MUTOH’s History
MUTOH’s History
“Supporting MONOZUKURI (Excellence in Manufacturing)”
MUTOH was founded in December 1942 by Yoshiro Mutoh, who founded the Mutoh Scale Engraving Research Center (in Mishuku, Setagaya ward), which is close to the current headquarters in Ikejiri, Setagaya ward.
Before and during the war, the company manufactured measuring equipment, such as disk-type slide rules for aerial navigation, calipers, and rotary protractors.
These products reflected the high technical capabilities required to engrave scales accurately and marked the beginning of the company’s spirit of supporting MONOZUKURI (Excellence in Manufacturing).
10 years later in March 1952, MUTOH Memori Chokoku (MUTOH Scale Engraving) LTD was founded.
While maintaining the company spirit of foundation, we created products such as the Drafter, a drafting and design equipment that was registered in the Mechanical Engineering Heritage, and Pen Plotter, a machine that prints product drawings.
MUTOH has continued to uphold the spirit by supporting many people involved in various aspects of MONOZUKURI, such as creators and designers with our LFP products, and the manufacturing and construction industries with our design and measuring equipments and 3DP products.
In order to continue to build on MUTOH's history, each and every one of us will continue to earn the trust of our customers and provide them with valuable proposals. We will continue to be a company that "enhances the creation of people and companies" by inheriting the founding spirit (DNA) of "supporting MONOZUKURI" through each and every one of our employees to build MUTOH's history.
History
1940's
- December 1942
- Establishes the MUTOH Scale Engraving Research Center.
- Manufactures measuring equipment, such as disk-type slide rules for aerial navigation, calipers, and rotary protractors.
1950's
- March 1952
- Establishes MUTOH Memori Chokoku (MUTOH Scale Engraving) LTD.
- April 1959
- Changes the company name to MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- April 1953
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Releases Drafter MH-1, Japan's first arm-type (belt/pulley type) design and drafting machine.
1960's
- April 1967
- Establishes CONSUL & MUTOH, LTD. (current Mutoh America, Inc.), a joint corporation in the U.S.
- June 1967
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Establishes the Chigasaki Factory in Chigasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture (changes the name to Shonan Office in June 1993)
- December 1968
- Establishes an affiliated company, Fujitake Hamamatsu Co., Ltd., in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture.
- January 1969
- Establishes an affiliated company, Fujitake Kanazawa Co., Ltd., in Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture.
- May 1961
- Releases Micro Plotter, a super-precision graphical input and drafting machine.
- May 1962
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Releases Numericon (model of current plotters), an automatic drafting machine.
- June 1967
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Releases Drafter, Japan's first rail-type design and drafting machine.
1970's
- April 1971
- Establishes Mutoh Precision Equipment Co., Ltd., in Switzerland.
- July 1973
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Obtains and establishes the Suwa Factory from Yashica Corporation (current Kyocera Corporation) in Shimosuwa, Nagano Prefecture.
- February 1975
- Transfers the entire manufacturing division for Drafter, a design and drafting machine, to the Suwa Factory.
- September 1977
- Establishes Orange Cat Co., Ltd. (Sales of books, and sports and recreational items).
- September 1977
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Establishes Mutoh Enterprises Ltd. (sales of sports accessories)
- July 1971
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Releases Drafter, the world's first dial-type angle reader design and drafting machine.
- February 1976
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Releases Drafter, the world's first digital-type angle reader design and drafting machine.
- October 1979
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Releases Digicolor, an optical measuring equipment.
1980's
- September 1982
- Establishes a Technical Center at the Chigasaki Factory (official entry into the CAD business)
- June 1983
- Joins the Tokyo Stock Exchange Second Section.
- March 1984
- Establishes Technova Inc. in Sapporo City, Hokkaido (software development).
- March 1985
- Joins the Tokyo Stock Exchange First Section.
- July 1985
- Establishes Mutoh America, Inc. in Chicago, U.S. (Closes the joint corporation CONSUL & MUTOH, LTD.)
- October 1985
- Establishes Menic Co., Ltd. (current Mutoh Engineering Inc) in Samukawa, Kanagawa Prefecture (maintenance of CAD and peripherals).
- March 1987
- Establishes MUTOH EUROPE nv (current Mutoh Deutschland GmbH) in Germany. (Closes Mutoh Precision Equipment Co., Ltd., in Switzerland.)
- November 1980
- Releases Paraliner UP, a parallel ruler.
- October 1981
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Releases 2D CAD EasyDraf2 (sales tie-up with Bruning in the U.S.)
- May 1983
- Releases the ES Series Electrostatic Plotters.
