40 years in Battle Creek — DENSO's birthday gift is $250,000 for local homes

DENSO Manufacturing Michigan turned 40 in Battle Creek and celebrated by putting $250,000 into the Battle Creek Housing Fund — a community effort working to build or fix up 1,000 homes by 2035. Company president Shuichi "Shu" Kamakura announced the gift at a commemorative event attended by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga. DENSO opened its first North American factory in Battle Creek in 1986; four decades later it's a 1.38-million-square-foot operation with more than 2,000 employees — the largest employer in Calhoun County — backing the region's push against its housing shortage.