When Shimizu was founded in 1804 by Kisuke Shimizu I, Tokyo was still known by its ancient name of Edo (“estuary” or “entrance to the bay.”). Foreshadowing the prominence the company would later achieve, in the 1800s its founder helped rebuild the Edo Castle, which would evolve into today’s Imperial Palace, the home of Japan’s Emperor.
In 1884—suggestive of its commitment to Japanese craft—Shimizu opened a lumber cutting and assembly facility (now Tokyo Mokkoujou Arts & Crafts Furnishings). Shimizu is the only major construction company in Japan to have its own carpentry workshop facility. With today’s emerging importance of wood buildings, Shimizu applies its knowledge of Japanese woodworking toward the sustainable and newly prominent heavy timber market worldwide.
By the 1950s and 1960s, Shimizu was undertaking some of Japan’s most complex construction projects, including the National Museum of Western Art (designed by Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier) and the Yoyogi National Stadium, built for the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo (designed by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange).
Shimizu North America was established in 1974 to help international manufacturers expanding into the United States, Mexico and Canada. Through its offices in New York and Los Angeles, it quickly established itself as a top international contractor in the North American market.
In those early days, the company’s west coast operation focused on supporting the booming technology sector, while the east coast team was busy helping a robust automotive sector expand along the I-75 corridor.
By the 1990s, Shimizu had opened new offices in Portland, Vancouver, Toronto, Tijuana, Atlanta and Detroit. And in 2001, it centralized its operations in Atlanta, Georgia.
Strategically positioned to support rapid industrial growth in the South, Shimizu is playing a critical role in helping international companies build advanced manufacturing facilities across the region and the entire North American continent.
In 2020, Shimizu acquired Perigon International, a North Carolina-based engineering firm—adding industrial process integration and turnkey EPC services to our North American portfolio. In 2025, Shimizu acquired Cross Management Corporation, a New York City-based construction management firm, as we continue to grow in the commercial sector. Today, the Shimizu group continues to add talent and new skills as it addresses the changing needs of a growing and evolving economy.
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