NMB

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NMB Technologies Corporation
Type Subsidiary
Industry Sales support, engineering, QC
Founded 1968
Headquarters Novi, Michigan, USA
Key people Richard LaPlace (President)
David Hamilton (Vice President)
Melody Williams (Marketing Director)
Parent MinebeaMitsumi
FCC grantee code AQ6
Website nmbtc.com

NMB Technologies is a Michigan-based technology company. It is most famous among the keyboard community for its Hi-Tek Series 725 keyboards (through its Hi-Tek acquisition) and IBM/Lenovo ThinkPad keyboards.

History

Nippon Miniature Bearing Corporation was established in Los Angeles, California in September 1968 as a subsidiary of Nippon Miniature Bearing Co., Ltd. The parent company Nippon Miniature Bearing changed its name in October 1981, after a series of acquisitions, to Minebea Co., Ltd. In January 2017 with the acquisition of Mitsumi they became the current MinebeaMitsumi.[1]

NMB Corporation of the US merged with NMB's later US subsidiary NMB Technologies, Inc. in July 1999 to form the present-day NMB Technologies Corporation.

Hi-Tek Corporation acquisition

NMB entered the keyboard market in 1983 when Nippon Miniature Bearing Co., Ltd. (now Minebea) purchased Hi-Tek Corporation and placed it under NMB.[2] At the time Hi-Tek just developed the Hi-Tek Series 725, better known as "Space Invaders";[3] these keyboards had just come to market at the point of the acquisition.[4] The earliest NMB Hi-Tek First Generation keyboards do not bear NMB branding on the PCB. The membrane system used with NMB dome with slider is also thought to have been under development at Hi-Tek prior to the acquisition.[4]

Early Series 725 keyboards cite only Hi-Tek Corporation, of Garden Grove California on the rear label.[5][6] Later keyboards cite NMB Technologies Inc Hi Tek Keyboard Division, of Chatsworth, CA.[7] Keyboard PCB inscriptions suggest a separation between NMB and Hi-Tek Corporation by writing "NMB Hi-Tek Corporation" with the "NMB" logo enclosed in a separate box.[8] A 1988 newspaper article refers to NMB Hi-Tek as part of NMB Technologies, with the parent company located in Chatsworth, CA.[9]

NMB keyboards were produced in Thailand. Minebea established a manufacturing division, NMB Thai, Ltd. in Thailand in 1980.[1] Minebea's corporate history does not make any reference to the acquisition of Hi-Tek Corporation, nor do NMB themselves.

Leaving the keyboard market

On the 29th November 2013, Minebea stated their intention to liquidate their subsidiary Shanghai Shun Ding Technologies Ltd. with a planned date of 31st of March 2015; Shun Ding was their keyboard manufacturing subsidiary, and Minebea took the decision to exit the keyboard market.[10] The name of Shun Ding (as "Shunding") can be seen in the Korea Certification details on the rear label of the Dell RT7D50.

Products

Keyboards

Switches

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 MinebeaMitsumi — History Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  2. US Department of Commerce — Foreign Direct Investment in the United States 1983 Dated September 1984. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  3. Deskthority — Hi-Tek Corp. History by D'Milo Hallerberg. Posted 2015-04-11. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Telephone conversation with D'Milo Hallerberg, 2015-08-03
  5. kaineko2 — NMB AQ659ZAT (MAXAR logo) (Japanese) Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  6. ちゃたりたいね — RT-101+ AQ659ZRT-101A ピーチ軸 (Japanese) (Wayback Machine) Dated 2012-09-18. Archived 2016-03-02.
  7. Deskthority — NMB RT101+ Posted 2012-10-15. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  8. Geekhack — Weird keyboard is here. Posted 2008-11-18. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  9. Los Angeles Times (archives) — Electronics Giant Forms Subsidiary in Chatsworth Dated 1988-03-08. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  10. Minebea — Announcement regarding Liquidation of Subsidiary (Wayback Machine) Dated 2013-11-29. Archived 2016-05-31.

External links