100 years in Hiroshima.
Together with the growth of the city and the evolution of things.
| February 1900 | At the suggestion of Soichiro Asano, the first president of Asano Cement, the company "Cement Barrel", a structural materials manufacturer under the private management of Hidetaro Kirihara, was founded in Tsurumi-cho in Hiroshima City as a contracted factory of Asano Cement, Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Around 1902-1903 | The company moves to Honkawajiri, Funairi Kawaguchi-cho, Hiroshima City (its current location). |
| November 1918 | Kirihara Seihaku Co., Ltd. was established (100,000 yen capital) with Hidetaro Kirihara as President and the company head office located at 78 Tera-machi in Hiroshima City. The company took over some of the above-mentioned business operations. |
| December 1923 | Capital is increased to 160,000 yen. |
| May 1928 | On the instructions of company president Soichiro Asano, an assembly plant for barrels to be exported was constructed using German-made barrel-making machines in Hikoshimadeshimatsu in Shimonoseki City. Assembly of semi-processed goods from Hiroshima at this factory and supplying of finished barrels to the Asano Cement Moji Factory start. |
| 1932 | Production of barrels for mineral oil and industrial chemicals starts. |
| September 1933 | Manufacture of paper bags for cement starts. Supplying of these to Toyokoatsu (Omuta and Hikoshima) and Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. (Kurosaki) starts. |
| November 1934 | Company name is changed to Kirihara Container Factory Co., Ltd. |
| Fall 1943 | A massive fire occurs at the factory. |
| August 1945 | The factory is destroyed by the A-bomb. |
| October 1945 | Founding president Hidetaro Kirihara passes away and Shinjiro Kirihara is named as the new president (second generation). |
| July 1949 | Manufacture of paper bags for fertilizer starts. Two large-size bag-making machines are installed. |
| April 1956 | Production of PVC bags (for fertilizer) starts. |
| June 1957 | Production of cardboard cases and polyethylene bags for industrial chemicals starts. |
| May 1958 | Supplying of special cardboard cases for use in packing jackhammers to Toyo Kogyo (currently Mazda) starts. |
| January 1960 | Corrugating Machine No. 1 is newly installed. (Machine No. 1 operates until around 1965.) |
| Around 1962 | Production of heavy-duty polyethylene bags starts. |
| April 1963 | Corrugating Machine No. 2 starts operation. |
| 1967 | Hideo Kirihara (managing director at that time) finds out about the existence of C-flute cardboard sheets while on an inspection trip of small and medium companies in the US. |
| June 1972 | Production and sales of large one-way bags start. |
| August 1973 | Additional flexo folder gluers and palletizers are installed. |
| Around 1974 | C-flute single facers are introduced for the first time in corrugating machines. |
| November 1975 | Shinjiro Kirihara becomes the chairperson and Hideo Kirihara is named as president (third generation). |
| September 1977 | Cardboard finishing factory and product warehouse are completed. |
| September 1978 | L-LD polyethylene-dedicated extruder is completed. |
| September 1982 | Additional large die-cut unit machines are installed and production of die-cut cardboard cases for large automobile parts starts. |
| August 1984 | No-finger take up devices (C-flute) are newly installed to corrugating machines. |
| January 1992 | Jumbo die-cutter is newly installed. |
| November 1994 | Capital is increased to 10 million yen. |
| April 1996 | Moji Factory is closed. |
| February 1997 | Compressing equipment for used cardboard is installed to promote the recycling of used cardboard. |
| February 2000 | The company celebrates its 100th anniversary and holds a memorial ceremony and celebration to mark the occasion. |
| May 2000 | Flexo die-cutters (FD) are upgraded. |
| June 2000 | New building for cardboard office is constructed. |
| January 2001 | CAD-controlled sample cutter is newly installed. |
| January 2004 | Jumbo printer-slotter die-cutter is newly installed. |
| June 2004 | New building for head office is constructed. |
| August 2005 | Boilers are upgraded. (Fuel is changed from fuel oil A to natural gas to reduce the environmental load.) |
| January 2008 | Flexo folder gluers (FFG) are upgraded. |
| August 2010 | Completed automated gluing machines are installed. |
| November 2010 | Hideo Kirihara becomes the chairperson and Shinichiro Kirihara is named as president (fourth generation). |
| August 2011 | Single facers of corrugating machines are upgraded. |
| January 2012 | Slitter-scorers of corrugating machines are upgraded. |
| June 2013 | Two-story steel-frame factory and cafeteria building is newly constructed. |
| July 2013 | Two-piece gluers are newly installed. |
| September 2013 | A section of the brick wall is removed due to the dismantlement of brick walls registered with Hiroshima City as buildings damaged by the A-bomb. The removed section is preserved as a monument of the bombing. |
| September 2013 | Plate punching machine is newly installed. |
| January 2015 | Jumbo printer-slotter die-cutter is newly installed. |
