[1] Hunter intended to build a company which was completely self-sufficient, and also produced engines, boilers, bridges and irrigation equipment.

An additional facility was established downstream on the Aji river at Sakurajima in 1900 to handle construction of vessels larger than 1000 tons.

[4] While most of the lucrative contracts for naval warships for the Imperial Japanese Navy went to Osaka Iron Work’s competitors, the company did build a large number of smaller auxiliary vessels such as minesweepers, landing craft, transport submarines and was involved in the conversion of old merchant ships for military use.

After the surrender of Japan at the end of World War II, under the SCAP's economic democratization policy (dissolution of the zaibatsu and large business enterprises), the company was spun out from Hitachi, Ltd. in 1947.

In the shipbuilding field, Hitachi began to specialize in ever larger sizes of oil tankers, pioneering in methods for computer assisted design and modular, automated construction techniques.

However, with rising material costs and losses due to fixed price contracts, high overhead and redundant facilities meant that the company had to restructure from the 1980s.

[6] The company also made strong efforts to diversify away from the shipbuilding roots, expanding especially into industrial and municipal waste disposal facilities.

In March 2021, Hitachi Zosen unveiled a solid-state battery with a capacity of 1000mAh, which the company reckoned is the world's highest in its kind.