- November 1983
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Releases the ET Series Lettering Machines.
- June 1984
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Releases iP-100, a flatbed-type personal pen plotter.
- April 1985
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Releases F-600 and F-900 pen plotters.
- October 1985
- Releases M-Draf16, a 2D CAD.
- May 1988
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Releases AP-1518, a dedicated CAD plotter for apparel.
1990's
- January 1990
- Acquires 85% of the shares of KURTA Company (an input device manufacturer in the U.S.)
- May 1990
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Completes the new office building for the headquarters in Setagaya City, Tokyo (current MUTOH Ikejiri Building).
- September 1990
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Establishes MUTOH BELGIUM nv in Ostend, Belgium.
- May 1991
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Opens the Yokohama Technology Center in Ofuna, Kanagawa Prefecture.
- November 1991
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Completes the new office building for Mutoh America, Inc. in Chicago, U.S.
- May 1992
- Completes the Belgium Factory for MUTOH BELGIUM nv.
- July 1992
- Establishes Mutoh Techno Service Co., Ltd. (CAD maintenance and training services)
- July 1992
- Establishes Suwa Mutoh Industries Ltd. in Shimosuwa, Nagano Prefecture (manufacturing of drafters and pen plotters).
- June 1993
- Completes the Shonan Office (old Chigasaki Factory).
- August 1994
- Closes the Yokohama Technology Center (merges with the Shonan Office).
- January 1995
- Acquires 100% shares of Carter Company.
- April 1995
- Carter Company in the U.S. acquires and merges with Mutoh America, Inc. (Changes the company name to Mutoh America, Inc.) Relocates from Chicago to Phoenix, Arizona.
- January 1996
- Establishes the Mutoh Digital Design Factory at the headquarters (showroom for graphic design input/output services).
- June 1996
- Establishes Digital Matrix Inc as an affiliated company under the intrapreneurship framework in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture (Internet business).
- March 1997
- Sells the Shonan Office, and transfers the manufacturing and development divisions to Suwa Factory.
- July 1999
- Establishes business and capital tie-up with Tokyo Computer Service Co., Ltd.
- September 1999
- Sells Hokuriku Mutoh Co., Ltd. (old Fujitake Kanazawa Co., Ltd.). Liquidates Fujitake Hamamatsu Co., Ltd.
- October 1999
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Obtains ISO 9001 certification.
- October 1990
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Releases the PH Series Dedicated Plotters for Engineering and Measurements.
- January 1991
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Releases XP-600 Series Pen Plotters.
- May 1991
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Releases RJ-501 Large Color Inkjet Plotter.
- October 1991
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Releases XP-500 and XP-700 Series Pen Plotters.
- November 1992
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Releases AC-500, a cutting plotter for apparel.
- June 1994
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Releases XP-900 and XP-800 Series Pencil Plotters.
- April 1995
- Releases FALCON RJ-600 Series Monochrome Inkjet Plotters for CAD.
- December 1995
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Releases RJ-1300 Wide Format Color Inkjet Printer for the indoor/outdoor advertising industry.
- August 1997
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Releases FALCON Color RJ-800 Series Full Color Inkjet Plotters for CAD.
- November 1997
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Releases AC-800, a cutting plotter for apparel.
- February 1998
- Releases FALCON GRAPHICS RJ-4000 Series Wide Format Inkjet Printers.
- June 1999
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Releases LAMILESS, a wide format inkjet printer for outdoor use.
2000's
- April 2000
- Merges Suwa Mutoh Industries Ltd. with MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- July 2000
- Merges Mutoh Enterprises Ltd. and Mutoh Orange Cat Co., Ltd. (Changes the company name to Mutoh Enterprises Ltd)
- October 2000
- Transfers the sales of Drafter, other products from the design machine business, and Digicolor, an optical measuring equipment, to Mutoh Engineering Inc. (Production transferred in April 2001)
- June 2001
- Establishes Mutoh IT Ware Co., Ltd. (software development outsourcing)
- February 2003
- Obtains ISO 9001:2000 certificate (registration no.: JVAC-QM0045)
- December 2003
- Changes the company name of Mutoh IT Ware Co., Ltd. to Mutoh Mechatronics Co. Ltd.
- November 2004
- Obtains ISO 14001 certificate (registration no.: JVAC-EM0086)
- April 2006
- Merges Mutoh Techno Service Co., Ltd. and Technova Inc., and changes the company name to Mutoh Technova Co., Ltd.
- January 2007
- Changes the company name of Mutoh Technova Co., Ltd. to MUTOH ITEX Co., Ltd.
- April 2007
- Relocates the headquarters (from Ikejiri-Ohashi to Nishi-Gotanda).
