Sony’s Sensor Factory Is Back to Full Operation After Major Earthquake

Last month, a major 6.8 earthquake struck Kumamoto, Japan. It caused serious damage to multiple structures and forced the evacuation of Sony Semiconductor’s facility, which is located in the region. Nearly a month later, the factory has returned to full operating capacity.

“Operations at Sony Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation’s Kumamoto Technology Center (located in Kikuyo-machi, Kumamoto Prefecture), were halted after the earthquake on July 28, and currently remain suspended. Damage to the site’s building and manufacturing lines is currently being evaluated,” Sony said shortly after the earthquake.

“No significant damage to buildings or facilities has been confirmed at the company’s Nagasaki Technology Center (located in Isahaya City, Nagasaki Prefecture), Oita Technology Center (located in Oita City and Kunisaki City, Oita Prefecture), and Kagoshima Technology Center (located in Kirishima City, Kagoshima Prefecture).”

There were also no casualties, but out of caution and for reasons that might be related to how manufacturing hardware operates, restarting the facility would take time. But, despite this, Sony was able to partially reopen the factory on August 4. That said, it would take weeks to get the facility up and running fully.

“Sony Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation’s Kumamoto Technology Center (located in Kikuyo-machi, Kumamoto Prefecture), which temporarily was halted after the earthquake, has completed safety inspections of its buildings and facilities, and has been carrying out recovery work. As a result, the site is scheduled to resume operations in stages beginning August 4, 2026. The Kumamoto Technology Center is expected to return to its pre-earthquake operating level by mid-August 2026,” the company said on July 31.

That staged re-opening appears to have been completed about on schedule, as the factory now reports that it has returned to normal operation. As reported by YOL, and spotted by Digital Camera Info, everything is back in order.

It is worth pointing out that the last time a major earthquake forced the closure of Sony’s sensor plant, it caused a months-long delay that resulted in cascading supply chain issues for every camera brand that sourced its sensors from Sony Semiconductor. The fact that no machinery or building structures were damaged in this latest earthquake is likely why the factory was able to get up and running again so quickly.

Still, it’s likely that losing the facility entirely for a couple of weeks and lacking full production capacity for nearly a month won’t be without its effects. It might take longer than expected to get the Sony FX5 production up to meet the high pre-order demand, for example.