Hitachi

Japanese electrical and electronic company, one of the world's largest and most diversified manufacturers of industrial machinery. It has offices in 39 countries and over 100 factories, which manufacture 40,000 different products, ranging from electrical home appliances and stereo and high-tech telecommunications equipment (for which it is best known) to heavy industrial machinery, such as hydroelectric turbines and nuclear generators. As one of Japan's largest private employers, it had net sales in 1990-91 of over £31 billion.