TMT Kamitsu Co., Ltd.
Japanese specialist manufacturer of take-up winders for carbon fiber, high-performance fiber, textile, composite and tape materials.
Last updated September 29, 2026
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Overview
TMT Kamitsu Co., Ltd. (TMT神津株式会社) is a Japanese machinery manufacturer based in Sanda, Hyogo Prefecture, that specialises in the design and production of winders — the take-up machines that coil filament, fiber, film and tape into packages at the end of a production line. The company's own positioning is unusually narrow and deep: it describes itself as a specialist maker of winders for carbon fiber, high-performance fiber and textile, and its corporate message is built around turning "cannot be wound" into "can be wound." Its product families cover carbon fiber (from precursor through carbonisation lines), high-performance or "super" fibers such as aramid, ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene and glass fiber, general textile fibers such as polyester, nylon and rayon, composite materials including tow prepreg, and flat materials such as film, slit tape, artificial turf and non-woven fabric. The company traces its origins to 1932, when its predecessor Yodogawa Kogyo-sho was established and began research and development on drum-type winders. It was relocated to Kamitsu Village in Kawabe District, Hyogo Prefecture, in 1936 and renamed Kamitsu Seisakusho; that 1936 date is given as the company's official founding. It became a joint-stock company in 1944 and later, in 2018, changed its name to TMT Kamitsu Co., Ltd. Over the decades it accumulated a series of firsts and technical milestones, including a patent for a yarn-guiding traverse drum for high-speed rotary traverse (RT) winders in 1940, Japan's first high-speed RT winder in 1949, an ET winder in 1958 that was the forerunner of its carbon-fiber take-up winders, and a carbon-fiber take-up winder delivered in 1979 in response to new-material development. Today TMT Kamitsu is best known for its carbon-fiber winders, which it says are used by major material manufacturers around the world and which it claims hold a very high global share in certain machine types. Its customers are fiber and material producers rather than consumers, and much of its business is made-to-order: the company states that many of its products are custom-built to a customer's material, line layout and specification, and that it can run winding tests on a customer's own yarn at its Sanda plant. It also supports overseas delivery, CE marking and global after-sales service, and operates a Shanghai trading subsidiary. The company is privately held, with stated capital of 50 million yen and around 80 employees, and is led by representative Wen Ruiming.
History
TMT Kamitsu's history is a long, continuous story of one machine type: the winder. Its predecessor, Yodogawa Kogyo-sho, was established in 1932 and began research and development on drum-type winders. In 1936 the operation moved to a factory in Kamitsu Village, Kawabe District, Hyogo Prefecture, and was renamed Kamitsu Seisakusho — the date the company now gives as its founding. In 1940 it obtained a patent for a yarn-guiding traverse drum (rotor) for high-speed rotary traverse (RT) winders, an early sign of the technical specialisation that would define the firm. The company became a joint-stock company, Kamitsu Seisakusho Co., Ltd., in 1944. In 1949 it completed Japan's first high-speed RT winder and began mass production. In 1958 it completed the ET winder, described as the forerunner of its carbon-fiber take-up winder, and in 1959 it completed a production model of the SP precision winder. In 1962 it signed a technical tie-up with the Indian company Textool for the manufacture of RT winders and DRT doubling machines, an early international technology partnership. As new materials emerged, the company adapted. In 1979 it completed and delivered a carbon-fiber take-up winder in response to new-material development. In 1984 it began selling the SSP precision winder, and in 1987 it built and started operating the Sanda Plant in Sanda, Hyogo Prefecture, which remains its main manufacturing base. In 2001 it developed and launched the SSP-MV model-change version of the SSP precision winder, and by 2004 SSP-MV orders were expanding in Turkey. The 2000s brought the carbon-fiber boom. In 2006, as demand for PAN-based carbon fiber expanded in the aircraft industry, the company's EKTL winder (for acrylic fiber) and EKTW-C winder (for carbon fiber) were said to hold a 90% global share. In 2009 it established the Osaka Office and, at the same time, founded the subsidiary Kamitsu Trading Co., Ltd., which invested to establish Kamitsu (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd. In 2014 it merged with Kamitsu Trading Co., Ltd. In 2018 it changed its corporate name to TMT Kamitsu Co., Ltd. In the 2020s the company continues to develop new machines and to exhibit at international composites trade fairs, including JEC WORLD and China Composites Expo, and has announced a new ELK winder. Its stated philosophy is to combine more than 90 years of accumulated technology with new technology, working alongside material manufacturers to solve problems — a relationship its president describes as a "three-legged race" with customers.
- 2018
Corporate name changed to TMT Kamitsu Co., Ltd.
- 2014
Merged with Kamitsu Trading Co., Ltd.
- 2009
Osaka Office established; Kamitsu Trading Co., Ltd. founded; Kamitsu (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd. established.
- 2006
EKTL (acrylic) and EKTW-C (carbon fiber) winders said to hold 90% global share amid aircraft PAN carbon-fiber demand.
- 2004
SSP-MV orders expanded in Turkey.
- 2001
Developed and launched SSP-MV model-change precision winder.
- 1987
Sanda Plant in Sanda, Hyogo, built and started operation.
- 1984
Began selling SSP precision winder.
- 1979
Completed and delivered carbon-fiber take-up winder for new materials.
- 1962
Signed technical tie-up with India's Textool for RT winders and DRT doubling machines.
Products and positioning
Specialist, made-to-order winder manufacturer for carbon fiber and high-performance fiber, positioned as a world-leading supplier to material producers.
Carbon fiber winders
Mainstay products covering every stage from precursor to carbonisation lines, designed to wind delicate carbon fiber without damage.
High-performance fiber winders
For aramid, UHMWPE and glass fiber, with tension control matched to high-strength, low-elongation properties.
Textile fiber winders
For polyester, nylon and rayon, combining high-speed production with high-quality package formation.
Composite winders
Specialised for tacky composites such as tow prepreg, with release-paper feed control and proprietary guide mechanisms.
Tape winders
For film, slit tape, artificial turf and non-woven flat yarns, preventing twist and folding while enabling parallel or cross winding.
SSP precision winder series
Precision winder line introduced in 1984, with the SSP-MV model change launched in 2001.
ELK winder
New winder whose order start date was announced in 2026.
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