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Alps Alpine

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Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.
Native name
アルプスアルパイン株式会社
Arupusu Arupain kabushiki-gaisha
FormerlyKataoka Electric Co., Ltd. (1946-1964)
Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (1964-2019)
Company typePublic (K.K)
TYO: 6770
Nikkei 225 Component
IndustryElectronics
Founded1 November 1948; 76 years ago (1948-11-01) (as Kataoka Electric Co., Ltd.)
Headquarters1-7 Yukigaya-otsuka-machi,
Ota, Tokyo
,
Japan
Key people
Toshihiro Kuriyama, (President)
Masataka Kataoka, (Chairman)
Products
RevenueUS$5.806 billion (FY 2012) (¥ 546.423 billion) (FY 2012)
US$75.18 million (FY 2012) (¥ -7.075 billion) (FY 2012)
Number of employees
36,199 (as of the end of March 2013)
SubsidiariesAlpine Electronics
Cirque Corporation
Alps Logistics
Alps Green Devices
Websitewww.alpsalpine.com/j/
Footnotes / references
[1][2]
A Motorized potentiometer from Alps Electric used in a music center
Logo used from 1964 to 2020

Alps Alpine Co., Ltd (Japanese: アルプスアルパイン株式会社, Hepburn: Arupusu Arupain kabushiki-gaisha), previously known as Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (Japanese: アルプス電気株式会社, Hepburn: Arupusu Denki Kabushiki-gaisha) is a Japanese multinational corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, producing electronic devices, including switches, potentiometers, sensors, encoders and touchpads.[3]

The company was established in 1948 as Kataoka Electric Co., Ltd. and changed its name to Alps Electric Co., Ltd. in December 1964.[4] Since June 22, 2012, the President has been Toshihiro Kuriyama and Chairman is Masataka Kataoka.[1] Alps is also well known for the Alpine brand of car audio.

The Alps Electric Group has R&D, production and sales bases located in Japan and around the globe—in the Americas, Europe, Southeast Asia, Korea, and Greater China.[5] Since its founding, Alps Electric has supplied around 40,000 types of electronic components to over 2,000 manufacturers of home appliances, mobile devices, automobiles and industrial equipment worldwide.[6]

In 2014, Alps Group comprised 84 subsidiary companies, 25 through Alps Electric, 32 through Alpine Electronics and 27 through Alps Logistics.[7]

The company is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and a constituent of the Nikkei 225 stock index.[8]

After integrating its business with its previous subsidiary Alpine Electronics in January 2019, the company was renamed Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.[9] Alpine had originally been established as a joint venture with Motorola in 1967, but had been a wholly owned subsidiary of Alps since 1978.

Business divisions

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Alps Automotive division focuses on provision of custom products and modules, including control panels and steering modules, for specific vehicle models, and components compatible with any vehicle.[10]

Alps Home and Mobile divisions focuses on provision of switches, potentiometers, sensors, and other components through to multi-input devices like touch panels and GlidePoint™ to home, mobile and PC markets. Alps Electric focuses on human-machine and machine-machine interfaces for home appliances, mobile devices and PCs.[10]

Alps Industry, Healthcare & Energy divisions focuses on provision of a wide variety of products, including sensors, power inductors, switches and communication modules, to industry, healthcare and energy markets.[10]

Alps touchpad hardware is developed and manufactured by the Cirque Corporation, which they acquired in 2003;[11] however, the parent company continues to write their own drivers. Their drivers are Windows certified. They are mostly found in Sony, Toshiba and Dell notebooks, as well as the OLPC XO-1. They are considered a major Japanese supplier to Apple[12] and also manufacture keyboards for Apple computers, including the original Macintosh and the first iMac.

Business integration and name change

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On January 1, 2019, Alps Electric Co., Ltd. and Alpine Electronics, Inc. integrated the two businesses together under the new name of Alps Alpine Co., Ltd..[13] Alpine Electronics, Inc. became a wholly owned subsidiary of Alps in 1978 when Alps acquired all shares of Alps Motorola Inc. [14]

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  • Alps Amber switch in an Apple IIc keyboard
    Alps Amber switch in an Apple IIc keyboard
  • Alps SKBM Grey switch
    Alps SKBM Grey switch
  • Alps SKBM Grey switch backside with old logo
    Alps SKBM Grey switch backside with old logo
  • Alps SKBM Grey – upper shell with simplified mould numbering and more rounded, more heavily embossed Alps logo
    Alps SKBM Grey – upper shell with simplified mould numbering and more rounded, more heavily embossed Alps logo
  • Alps SKCM Orange switch, completely disassembled
    Alps SKCM Orange switch, completely disassembled

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Corporate Facts". Archived from the original on December 23, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  2. ^ "Annual Report 2013" (PDF). Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  3. ^ "Corporate Profile". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on April 17, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  4. ^ Gomez, Joey (2015-07-09). "Patridge: Why Alps Electric is a key corporate partner for RGV". Rio Grande Guardian. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
  5. ^ "Alps Global Network". Archived from the original on April 14, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  6. ^ "Alps Electric Bolsters Infotainment Systems with aptX® Integration". Businesswire. April 9, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  7. ^ "Alps Group". Archived from the original on April 14, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  8. ^ "Components:Nikkei Stock Average". Nikkei Inc. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  9. ^ "【会社概要】 経営統合について | アルプスアルパイン". www.alpsalpine.com. Retrieved 2020-02-05.
  10. ^ a b c "Company Business Areas". Archived from the original on April 19, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  11. ^ "Cirque Corporation Website: Alps Electric Co". Archived from the original on June 27, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  12. ^ Kelly, Tim; Okasaka, Kentaro; Swift, Rocky (2025-03-06). "Sony and Suntory build U.S. stockpiles as Japan faces Trump tariff threat". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
  13. ^ "[Our Company] About the Business Integration – Alps Alpine". www.alpsalpine.com. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  14. ^ "Form 20-F". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
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