NGK

This article is about the Japanese company. For the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa, see Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk.
NGK spark plugs: standard on the left, iridium on the right

NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd. (日本特殊陶業株式会社 Nippon Tokushu Tōgyō Kabushiki-gaisha) is a public company established in 1936 and based in Nagoya, Japan. NGK manufactures and sells spark plugs and related products for internal combustion engines, along with ceramics and applicable products.

As of March 2007, the company employed 10,407 people,[1] and operated a network of 7 liaison offices, 12 sales offices, 13 production sites and 2 technical centers worldwide.[2][2] NGK Spark Plugs was founded as a spin-off of the spark plug division of NGK Insulators.[3] Originally, NGK supplied most of its products to Japanese automakers. Today the company is the largest OEM sparkplug maker in the world.

NGK stands for Nippon (Japan) Gaishi (insulator) Kaisha (company).

Micro combined heat and power

NGK is a manufacturer of SOFC fuel cell micro combined heat and power units in the range 700W - 1 Kw.[4]

US operations

Established in 1966 - NGK Spark Plugs (USA), Inc. was founded as a subsidiary of NGK Spark Plug Co, Ltd., of Japan. Its corporate headquarters was first located in California and then moved to its current location in Wixom, Michigan. The company produces spark plugs in Irvine, California, and produces both spark plugs and oxygen sensors in Sissonville, West Virginia.

In early October 2008 NGK launched a social networking site called "Art of Fast",[5] which was later redirected to a Facebook page of the same name.

European operations

NGK established its first European subsidiary, NGK Spark Plugs (U.K.) Ltd. in 1975. Four years later NGK Spark Plug Europe GmbH in Germany was the next European subsidiary, in Ratingen, Germany.[6] The first technology center outside Japan started operation in Ratingen, Germany in 1990.[6] In 1991 NGK opened NGK Spark Plug Industries Europe S.A.S., in Orléans, France - its first European production facility.[6]

Since 2000 NGK Spark Plug Europe in Ratingen operates its own logistics center. It has a plant with 6,000 m2 (65,000 sq ft) of surface area and produces 25 million spark plugs as well as glowplugs for diesel motors.

Motorsports involvement

NGK Spark Plugs are also used by a variety of Formula One teams including McLaren, Ferrari, Sauber, Force India and Red Bull Racing. NGK Spark Plugs was exclusive spark plug supplier for IndyCar Series since 2007 until 2011. But in 2012, NGK only supplied for Honda-powered IndyCar Series teams.

References

  1. ↑ NGK SPARK PLUG CO., LTD. | Profile of the Company
  2. 1 2 NGK SPARK PLUG CO., LTD. | Overseas Network
  3. ↑ "Until 1969 Since Establishment". NGK Insulators. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
  4. ↑ Development of SOFC for residential use
  5. ↑ "NGK Spark Plugs Unveils 'Art of Fast' Social Networking Site". Aftermarket News. 2008-10-09.
  6. 1 2 3 NGK: Geschichte

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, March 17, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.