Masao Horiba

was a Japanese businessman who was the founder of Horiba Ltd., a manufacturer of advanced analytical and measurement technology. He founded the company as Horiba Radio Laboratory in 1945. Masao Horiba received several awards from the Japanese government including a national Blue Ribbon Medal, and was the first non-American to receive the Pittcon Heritage Award. As a child, Horiba suffered from juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. He attended Kyoto Teachers' School's Elementary School and Konan Junior High and Senior High Schools in Kobe, Japan.

Establishing a company Horiba, who was in his second year at Kyoto University, left the university in 1945 to start his own business, Horiba Radio Laboratory (HRL). In addition to producing electronic parts and repairing electronic instruments, they reconditioned batteries. MEXA systems were bought by Mercedes-Benz in Germany, and Renault in France. Masao Horiba was also a founder and past president of the Association of Asian Business Incubation (AABI) which encourages support of initiatives throughout Asia, not just in Japan.

Death On July 14, 2015, Horiba died in his sleep at the age of 90.

Awards The Masao Horiba Awards were established through the Horiba company to recognize young scientists in analytical science, outside the group companies, "who are devoting themselves to research and development of innovative technology in analysis and measurement."

In 1982, Horiba received the Blue Ribbon Medal of Honor from the Government of Japan, awarded to individuals who have made significant achievements in public service or public welfare.

In recognition of his entrepreneurship and contributions to scientific instrumentation and to society, Masao Horiba was awarded the Pittcon Heritage Award in 2006, at the Pittsburgh Conference on Analytical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy and the Chemical Heritage Foundation. The award is given to those "whose entrepreneurial careers shaped the instrumentation community, inspired achievement, promoted public understanding of the modern instrumentation sciences, and highlighted the role of analytical chemistry in world economies." Masao Horiba is the first non-American to receive the Pittcon Award.