Ōsaka Iron Works
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| Public KK | |
| Traded as | : |
| Industry | Heavy Industry |
| Founded | 1881 |
| Founder | Edward H. Hunter |
| Headquarters | Osaka, Japan |
| Website | http://www.hitachizosen.co.jp/ |
Hitachi Shipbuilding Corporation (日立造船株式会社 Hitachi Zōsen Kabushiki-kaisha?) is a major Japanese industrial and engineering corporation. It produces waste treatment plants, industrial plants, precision machinery, industrial machinery, steel mill process equipment, steel structures, construction machinery, tunneling machines, and power plants. Despite its name, Hitachi Shipbuilding no longer builds ships, having spun this business off in 2002.
Hitachi Zōsen's origins go back to April 1, 1881, when British entrepreneur Edward H. Hunter established Osaka Iron Works (大阪鉄工所 Ōsaka Tekkosho?) in Osaka to develop the Japanese steel-making and shipbuilding industry. Hunter had come to Japan in 1865 and had established the Onohama Shipyard in Kobe before moving to Osaka and establishing a new shipyard at the junction of the Nakatsu and Aki rivers which could construct ships of under 1000 tons displacement. His first vessel, the Hatsumaru was launched in 1882. Hunter intended to build a company which was completely self-sufficient, and also produced engines, boilers, bridges and irrigation equipment.
An additional facility was established downstream on the Aji river at Sakurajima in 1900 to handle construction of vessels larger than 1000 tons. The first oil tanker built in Japan, the 531-ton Tora maru was launched in 1908, for Standard Oil Company.
Another shipyard was constructed at Innoshima, Hiroshima in 1911. Hunter changed his name to "Hanta" in 1915 after marrying a Japanese woman, and after transforming the company into a , turned it over to his son, Ryutarō Hanta in 1915. The company continued to prosper, adding the Bingō Dockyard in 1919, Harada Shipbuilding Works in 1920, Hikojima Dockyard in 1924. Many of the iron bridges in Osaka and surrounding areas were designed and built by Osaka Iron Works. The company also began to expand into equipment for hydroelectric power plants in 1924.
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