SHOWA SHINKU CO., LTD.
6384・Standard Market・Machinery
Business
Showa Shinku Co., Ltd., founded in 1958, is a specialized vacuum equipment manufacturer that sells thin-film formation equipment such as vacuum deposition equipment and sputtering equipment to crystal device manufacturers, optical device manufacturers, and electronic component manufacturers. Products are broadly categorized into three groups—"Crystal Device Equipment," "Optical Equipment," and "Electronic Component Equipment & Other Equipment"—all of which are fundamentally custom-made to meet customer needs. In addition to its domestic manufacturing base (Sagamihara City, Kanagawa Prefecture), the company has two manufacturing and sales subsidiaries in China. It belongs to the ULVAC Group, procuring components such as vacuum pumps from ULVAC while operating as an independent business. The company was selected as one of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's "100 Global Niche Top Companies" in 2020.
Business Model
In the core Vacuum Technology Application Equipment Business (net sales of ¥7,046 million in FY2026 (ending March 2026)), the company manufactures custom-made equipment to order according to customer specifications and sells it at high added value. In the Service Business (¥2,278 million for the same period), stable earnings are secured through Component & Accessory Sales, Retrofit/Modification Work, and repairs for previously delivered equipment. As the cumulative number of delivered units increases, demand for services expands accordingly, creating a structure in which the two businesses function in a mutually complementary manner.
Company Strengths
Since completing its first vacuum deposition equipment for crystal oscillators in 1960, the company has accumulated over 60 years of technology specialized in the crystal and optical fields. It has received the Kanagawa Industrial Technology Development Award multiple times, and in 2020 was selected by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry as one of the "Global Niche Top 100 Companies." This technical accumulation forms an entry barrier that is difficult for competitors to imitate in a short period.
ULVAC, Inc. (listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime Market) is an affiliated company holding 21.32% of the company's issued shares, and the company is permitted to use the "ULVAC GROUP" trademark. While the company can stably procure key components such as vacuum pumps and vacuum gauges from ULVAC, competition is limited in thin-film formation equipment for electronic components because the applications and customer base differ, allowing the company to establish a differentiated position within the group.
The company owns various types of experimental equipment in-house and has established a contract experimentation system to handle sample fabrication requests and joint development from customers. In FY2026 (ending March 2026), it strengthened this system by adding etching equipment and sputtering film formation equipment in the electronic components field. This initiative has led to order acquisitions from new customers, including those in the aerospace-related field, with a track record of Electronic Component Equipment & Other Equipment orders of ¥2,215 million, up 40.5% year on year.
ENVALITH's Perspective
Performance Trend
Net sales bottomed at ¥7,464 million in FY2024 (ending March 2024), then rose for two consecutive periods to ¥8,480 million in FY2025 (ending March 2025) (up 13.6% year on year) and ¥9,324 million in FY2026 (ending March 2026) (up 10.0% year on year). Operating profit recovered sharply from ¥196 million in FY2024 (ending March 2024) to ¥1,113 million in FY2026 (ending March 2026), with the operating margin improving to 11.9% (from 9.3% in the prior period). Sales of Crystal Device Equipment served as the growth driver, surging 113.4% year on year to ¥3,150 million. On the other hand, orders received in FY2026 (ending March 2026) fell sharply to ¥6,063 million (down 41.0% year on year), affected by external factors such as prolonged inventory adjustment in the industrial equipment market and device manufacturers' cautious stance toward capital expenditure. For FY2027 (ending March 2027), the company forecasts a decline in both sales and profit, with net sales of ¥8,800 million and operating profit of ¥803 million, entering a plateau phase in growth. Operating cash flow improved substantially to ¥2,053 million, and the cash balance at period-end built up to ¥6,038 million.
Growth Strategy
Diversifying the order base through enhanced product proposals for growth sectors such as AI, 5G, and aerospace, and development of new customers
Aiming to recover orders for Crystal Device Equipment against the backdrop of increasing demand for crystal devices for data center servers driven by the expansion of generative AI demand. The order forecast for Crystal Device Equipment for FY2027 (ending March 2027) is ¥2,640 million (up 85.9% from the FY2026 (ending March 2026) result of ¥1,420 million).
Having succeeded in securing orders from new customers, including those related to aerospace, the company is proactively engaging in joint development and sample production requests with customers to increase the number of inquiries. The order forecast for Electronic Component Equipment & Other Equipment for FY2027 (ending March 2027) is ¥3,900 million (up 76.1% from the FY2026 (ending March 2026) result of ¥2,215 million).
In FY2026 (ending March 2026), orders remained sluggish at ¥269 million due to the absence of major project orders, but a substantial recovery to ¥2,260 million is forecast for FY2027 (ending March 2027). The company will continue proactive sales activities, leveraging the external environment of recovering smartphone shipment volumes and the expanding XR market.
Promoting the identification of latent needs through regular monitoring of customers' operational status, along with proposals for improving customer productivity. The Service Business sales forecast for FY2027 (ending March 2027) is ¥2,458 million (up 7.9% from the FY2026 (ending March 2026) result of ¥2,278 million), indicating a gradual recovery.
Last updated: July 19, 2026