page_title: NGK
section_title: Europe
hierarchical_section_title: NGK / Operations / Europe
caption_attribution_description: English: NGK SPARK PLUG EUROPE’s EMEA headquarters in Ratingen, Germany
context_page_description: The NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd. is a public company established in 1936 and based in Nagoya, Japan. NGK manufactures and sells spark plugs and related products for internal combustion engines, along with ceramics and applicable products.
  As of March 2007, the company employed 10,407 people, and operated a network of 7 liaison offices, 12 sales offices, 13 production sites and 2 technical centers worldwide. NGK Spark Plugs was founded as a spin-off of the spark plug division of NGK Insulators. Originally, NGK supplied most of its products to Japanese automakers.
  In 2018 the company became a shareholder of aftermarket data firm TecAlliance.
  NGK stands for Nippon Gaishi kabushikigaisha, the Japanese name of NGK Insulators.
context_section_description: NGK established its first European subsidiary, NGK Spark Plugs (U.K.) Ltd. in 1975. In 1979 they established their second European subsidiary, NGK Spark Plug Deutschland GmbH, in Germany. Ten years later it was renamed NGK Spark Plug Europe GmbH when it took charge of operations in Europe. In 2017 its remit further expanded across the EMEA region. 
  NGK Spark Plug Europe has been run by Managing Director Masaki Sumiya since 2013 and it employs more than 800 people. 
  The company has ten group companies, two production plants in France and South Africa and a Technical Center in Germany. Its European sales account for 26% of NGK Spark Plug’s global turnover.
  The European division has been operating a dedicated R&D unit since 1990. As well as designing and testing new prototype automotive products, the center develops technologies to combat issues such as vehicle exhaust emissions, and provides technical support to European car manufacturers. 
  Since 2000, NGK Spark Plug Europe in Ratingen operates its own logistics center. It has a plant with 6,000 m² (65,000 sq ft) of surface area and produces 25 million spark plugs as well as glowplugs for diesel motors.
caption: NGK SPARK PLUG EUROPE’s EMEA headquarters in Ratingen, Germany
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