- April 2007
- Changes the company name to MUTOH HOLDINGS CO., LTD. And becomes a holding company (company restructuring). Establishes MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD. through a de-merger.
- August 2007
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Changes the company name to MUTOH HOLDINGS CO., LTD. And becomes a holding company (company restructuring). Establishes MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD. through a de-merger.
- September 2007
- Opens the Chicago branch for Mutoh America, Inc.
- January 2008
- Merges MUTOH ITEX Co., Ltd. and Mutoh Mechatronics Co. Ltd.(Changes the company name to MUTOH ITEX Co., Ltd.)
- September 2008
- Acquires SE Group S.A., which has sales offices in three Scandinavian and Baltic countries.
- January 2009
- Obtains the FSC CoC certification, which verifies the production and sales of products that take forest sustainability into consideration.
- October 2009
- Establishes MUTOH HONG KONG LIMITED.
- Establishes MUTOH SINGAPORE PTE. LTD.
- Establishes MUTOH AUSTRALIA PTY. LTD.
- October 2000
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Releases DrafStation RJ-301 Series Inkjet Plotters for CAD.
- March 2002
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Releases RJ-8000 Series Wide Format Inkjet Printers.
- December 2005
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Releases DrafStation RJ-901C Inkjet Plotter for CAD.
- May 2006
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Releases ValueJet 1204 Wide Format Inkjet Printer (compatible with eco-solvent ink).
- August 2006
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Releases ValueJet 1604/2606 Wide Format Inkjet Printer (compatible with eco-solvent ink).
- October 2006
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Releases M-Draf Suite 2007 for 2D and 3D CAD.
- August 2007
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Releases ValueJet 1608 Wide Format Inkjet Printer (compatible with the industry’s first plant-based ink, MUBIOINK).
2010's
- February 2010
- Mutoh America, Inc. opens Boston and Los Angeles branches.
- March 2010
- Changes the company name of MUTOH EUROPE nv to MUTOH BELGIUM nv.
- July 2010
- Transfers the maintenance business of Mutoh Engineering Inc to MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- July 2010
- Transfers the CAD business of MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD. to Mutoh Engineering Inc.
- December 2010
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Establishes business and capital tie-up with Sekonic Holdings Corporation (Tokyo Stock Exchange Second Section).
- March 2011
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Starts introducing shareholder incentives.
- April 2011
- Mutoh America, Inc. opens an Atlanta branch.
- June 2011
- Changes the company name of SE Group S.A. to MUTOH North EUROPE S.A.
- December 2011
- Establishes an integrated distribution base in Ofuna, Kanagawa Prefecture (MUTOH Yokohama Distribution Center).
- December 2011
- Relocates the headquarters (from Nishi-Gotanda to Ikejiri-Ohashi).
- January 2012
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Opens the MUTOH Designing gallery as a showroom at the headquarters.
- June 2014
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Establishes Mutoh Figure World Co., Ltd. (subsidiary for 3D figure printing services)
- October 2014
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Relocates the Kansai Office and opens a showroom in Kansai and Shikoku.
- June 2015
- MUTOH HOLDINGS CO., LTD. becomes a company with Audit and Supervisory Committee.
- September 2015
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Relocates the Chubu Office and opens a showroom.
- August 2016
- Restructures overseas sales subsidiaries under MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- October 2016
- Transfers and consolidates the businesses of Mutoh Engineering Inc into MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- December 2016
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Relocates the Kyushu Office and opens a showroom.
- October 2017
- Changes the share unit (from 1,000 to 100) and consolidates its shares (ratio of 10:1).
- January 2018
- Changes the company name of MUTOH BELGIUM nv to MUTOH EUROPE nv.
- March 2018
- Separates and transfers all businesses of Mutoh Engineering Inc (real estate leasing business) to MUTOH HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
- April 2018
- MUTOH EUROPE nv opens a UAE Dubai branch.
- October 2010
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Releases MP Ink, a multipurpose ink (50% plant-based ingredients that can be printed on various materials).
- May 2011
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Releases VJ-1624J and VJ-1324J Wide Format Inkjet Printers.
- October 2011
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Releases VJ-1638 Wide Format Inkjet Printer.
- September 2012
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Releases ValueCut VC-600/1300/1800 Cutting Plotters.
- December 2012
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Releases VJ-1617HJ Inkjet Printer (uses multipurpose white ink).
- December 2012
- Releases M-Draf for Education Works for 2D and 3D CAD.
- November 2013
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Releases VJ-1638X and VJ-1638WX Wide Format Inkjet Printers.
