In FY2024, we began our Mid-Long Term Management Plan, MLMAP2028, and in May 2024, HORIBA’s market capitalization approached 700 billion yen, our highest ever. I would like to express my gratitude to all stakeholders involved for recognizing HORIBA’s business growth, which is contributing to the expansion of the semiconductor industry. We also face challenges that demand urgent action, especially in managing production for our hydrogen-related business in Energy and Environment Field which we are actively investing in. Under such circumstances, we are reorganizing our systems and refocusing our strategy. MLMAP2028 will guide us in addressing pressing social issues across our Three Focus Fields of Energy & Environment, Bio & Healthcare, and Materials & Semiconductor. This is bringing large changes to our global business and market. We are experiencing HORIBA’s true strength as the technologies and services we have cultivated thus far bloom in new fields.
Since declaring “HORIBA Group is One Company.” in 2004, we have achieved significant growth across five business segments. With MLMAP2028, we took the big step of reorganizing these five segments into Three Fields. Amidst shifts in the social and market environment surrounding HORIBA, this major transformation has strengthened internal collaboration across our organization. It has also enabled us to build new relationships with customers that we previously had limited contact with, while enhancing cross-functional communication within HORIBA. This has allowed activities that span departments and affiliates to flourish on a global scale. I truly feel that this comes from building a robust system that unifies members across business segments for a single market. At the same time, we recognize how important it is for us to be mindful as we
continuously change and grow as an organization. Today, HORIBA is intensifying its efforts to leverage advanced technologies to meet global demands and promote the development of new businesses. We aim to accelerate these efforts and actively contribute to solving social issues by aligning our solution with evolving customer needs.
Looking ahead, with our three core business fields as pillars, I am confident in our ability to achieve even greater global expansion and to scale up sustainably through new industries and innovative approaches to customer engagement. To realize this, our top priority must be to communicate and foster our values and spirit in local markets through HORIBA Group companies, while promoting our business with respect for and understanding of the diverse cultures and values of each country.To build an authentic “HONMAMON” relationship of trust with our customers, it is essential to first share the HORIBA philosophy. This philosophy is based on our corporate motto, “Joy and Fun,” and the spirit of pursuing “HONMAMON”. Additionally, it is crucial to have an attitude of mutual respect for each other’s cultures and perspectives. Guided by these values, we are dedicated to proactively fostering interaction among our talent, employing diverse professionals with global perspectives, and cultivating HORIBARIANs who can excel on the world stage. Our goal is to leverage the synergy between HORIBA culture and the technologies and opportunities held by new regions, industries, and customers, to create new value all around the world. To turn this vision into reality, HORIBA will unite as one and work to demonstrate the full scope of our capabilities.
The key to expanding our business lies in applying the technologies we have refined and perfected over the years in other fields, and strive to pioneer new markets for HORIBA from multiple perspectives. Since HORIBA’s founding, we have aligned with societal trends and seized opportunities to drive breakthrough innovations. The emission measurement systems that drove our automotive business were originally developed as breath analyzers and were subsequently repurposed. We have now developed them to the point where they have become the de facto industry standard. Similarly, we developed mass flow controllers to direct the flow of gases in semiconductor production equipment by integrating the best of HORIBA technologies at the time. This innovation allowed us to enter a new market in response to the growth of the semiconductor industry. Although we faced numerous challenges in the early days of our semiconductor business, it has grown to become HORIBA’s leading business, and currently enjoys a high profit ratio. In this way, HORIBA’s technologies have the power to create new businesses and open up new markets. Moving forward, as we aim to further expand our market presence, we will continue to refine our technologies in each field and develop new solutions that, like our emission measurement systems and mass flow controllers, will become new pillars of our business.
HORIBA is actively investing in creating emerging markets for Hydrogen and Bio-pharmaceuticals, as well as utilizing spectroscopic technologies for the inspection of semiconductors, with the expectation that these will become the next core fields for our business growth. The global markets that we are competing in are characterized by cutting-edge technological development and fierce competition. Particularly, in the field of semiconductors, HORIBA has maintained the top global share, even as Japanese firms have struggled. This success stems from our long-term commitment to continual investment in research and development, and identification of necessary technologies. As we have leaned into solving customer problems and discovered new solutions, HORIBA has developed multiple products as the de facto standard in their industries. We are confident that in our Three Focus Fields as well, we can also build unshakeable relationships of trust and create new business opportunities by integrating multiple core technologies to offer unique solutions to the customers who drive the market.
The qualities that HORIBA needs to succeed in the global market are an accurate judgment, perseverance, and speed. We aim to develop new technologies that will help us in the future by facing issues head-on, swiftly deciding how to employ HORIBA’s “HONMAMON” capabilities, and following through on the path that we believe is right.
At HORIBA, we consider every employees within our group to be part of family and valuable assets. We proudly call them HORIBARIANs. Of course, our personnel development not only seeks to hone the individual strengths of each member but also aims to empower diverse talents to collaborate and innovate, thereby achieving substantial results and creating new value.
There are textbooks that teach driving skills, but there is no single definitive textbook for management. It is easy to imagine that a driver who follows the textbook for exemplary driving will not be able to lead a strong Formula 1 team capable of competing for the fastest times. The same idea can be applied to HORIBARIANs talent development. Consider the experienced and skilled driver who can make calm yet rapid decisions, the staff members fulfilling various roles, and the experts who develop the racecar and its powertrain. Each of these individuals is a professional in their respective field and plays their crucial role on the racetrack. It is essential for each of them to demonstrate their abilities and engage in the highest level of teamwork to win in this highly competitive world.
Our “HONMAMON” Team HORIBA is built by each and every HORIBARIAN putting their unique abilities to work in their field of expertise and in pursuit of our Corporate Motto of “Joy and Fun”. Building this “HONMAMON” Team HORIBA is our important mission for the next 10 years, and we will blaze the path to becoming number one at the forefront of world markets.
In 2025, HORIBA is celebrating the 80th year since our founding. Our company was founded in Kyoto, and as a venture firm, has produced numerous innovative solutions based on analysis technology.
Looking back on our long history, I feel once more that the spirit of HORIBA is for each member to find fulfillment in doing their work for “Joy and Fun”, and to pursue “HONMAMON” technologies. This is the foundation of our growth.
HORIBA grows steadily by creating new businesses together with various customers worldwide. However, due to the rapid expansion of the semiconductor industry, expectations from the stock market are evolving. While HORIBA’s long cherished philosophy remains unchanged, I believe that a thorough understanding of our stakeholders’ expectations, along with fostering mutual understanding, will be crucial in enhancing our competitiveness in the market.
At the same time, rapid globalization is constantly reshaping the environment in which HORIBA operates. To create an environment in which HORIBARIANs around the world can work with enthusiasm, we must respect diverse values and cultures, and be flexible enough to welcome new ideas and challenges.
We strive to embrace multiple perspectives and act swiftly when issues arise, while maintaining the determination needed to steadily implement our responses.
With a steadfast commitment to sincerely addressing challenges, HORIBA aims to continue advancing into the future.
Looking ahead, our strength lies in our people. Diverse HORIBARIANs will continue to take ownership of tackling challenges and lead HORIBA toward greater growth in global markets. Therefore, I hope that all stakeholders will continue to give us your understanding and support.
May 2025
Atsushi Horiba
Chairman & Group CEO