The Japan Society for Heat Treatment

What The Japan Society for Heat Treatment does

The Japan Society for Heat Treatment (一般社団法人 日本熱処理技術協会) is a private, member-supported nonprofit professional association founded in 1960 and headquartered at Tekko Kaikan, Nihombashikayaba-cho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo. It conducts research, education, and industry promotion across heat treatment and surface modification technologies — covering fundamentals through to cutting-edge techniques for material and surface property enhancement. The organization serves heat-treatment manufacturers, academic and research institutions, and emerging professionals in Japan, with limited international extension via IFHTSE (International Federation for Heat Treatment and Surface Engineering) participation.

Its core "products" are programmatic rather than physical or software: the peer-reviewed journal "Netsushori" (Heat Treatment) hosted on J-STAGE, multi-year research committees (currently covering next-generation carburizing, martensite toughening, nitrogen-based heat treatment, low-distortion carburizing quenching, and mobility-sector heat treatment), annual lecture conferences, seminars and training courses, regional branch activities (e.g., the Chubu Branch Heat Treatment Contest), published technical books, and the periodic IFHTSE International Congress (the 28th edition hosted in Yokohama in November 2023). Underlying technology is domain-specialization in metallurgy and surface engineering; the society also maintains a publicly available heat treatment simulation cooling-agent database developed by a 2016-2018 research committee.

The business model is a hybrid of recurring annual membership dues (regular, sustaining/corporate, student, and foreign tiers — restructured January 2025), event-based fees (lecture conference attendance, the biennial IFHTSE Congress with disclosed tiered pricing at ¥80,000 / ¥70,000 / ¥35,000, corporate exhibitions at ¥100,000 per booth, conference dinners, and optional tours), and one-time publication/book sales. Distribution is direct via a proprietary membership management system (jsht.smoosy.atlas.jp) and across regional branches. The organization is governed by a board of directors with annual ordinary general meetings, the 49th of which convened in June 2026; it carries 1-10 employees, no parent company, no subsidiaries, and no disclosed external institutional ownership.

Name

The Japan Society for Heat Treatment

Legal name

一般社団之法 日本熱処理技術協会

Website

https://jsht.or.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1960

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Japan Society for Heat Treatment is a Tokyo-based, member-supported nonprofit association (founded 1960) that advances heat treatment and surface modification technologies through peer-reviewed journals, multi-year research committees, annual conferences, and IFHTSE-affiliated international programs for industry, academia, and students.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Metal Heat Treating (332811), Coating, Engraving, Heat Treating, and Allied Activities (3328)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Industrial Process Furnaces & Ovens (3567)

akta.pro primary industry

Heat Exchangers & Thermal Transfer Equipment (IMAHAKAC)

Keywords

• Heat treatment research
• Surface engineering
• Metallurgical conferences
• Materials science education
• Thermal processing technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Annual Membership Dues (年会費): Association operates primarily through membership fees from regular members, sustaining members, and student members. Fee restructuring was announced in January 2025.
2. Conference and Event Fees: Revenue from IFHTSE Congress attendance fees (¥80,000 regular, ¥70,000 reduced, ¥35,000 student), corporate exhibitions (¥100,000), conference dinners, and optional tours.
3. Publications and Books: Sales of association-published books and technical materials.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Japan Society for Heat Treatment (一般社団法人 日本熱処理技術協会) is a nonprofit professional association that advances heat treatment and surface modification technology through research, investigation, and education. It delivers value to members through its official academic journal "Netsushori," seminars and training programs, annual lecture conferences, collaborative research committees, international IFHTSE congress hosting, regional branch activities, and technical publications.

Product overview

The Japan Society for Heat Treatment (日本熱処理技術協会) is a professional association that does not operate a software product but provides services including academic journal publication (熱処理), seminars and training programs, annual conferences, collaborative research through study groups, international conference hosting (IFHTSE), and technical publications. The society focuses on material and surface modification through heat treatment technologies, conducting research, education, and technical dissemination from basic to cutting-edge levels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Netsushori (Heat Treatment) Journal

Quantifiable outcome

• Five active research committees operating with published results and cooling agent database available to public

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• IFHTSE (International Federation for Heat Treatment and Surface Engineering)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 November 2023JSHT is a member and active participant in IFHTSE. The association hosted the 28th IFHTSE Congress in Yokohama (November 13-16, 2023), which brings together heat treatment professionals from around the world. The congress included paper presentations, corporate exhibitions, and special issues published in collaboration with IFHTSE.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Surface Engineering Association: UK-based association serving the surface engineering and heat treatment industry. Directly comparable in mission, membership services, and conference-based engagement model to JSHT.
• The Iron and Steel Institute of Japan (ISIJ): Japan's leading professional society for iron and steel technology, with similar member-driven academic model, conferences, and journals. Highly relevant given heat treatment's central role in steel processing applications.
• ASM International: US-based professional society for materials scientists and engineers, with a Heat Treating Society division. Comparable to JSHT in operating a membership-based model with conferences, journals, and research committees focused on materials engineering.
• The Japan Institute of Metals and Materials (JIM): Japanese professional society for metals and materials science. Closest domestic peer to JSHT, with overlapping member base, academic journal publications, conferences, and research committee activities in materials engineering.
• TMS (The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society): US-based international professional society for minerals, metals, and materials science. Comparable to JSHT in operating conferences, journals, and member-driven technical committees covering heat treatment-related metallurgy.

Regional players

• Deutsche Gesellschaft für Materialkunde (DGM): Germany's primary professional society for materials science and engineering. Operates conferences, journals, and technical committees with a similar membership model to JSHT, focused on the German-speaking industrial market.
• Indian Institute of Metals (IIM): India's leading professional body for metallurgical and materials engineers. Comparable membership, conference, and publication model to JSHT, serving the Indian industrial market rather than competing directly in Japan.

Others

• International Federation for Heat Treatment and Surface Engineering (IFHTSE): International umbrella organization of which JSHT is a member, organizing global congresses on heat treatment and surface engineering. Listed as 'others' rather than peer because it serves as an umbrella body rather than a direct competitor society.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Japan Society for Heat Treatment