History
Rakon was founded in 1967 in the garage of its founder, Warren Robinson. From these humble beginnings in Auckland, New Zealand, Rakon has emerged as a world leader in the development and production of crystal and oscillators. Along the way, Rakon has established relationships with some of the world’s leading manufacturers. Rakon has accumulated accolades and awards for innovation and exporting achievements. Rakon has been at the forefront of developments in its field, often leading the way in areas such as miniaturisation and performance.
| DATE | EVENT |
|---|---|
| 2019 | Rakon announces the release of its XMEMS™ technology delivering unprecedented resonator and oscillator performance in terms of stability and noise. Rakon launches the Neptune™ Ultra Stable TCXO family, offering best-in-class frequency stability of ±50ppb and with XMEMS™ crystal resonator technology at the core. |
| 2018 | Centum Rakon India (CRI) acquisition completed May 2018. |
| 2017 | Rakon's 50th anniversary in Hi-Tech Industry. The company was founded in 1967. |
| 2016 |
Rakon announces Siward Technology Company to acquire a 16.6% stake in Rakon, opening up new opportunities for both companies. |
| New products released within ultra-low noise Oven Controlled SAW Oscillator (OCSO) range for radar and instrumentation applications. | |
| 2015 | Rakon announces investment in Thinxtra: An Internet of Things (IoT) company. |
| 2014 | Global restructuring of Rakon's operations undertaken in France, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. |
| 2013 |
Sale of Chengdu factory to ECEC, Rakon exits Smart Wireless Device (SWD) market. Rakon releases new products within its Ultra Stable TCXO product portfolio, which offer 'best in class' performance. |
| 2012 |
Rakon UK Limited, based in Lincoln, wins the coveted 'Queen's Award for Enterprise ‒ International Trade', the UK's highest accolade for business success.
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| Pioneers crystal and sensor technology. | |
| 2011 | Rakon was awarded 'Hi-Tech Company of the Year' and 'Hi-Tech Company of the Decade' at the NZ Hi-Tech Awards. |
| Rakon is the first company to twice win 'Hi-Tech Company of the Year' in the Award’s 17 year history. | |
| Rakon UK wins 'Lincolnshire Business of the Year Award'. | |
| Rakon wins 'Supreme Award' and 'Endace Hi-Tech Exporter of the Year Award 2011' at the Air New Zealand Cargo Export Awards Auckland 2011. | |
| Rakon receives the Judges Choice Award at the Femto Forum Femtocell Awards 2011. | |
| 2010 | Rakon begins construction of facility in China. |
| Rakon acquires Temex: renowned worldwide as designers and producers of high precision and high reliability frequency solutions for space & defense applications. | |
| Rakon announces world's smallest (9.7 x 7.5 mm package) and first Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) based OCXO, incorporating patented 'Mercury' ASIC technology. | |
| Record shipments in NZ and UK history. | |
| ISO 14001 awarded to Rakon NZ. | |
| Rakon Temex awarded ESCC 33k and ESCC 34k. | |
| 2009 | TS16949 certification awarded to Rakon NZ. |
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Develops Ultra Stable Oscillator (USO) technology for space applications resulting in the best performance possible (5.10-14/◦C) by any space USO globally. |
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| 2008 | ISO 14001 awarded to Rakon UK. |
| Rakon enters into a joint venture with Indian owned and based Centum Electronics Limited to manufacture selected Rakon products alongside Centum's existing Frequency Control Products (FCP) in Bangalore, India. | |
| 2007 | Rakon acquires the Frequency Control Products division of C-MAC MicroTechnology, providing Rakon with further leading market positions in the supply of crystal oscillators to the telecommunications, network timing/synchronisation, beacons and aerospace markets. |
| 2006 | World’s smallest GPS radio frequency receiver module developed. |
| UK office opened to service the European market. Rakon listed on NZSX in May 2006. | |
| 2005 | Won the 2005 'New Zealand Supreme Exporter of the Year' award. |
| Rakon also won the 'Information and Communication Technology Exporter of the Year' award. | |
| A Peter Maire led consortium purchased a 20% stake in Rakon. | |
| 2004 | Reduced the size of world’s smallest 0.5 ppm stability TCXO to 3.2 x 2.5 mm. |
| Taiwanese marketing office opened to service South East Asian customers. | |
| 2003 | Rakon was awarded 'New Zealand’s Hi Tech Supreme Award for Excellence'. |
| Rakon also won the 'New Zealand Electronic Company of the Year Award'. | |
| First to introduce the 0.5 ppm stability TCXO in a 5.0 x 3.2 mm size. | |
| First Ultra Stable TCXO incorporating patented 'Pluto' ASIC technology offering 'best in class performance' including 0.1 ppm stability. | |
| 2002 | Opened marketing office in Chicago to service North American and European customers. |
| Secured sole supply position for Motorola’s first GPS/mobile phone and established United States office. | |
| 2001 | Established as supplier to Motorola’s automotive GPS business. |
| Introduced world's smallest (7.0 x 5.0 mm) 0.5 ppm stability TCXO and dominates Personal Navigation Device (PND) market. | |
| Rakon doubled the size of the clean room and commissioned an expanded SMT strip crystal line. | |
| 2000 | Factory expanded to increase production capacity of new IC type TCXO and strip crystals. |
| 1997 | Developed TCXO integrated circuit (IC) technology. |
| 1995 | Developed new strip crystal technology and RSX line. Manufacturing facilities in Singapore closed. |
| Rakon introduces the first dual crystal oscillator with 0.1 ppm stability. | |
| 1994 | New factory built in Auckland to deliver larger volumes with higher standards. |
| Recognised by Rockwell as a 'Top Supplier for Commitment to Excellence', as well as winning a New Zealand Export Award. | |
| 1993 | Achieved 1 ppm TCXO market acceptance with most major GPS manufacturers in North America. |
| 1991 | Major US GPS manufacturers Magellan and Rockwell began ordering large volumes of Rakon’s 1 ppm TCXOs for GPS applications. |
| 1990 | Technology breakthrough leads to manufacturing of oscillators with previously unmatched miniaturisation and 1 ppm frequency stability. |
| Rakon Limited was incorporated. | |
| 1989 | Started supplying NEC Australia with TCXOs for early mobile phone applications. |
| Manufacturing facilities in Australia closed. | |
| 1980 | Evaluation of global communication technology identified demand for high performance frequency control devices. |
| 1977 | Manufacturing commenced in Melbourne, Australia. |
| 1975 | New Zealand and Singapore operations combined to provide low cost crystals to NZ colour TV manufacturers. |
| 1972 | A subsidiary was established in Singapore to supply the Asian market. This reduced operating costs and enabled Rakon to competitively export to other SE Asian countries, Europe and the US. |
| 1967 | Rakon Industries Limited was incorporated by Warren Robinson. The business was founded in the garage of his Howick home. In the 1960s and 1970s Rakon developed channel crystals for radio telephones (in boats, taxis and other commercial vehicles). Rakon made and developed its own unique manufacturing and test equipment, enabling products to be produced more efficiently and delivered faster than its competitors. |
