely rare chronograph, with only a few examples seen worldwide. An employee of Seiko Australia, in response to request for information about the watch stated, "Sorry, all the details of that model have been lost in the mists of time. We have no images on file."

Today, Seiko Kinetic watches account for a large proportion of sales that combine the self-energizing attributes of an automatic watch with quartz accuracy. The watch is entirely powered by its movement in everyday wear.

Spring Drive

The internationally available Seiko Spring Drive models were officially launched at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris on September 14, 2005, and went on sale the following day. The movement provides 72 hours of power compared to 40 hours for mechanical and 3 years for battery powered quartz watches. This new movement uses a "Tri-synchro Regulator". The power from the spring is used to turn the gear train and a generator. The generator powers a circuit that includes a low consumption (~25 nanowatts) quartz crystal oscillator. The oscillator is a part of a continuous feedback circuit, which holds the speed of the generator close to eight revolutions per second. According to Seiko records the resulting movement delivers accuracy commensurate with other quartz timed watch movements. The Spring Drive movement was also used as the basis for the first ever watch designed to be worn by an astronaut during a space walk, the aptly named Seiko Spring Drive Spacewalk.[6]

Seiko in The United States of America

Seiko Pyramid Talk, the world's first quartz talking clock, from 1984.

Seiko Corporation of America is responsible for distribution of Seiko watches and clocks, as well as Pulsar brand watches, in the United States. The models available in the United States are normally a smaller subset of the full line produced in Japan. Seiko Corporation of America has its headquarters (and Coserv repair center) in Mahwah, New Jersey. In the United States, Seiko watches are sold primarily by fine jewelers and department stores as well as 19 company stores located in various cities.

Seiko's 2004 marketing campaign emphasized that a watch, as opposed to other traits (such as what car they drive, for example), tells the most about a person.

Media appearance

Various Seiko watches were worn by James Bond in four films starring Roger Moore from 1977 to 1985. Moore wore a Seiko in the 1979 film North Sea Hijack. Also, a Seiko watch was worn by Sean Connery in the 1983 Bond film Never Say Never Again.

A Seiko 6105-8110/8119 dive watch was worn by Martin Sheen in the 1979 film Apocalypse Now.[7] A Seiko H558 is worn by Arnold Schwarzenegger in various films including Commando and Predator. A Seiko Chronograph is worn by Jason Bourne in the book The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum. Aki Ross wears a Seiko wristband computer in the animated film Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, and in Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes as well as Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Big Boss can be seen wearing the Seiko G757 5020. A Seiko 7A28-7000, basically a modified Seiko Chronograph is worn by Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) in the 1986 film Aliens – various other characters can also be seen wearing various Seiko watches devised by Italian car designer Giorgetto Giugiaro.

In the 2013 oceanic survival film All Is Lost, Robert Redford's character can be seen wearing the Seiko SKX009/SKX175 dive watch, a variation of the SKX007.[8]

NASA Flight Director Gene Kranz wore a Seiko 5 model 6119-8460 during the height of his career. It was on his wrist when the Apollo 11 crew touched down on the lunar surface, when the Apollo 13 explosion occurred, and throughout the remainder of his career at NASA. The watch was recently sold and is still in working order.

On Friday, January 10, on the eve of the Australian Tennis Open in Melbourne, Seiko launched its new partnership with world no.1 professional tennis player Novak Djokovic, with Shinji Hattori, President of Seiko Watch Corporation, announcing the agreement and presenting to Novak Djokovic a Seiko Astron GPS Solar watch as a symbol of this new global partnership.

Official timekeeper

Seiko is also the official timekeeper of many major sporting events:

Olympic Games

FIFA World Cup

IAAF World Championships

Seiko is also named as the official timekeeper of the Gran Turismo racing game series, published by Sony. It's also the sponsor of FC Barcelona.

Seiko used to sponsor Honda F1 (previously known as BAR [British American Racing] Honda). The Seiko name cannot currently be found on the Honda racing cars because Seiko Japan refused to be advertised whilst the names of tobacco companies are still appearing on the cars. They can, however, be found on the lollipop used in the pitlane.

