The denomination Yanmar may not sound recognized to American consumers, on the other hand the firm's engines come in many confidential products. Though Yanmar prominently established its diesel engines in the sailing vessel markets of the 1980s, gobs generators, yard machines and assistance tractors sold in the U.S. - including those sold by John Deere and McCormick - handle Japanese-made Yanmar diesel engines. This comes as no surprise to those familiar with the company's history, which encompasses many "firsts" in the field of diesel technology.
Beginnings
The Yanmar company began its life in 1912 in Osaka, Japan, as Yamaoka Hatsudoki Kosakusho. By 1921, the company adopted the name Yanmar. Yanmar began its long relationship with diesel engines when it developed the world's first practical small diesel engine in 1933. The company mass produced these engines in the late 1930s and early 1940s at plants in Amagasaki and Nagahama. In 1947, Yanmar entered the market that would become its bread and butter, focusing on small-sized diesel engines for fishing boats.
1950s and 1960s
To reflect its focus on diesel engines, Yanmar once again changed its name to the Yanmar Diesel Engine Co.
Modern Era
By 1992, Yanmar had produced 10 million units and expanded into the production of gas engine heat pumps and environmental business development. Though the company began researching and developing micro-gas-turbine generators and mirror-cycle gas cogeneration systems in the 2000s, its focus remains on diesel engines. Ltd. - and introduced the Tractor YM13A, which featured a diesel engine. By the end of the 1960s, Yanmar began experimenting with rotary engines, launched a new line of compact construction equipment and opened new service bases in Singapore and Thailand and a subsidiary in Malaysia.1970s and 1980s
The 1970s saw Yanmar expand its operations into Indonesia and the Netherlands. On the company's home turf, the Amagasaki plant was the first Japanese factory to receive mass production facility certification from the Japan Maritime Association in 1977. In 1981, Yanmar opened a United States subsidiary. The 1980s held something of a diesel renaissance for the company, which introduced the world's smallest air-cooled diesel engine in 1983 - the Yanmar Engine LA, which featured a first-of-its-kind miniaturized fuel injection system - and the world's first diesel outboard engine in 1987.
Ltd. in 1952. The 1950s saw great success for the company's diesel engines, which won the German Inventors' Association's Diesel Gold Medal in 1955. In 1957, Yanmar expanded to Brazil with its first subsidiary. By 1961, the company opened an agricultural division - Yanmar Agricultural Equipment Co.
In 2002, the company simplified its name to Yanmar Co. Ltd. As of 2011, the company's offerings include marine and industrial engines, marine engines, transmissions and agricultural and construction machines. Around the world, Yanmar's diesel engines still power boats, generators and farm tractors.
