Okuma Corporation is a Japanese machine tool manufacturer founded by Eiichi Okuma in 1898 in Nagoya, Japan, initially producing noodle-making machines before transitioning to machine tool manufacturing in 1904 [1]. The company adopted its current corporate name, Okuma Corporation, in 1991 [1]. Okuma is known as a single-source provider of CNC machine tools, controls, drives, motors, and automation systems, all manufactured in-house [2].
Design and History
The Okuma logo consists of an abstract symbol paired with a wordmark. The company’s official media resources page provides downloadable logo files and instructs users to prefer the horizontal version of the logo over the vertical (“stacked”) version whenever possible [3].
In 2015, Okuma introduced the brand message “OPEN POSSIBILITIES” [1]. The slogan appears in corporate communications and was displayed prominently in the company’s Dream Site 2 smart factory in Japan [4].
In 2023, Okuma America Corporation retired the name “Partners in THINC” and replaced it with “Partners in Technology,” an evolution of its partner program [5]. The rebranding was described in an Okuma blog post as a journey, with the new program logo featuring a blue section representing Okuma providing a strong foundation with its machine tools and technology [6].
Meaning and Symbolism
According to Jim Kosmala, Okuma America’s vice president of engineering and technology, the logo’s twisting bars signify “the melding of the two electrical and mechanical fields,” a concept central to the company’s engineering philosophy of classical mechatronics [7].
An Okuma America marketing director wrote that the blue in the Okuma logo represents many things, “among them trust, security, order and productivity” [4].
Typography and Design
Okuma’s official media resources page provides logo files in EPS format for download, along with usage instructions [3]. The company’s brand color has been identified as a blue tone with the hexadecimal value #005EB8 [8]. No official documentation of the logo’s typeface or designer has been published by the company.
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