Historic Seiko watches

  • Seiko Gyro Marvel Automatic Diashock 17 Jewels, 1960
  • Seiko Champion Diashock 19 Jewels, 1960
  • Seiko King Diashock 25 Jewels, 2nd model, 1967
  • Seiko Skyliner 6220-7990, 1968
  • Seiko Sportsmatic Calendar 820 water30proof Seahorse
  • Seiko Bell-Matic 17 Jewels
  • Seiko Bell-Matic 27 Jewels
  • Seiko Quartz 2002 3803-7070, 1973
  • Seiko Chronograph Automatic 6139-7080 („Hexagon“), 1974
  • Seiko Grand Quartz 4843-5010, 1975
  • Seiko King Quartz 0853-8005, 1976
  • Seiko Automatic Chronograph 6138-0040 "Bullhead", 1976
  • Seiko Chronograph Automatic 6138-8020 („Panda“), 1977
  • Seiko LCD Solar Alarm Chronograph A156-5000, 1978 (Seiko's 1st solar-powered watch)
  • Seiko H558-5000 Quartz Diver "Arnie", 1983. Worn by Arnold Schwarzenegger in five feature films.
  • Seiko Quartz Automatic Generating System 7M22-6A50, 1988
  • Seiko Quartz A.G.S. 7M22-8A20, 1988
  • Seiko Automatic Generating System 5M22-8A80, 1993
  • Seiko AGS SCUBA Diver 200m 5M23-6A60, 1993
  • Seiko Kinetic 5M42-0A70, 1995
  • Seiko Sportura Dual Time World Chronograph H023-00A0, 2003
  • Seiko 5 Automatic 21 Jewels

Operating companies (products and services)

  • Seiko Watch Corporation — watches: Seiko (Grand Seiko, Dolce & Exceline, Brightz, Lukia, Prospex, iu, Ruse, Spirit, Alpinist, Ignition, Premier, Velatura, Coutura, Arctura, Sportura, Criteria, Rivoli, Vivace, etc.), Credor, Galante, Wired, Wired XYZ, Pulsar, Lorus. Seiko Watch is a planning and marketing company. Seiko Holdings delegates a large portion of the manufacturing in its watch business to Seiko Epson and Seiko Instruments.
  • Seiko Nextage Co., Ltd. — watches: Alba and licensed brand watches
  • Seiko Clock Inc. — clocks, kitchen timers: Seiko, Seiko Westminster-Whittington, Decor Seiko, Seiko Emblem, Seiko Premium, Seiko Melodies in Motion Musical Clocks, Pyxis
  • Seiko Service Center Co., Ltd. — repair and after service for watches
  • Seiko Time Systems Inc. — system clocks (outside, building wall, monument, floral clocks), sports timing equipment
  • Seiko Precision Inc. — printers, time servers, electronic devices, micromechatronics devices, camera shutters, etc.
  • Seiko NPC Corporation — semiconductors
  • Seiko Solutions Inc. — system solutions
  • Seiko Optical Products Co., Ltd. — optical lenses & frames
  • Seiko Instruments Inc. — electronic components, precision parts, watches, analysis and measurement instruments, machine tools, printers, network items, information systems and services, IC dictionaries, etc.
  • Wako Co., Ltd. — upscale specialty retails
  • Cronos Inc. — retail sales of watches, jewelry items and eyeglasses
  • Seiko Business Services Inc. — human resources
  • Ohara Inc. (Seiko owns 32.2% TYO: 5218) — specialty optical glass (glass materials for lenses and prisms)

Seiko Group

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Main article: Seiko Group

Seiko Holdings is one of the three core companies of the Seiko Group. The Seiko Group consists of Seiko Holdings Corporation (Seiko), Seiko Instruments Inc. (SII), and Seiko Epson Corporation (Epson). Although they have some common shareholders, including the key members of the Hattori family (posterity of Kintarō Hattori), the three companies in the Seiko Group are not affiliated. They are managed and operated completely independently. Seiko Watch, an operating subsidiary of Seiko Holdings, markets Seiko watches, while SII and Epson manufacture their movements.

On January 26, 2009, Seiko Holdings and Seiko Instruments announced that the two companies will be merged on October 1, 2009 through a share swap. Seiko Instruments became a wholly owned subsidiary of Seiko Holdings as of October 1, 2009.

Other

Seiko also produces other electronic devices. Notably, during the 1980s, the company produced a range of digital synthesizers, such as the DS-250, for use in electronic music. Today, the music division, a part of Seiko Life Sports, produces metronomes and tuning devices.

References and footnotes

  1. ↑ Notification of change of President Seiko Holdings Corporation, April 30, 2010
  2. ↑ William Pogue's Seiko 6139 Watch Flown on Board the Skylab 4 Mission, from his Personal Collection... The First Automatic Chronograph to be Worn in Space.
  3. ↑ The “Colonel Pogue” Seiko 6139, dreamchrono.com.
  4. ↑ Credor JURI GBBX998 (Japanese)
  5. ↑ http://www.seikowatches.com/5sports/seiko5story/why5.html
  6. ↑ [1]
  7. ↑ http://scubawatch.org/seiko6105.html
  8. ↑ http://www.watch-id.com/sighting/automatic/seiko-skx009-robert-redford-all-is-lost.html

External links

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