- January 2014
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Releases Value 3D Magix MF-1000, a 3D desktop printer (the first 3D printer developed in-house).
- April 2014
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Releases Value 3D Magix MF-2000, a 3D desktop printer.
- April 2014
- Releases VC-A1000 Pattern Cutting Plotter.
- April 2014
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Releases VJ-426UF and VJ-1626UH Wide Format Inkjet Printers that are compatible with UV ink.
- June 2015
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Releases Value 3D Magix MF-2200, a 3D desktop printer.
- March 2016
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Releases PG-1000, a chart drafting machine for profile grinder.
- April 2016
- Releases VJ-1638UH UV-LED Hybrid Inkjet Printer.
- October 2016
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Releases MF-2500EP 3D Printer that is compatible with engineering plastic.
- March 2018
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Releases VJ-628MP Inkjet Printer that is compatible with multipurpose MP31 ink.
- March 2018
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Releases PerformanceJet 2508UF (PJ-2508UF), a large UV-LED flatbed inkjet.
- January 2019
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Releases MF-800 and MF-2500EPⅡ, which are 3D desktop printers.
- July 2019
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Releases XpertJet 1682SR and XpertJet 1641SR, which are new design platform wide format inkjet printers.
- September 2019
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Releases ML-100 and ML-80, which are high-definition stereolithography 3D printers.
2020's
- January 2020
- Joins the defined contribution plan system.
- April 2020
- Dissolves and liquidates Mutoh Figure World Co., Ltd. (subsidiary for 3D figure printing services)
- May 2020
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Provides 3D-printed face shields for medical use free of charge (for Covid-19). Publishes data for printing face shields.
- June 2020
- Abolishes the system of paying retirement bonuses to directors and introduces restricted stock units.
- June 2021
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Installs energy supply that does not produce CO2 called Shinshu Green Denki in the Suwa Office of MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- July 2021
- Relocates the Kansai Office of MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- October 2021
- Relocates the Chubu Office of MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- April 2022
- Selects “standard market” as the new market category.
- April 2022
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Acquisition of AMP SPEED Co.,Ltd. shares (to make into a wholly owned subsidiary)
- January 2020
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Releases XpertJet 461UF and XpertJet 661UF, which are new small UV-LED flatbed printers.
- September 2020
- Obtains Japan Color Certification for VJ-628MP and VJ-1627MH proofing systems.
- October 2020
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Releases VerteLith™, a genuine Mutoh RIP software.
- September 2021
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Releases XpertJet 1341SR Pro Eco-Solvent Printer.
- January 2022
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Releases XpertJet 1641SR Pro Eco-Solvent Printer.
- February 2022
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VerteLith™, a genuine Mutoh RIP software, wins Europe's EDP Award 2021.
- March 2022
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Releases XpertJet 1341WR Pro, a 1.3m wide Water-based printer.
- August 2022
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Releases VC2-A100, a pattern cutting plotter for the apparel industry.
- November 2022
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Releases XpertJet 1682SR Pro, a 1.6 m wide Eco-Solvent printer.
- April 2023
- Merges AMP SPEED Co., Ltd. with MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- July 2023
- Termination of business and capital tie-up with Sekonic Holdings Corporation
- October 2024
- Acquisition of NIPPO Co., Ltd. shares (establishing it as a wholly owned subsidiary)
- December 2024
- Termination of business and capital tie-up with TCS HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
- April 2025
- Merges NIPPO Co., Ltd. with MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD.
- April 2025
- Relocates the Chubu Office of MUTOH INDUSTRIES LTD. (Kita-ku, Nagoya)
- May 2025
- Launches applied optics business under the AMP SPEED brand.
- January 2026
- MUTOH HOLDINGS, LTD. makes MUTOH ITEX CO., LTD. a wholly owned subsidiary.
- March 2023
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Releases MF-2200S, MF-900, and ML-130 3D printers.
- August 2023
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Releases XpertJet 1462UF, a flatbed UV-LED printer.
- September 2024
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Releases XpertJet 1682UR, a Roll to Roll UV-LED printer.
- November 2024
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Releases XpertJet C641SR Pro, MUTOH’s first Printer/Cutter machine.
- January 2025
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Releases HydrAton 1642, a human- and environmentally-friendly printer.
- May 2025
- Develops UV-LED irradiators for Shikoku Kakoki Co., Ltd.'s food and beverage filling machines.
- August 2025
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Releases MFS-6100, a FFF 3D printer.
- October 2025
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Releases XpertJet 1641SR ProⅡ, a 1.6 m wide Eco-Solvent printer.
- November 2025
- Commercializes SUV-AM1, a high-power UV-LED irradiation device.