---

DENSO Celebrates 50th Anniversary

23 December 1999

DENSO Celebrates 50th Anniversary

    DETROIT, Dec. 23 -- As the century ends, DENSO Corporation,
with North American headquarters in Southfield, Mich., is also celebrating the
50th year of its founding by setting a future goal of positioning DENSO as one
of the three clear leaders of the global autoparts industry, according to
President and CEO Hiromu Okabe.
    Currently, DENSO ranks as the fourth largest automotive components
supplier in the world.
    In 1995, DENSO was the world sales leader in 11 product categories.  By
1998, the company increased that number to 14 categories.
    Okabe said, "We are aiming for leadership in 25 product categories by the
year 2005.  To achieve that leadership, we are strengthening our global supply
capabilities, and reshaping our cost structure while continuing to develop
innovative products."
    Originally the electrical parts operation of Toyota Motor Corporation,
DENSO was spun off as an independent company in 1949.  The official date of
establishment is Dec. 16, 1949.
    Since then, DENSO, supplier of advanced technology, systems and
components, has grown into a global corporation employing more than 72,000
people at about 140 companies in 25 countries, including Japan, and one
region, with annual sales of $14.5 billion.

    Its diversified product portfolio, based on fiscal 1998 sales, includes:

    Car air conditioners and heaters (31.9 percent);
    Electrical automotive and electronic control products (27.8 percent);
    Fuel management systems (16.7 percent);
    Radiators (6.2 percent);
    Instrument clusters (5.3 percent);
    Filters (2.8 percent);
    Other automotive products (2.3 percent);
    Telecommunications such as wireless telephones (4.3 percent), and
    New business products such as factory automation systems (2.7 percent).

    In North America, DENSO employs more than 11,000 people.  Its 1998 North
American consolidated sales totaled $3.1 billion with worldwide sales at $14.5
billion.