More than half a century has passed since Shin-Etsu Chemical became the first Japanese firm to venture into the silicone business in 1953. The following photos depict milestones in the history of Shin-Etsu Silicone.

A borosilicate glass vial,
one of our first products.

View of completed
Silicone Technology Center at Isobe Plant.
July 1960

Newly completed lab facilities
at the Silicone-Electronics Materials
Research Center.
April 1991

Production begins at Freeport Plant,
Shin-Etsu Silicones of America.
February 2003

Production begins
at Shin-Etsu Silicones (Thailand).
April 2004

Silicone-Electronics Materials Research Center

Newly completed lab facilities
at the Silicone-Electronics Materials
Research Center.
February 2016

We experimented with direct sales
of POLON-T beginning in Dec. 1954.
In those days, sandwich boards were
a common form of advertising.
(Shot in city of Takasaki,
Gunma Prefecture)

Shin-Etsu Silicone's product family
 

Established a complete production system
from raw materials to finished products
by the acquisition of Simcoa Operations,
which is a manufacturer of silicon metal
in Australia.
February 1996

Production begins at Zhejiang
Shin-Etsu High-Tech Chemical in China.
May 2003

Production begins
at Shin-Etsu Silicone (Nantong).
January 2013

Newly completed lab facilities
at the Shin-Etsu Molding Technical Laboratory.
September 2017