Sharp Corporate Information

Background

The Sharp Corporation was founded in 1912 by Tokuji Hayakawa

and takes its name from one of our founder's first inventions, the
Ever Sharp propelling pencil, developed in 1915.

Sharp has continued this creative tradition, developing

technologically innovative products to enhance our lives, add to
our comfort, broaden our perspectives and boost our productivity.

Sharp is recognized for its pioneering research into Liquid Crystal

Display (LCD) technology. Sharp introduced the first LCD
electronic calculator back in 1973.

Since then, it has continued to develop revolutionary LCD

products such as the ViewCam, Ultra-Lite notebook pc and
touch-screen personal organizers.

Perhaps the best illustration of the impact of liquid crystal display

technology on product development is with the simple calculator.

Sharp introduced the world's first all-transistor desktop calculator

in 1964. By 1979, just 15 years later, Sharp announced the
world's first super-thin (1.6mm) card sized calculator.

Today, Sharp leads the way in LCD and is a worldwide developer

of core technologies that will play an integral role in the
development of digital technology such as optoelectronics,
infrared, semiconductors and flash memory.

Facts and Figures

Sharp dedicates its total resources to the development and

manufacture of electronic equipment. It can claim one of the
widest ranges of business and lifestyle product portfolios under a
single brand name in the world.

The Corporation employs 66,700 staff, of which nearly half are

employed outside Japan. It operates from 64 bases in 30
countries and its products are distributed to 164 countries
worldwide.

Research and Development

Sharp's continued success results directly from the emphasis it

places on research and development. The corporation dedicates
10% of its gross profit and employs 8,200 researchers in the
effort to design products that will enhance our leisure and
working lives both now and well into the 21st century.
Complementing the research facilities in Japan and the USA,
Sharp Laboratories of Europe (SLE) is based on the Oxford
Science Park employing around 60 scientists. SLE contributes to
the Corporation's core technologies such as LCD, 3D imaging
displays and optoelectronics.

Environment

Looking towards future product development, Sharp Corporation is

wholly committed to protecting the environment and conserving
energy.

Our goal is to minimize the environmental impact of our products

by continually implementing and improving product technologies,
designs and programs aimed at conservation.

This is achieved by evaluating each step of the product life cycle,

from the materials used in the manufacture and packaging of our
products, to the amount of energy the products consume and the
manner in which they may be recycled and eventually disposed of.