The outside of Nikon’s Sendai Factory. Japanese publication AERAdot has reported Nikon is ending domestic camera production in Japan. According to the report, Nikon will be moving camera production from its Sendai Nikon factory in the T Nikon’s Sendai factory covers nearly 27,000 square meters and has been running near-continuously since opening in 1971.
The first camera to be produced in the facility was the Nikon EM, released in 1979. Since then, the Sendai factory has been the centerpiece for Nikon’s camera production and has provided technical assistance to overseas production. The first Nikon camera produced in Japan was a line of twenty experimental cameras, which were made in the Nippon Kokagu factory in 1946.
A Nikon Z7 chassis on the production line in the Sendai Factory.
As of 2018, the last time we visited the Sendai factory, it was being operated by 352 employees who oversaw CNC machining, hands-on construction and quality assurance to ensure every camera and lens that left the factory was thoroughly checked and tested.
In a statement made to AERAdot, Nikon General Manager of Video Division, Hirotaka Ikegami, says the factory will continue to be used as a start-up factory for new business endeavors, with an emphasis on production technology and mobility.
As for camera production in Thailand, Hirotaka Ikegami says the Thai plant (machine-translated) ‘will continue to produce high-performance, high-precision parts required for [camera] products. ’
A sensor and VR unit destined for the Z7, combined on a custom jig in the Sendai Factory.
Production of Nikon’s Z6 and Z7 mirrorless cameras reportedly started its move to the Thailand factory back in October and Nikon’s D6 DSLR is also reported to be moved entirely to the Thai factory by the end of 2021.
We have contacted Nikon for confirmation of this report and further comments on the matter. We will update this article accordingly when we receive a response.
You can look through more images of Nikon’s Sendai factory from our tour review we published back in September 2018.
Editor’s Note: (Monday, December 21, 2020 at 8:40 AM): A previous version of this article stated production was moving from Japan after 41 years. This was specifically in reference to Nikon’s Sendai factory, which produced its first SLR in 1979. We have corrected the article to clarify that Nikon has been producing cameras domestically for more than 70 years.
. dpreview.com2020-12-22 08:31
