History and Management Philosophy
History
Reltech was founded in 1993 by its founder, Noboru Horiguchi, as a research- and development-oriented medical device manufacturer.Thanks to the favorable reception from customers for its flagship product— a highly unique medical device for healthcare professionals ( a negative potential therapy device equipped with a function to supply electricity to the human body)—the company grew steadily, recording sales of approximately 1.9 billion yen for the fiscal year ending March 2004 and an operating profit of approximately 250 million yen for the fiscal year ending March 2007.
Lertech’s medical devices were typically purchased out-of-pocket by customers suffering from intractable diseases for which standard treatments offered little satisfaction, and used for home treatment under a doctor’s supervision as a form of complementary and alternative medicine. Meanwhile, the founder sought to advance clinical development for the various diseases actually afflicting customers, obtain indications for those specific conditions, and thereby position Lertech’s medical devices as a standard treatment option.This is because, while the current approved indications are limited to the relief of headaches, stiff shoulders, insomnia, and chronic constipation, these indications often do not align with the conditions customers actually wish to treat. Furthermore, the founder believed that, given the specific mechanisms of action of Reltech’s medical devices, they were also suitable for maintaining and promoting health—that is, for general health care.
As described above, the founder—who had always hoped to promote the widespread use of Reltech’s medical devices as a standard treatment and a means of healthcare, thereby contributing to the health of the general public—proceeded with business expansion. Backed by well-received products and strong financial performance, and using borrowed funds as the primary source of capital, the founder pursued initiatives such as conducting clinical research overseas, constructing a new factory and establishing a sales subsidiary in Japan, and setting up production and sales subsidiaries in China.However, due to a lack of funds, none of these initiatives came to fruition, leaving the company with approximately 6.5 billion yen in debt and making it difficult to continue operations.
To restructure its substantial debt, Reltech filed a petition with the Osaka District Court in April 2011 to commence civil rehabilitation proceedings. The company subsequently settled its debts in March 2021 by making repayments in accordance with the rehabilitation plan. However, sales plummeted due to the impact of negative publicity surrounding the bankruptcy, and this, combined with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, has led to sluggish business performance in recent years.
To date, Reltech has conducted four overseas clinical studies using its medical devices (U.S.: chronic hepatitis C [unpublished]; China: HIV infection/AIDS 1 , metabolic syndrome 2 and lactate metabolism 3 ), all of which have yielded favorable results. By leveraging these clinical research findings and our long-standing expertise in the development and manufacture of medical devices for healthcare professionals, we are advancing initiatives to position Reltech products as tools for both standard treatment and health promotion, in line with our founder’s vision.
Management Philosophy
Reason for Existence
We contribute to people’s health through the exploration and application of reduction electron technology.
Vision
Our company is a single-business entity engaged exclusively in the development, manufacture, and sale of medical devices and related products. Therefore, we plan to include our (management) vision on the business page that we will create in the future.
Values We Prioritize
1. Fairness and transparency toward all stakeholders
2. High standards of discipline
3. Sustainable management
4. Proactive and independent thinking and action in response to environmental changes