Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
About
Pick up any smartphone and you are holding several thousand Murata components: the company makes more than half of the world's multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) — the tiny beige rectangles that store and release electrical energy on every circuit board — plus the filters, inductors, and sensors that make wireless communication work. Founded in 1944 in Kyoto, Murata turned a family ceramics business into the quiet giant of electronic components. The scale of its output is staggering: Murata produces over a trillion components a year. Its MLCCs are so central to electronics that the 2018 global MLCC shortage — triggered in part by Murata's capacity reallocation — briefly froze production lines at automakers and phone makers worldwide, an episode that showed how dependent the industry is on one supplier. Beyond capacitors, Murata leads in RF filters for 5G, Li-ion batteries for wearables, and MEMS sensors. Headquartered in Kyoto's Nagaoakakyo district with about 73,000 employees and annual revenue near ¥1.7 trillion, Murata competes with Samsung Electro-Mechanics and TDK, but its combination of materials science and manufacturing precision keeps it the default choice for flagship phones and automotive electronics. For procurement teams, the lesson of 2018 stands: Murata capacity planning is supply-chain strategy.
Also known as: Murata
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Murata Manufacturing make?+
Murata produces electronic components, most notably multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) — the tiny components that store and release electrical energy on circuit boards. It also makes RF filters for 5G, batteries for wearables, and MEMS sensors.
Where is Murata based?+
Murata is headquartered in Nagaoakakyo, Kyoto, Japan, and was founded there in 1944.
How big is Murata?+
Murata produces over a trillion components a year, employs about 73,000 people, and has annual revenue near ¥1.7 trillion.
Who are Murata's competitors?+
Murata's closest competitors are Samsung Electro-Mechanics and TDK, but its materials science and manufacturing precision keep it the default choice for flagship phones and automotive electronics.
