About Us

What is Telempu?

“Telempu” is the name of a mohair pile velvet used for seat covers and wall decoration. It is the most luxurious textile of its type. It was formerly used for the seat covers of the Imperial train, and it still can be found in a few rooms in the Imperial Palace and the National Diet Building. The word “Telempu” comes from the Dutch word “trijp”, which is said to be derived from Arabic, and it is pronounced as tripe in French and Anglo-English. In 1958, the Dutch word trijp was translated as velude (velvet in English) in the Japanese-Dutch Dictionary, and eight years later it was again translated as telempu. In 1904, the word “Telempu” became a standardized Japanese word in “the Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) Textile Terminology.

Employees

500 (October 2020)

Headquarters

Plymouth, MI

U.S. Plant Locations

History

  • AMTEX established (Hayashi - Masland Joint Venture)

  • Manteca Facility operational

  • Hayashi of America established

  • Ohio Facility operational

  • Masland acquired by Lear (Hayashi - Lear Joint Venture)

  • Reyes-Amtex Automotive operational

  • HAYASHI CANADA operational

  • Hayashi purchased Lear Shares (Hayashi’s 100% Subsidiary)

  • AMTEX R&D Center launched

  • Alabama Facility operational

  • AMTEX merged HAYASHI OF AMERICA

  • AMTEX changes a company name into HAYASHI TELEMPU NORTH AMERICA (HTNA) and relocates the headquarters from Ohio to Michigan.

  • Frankfort Facility operational